CIEH urges sunbed ban for all local authority facilities

Sunbeds should be banned in all local authority facilities, according to the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH).

The CIEH claims that sunbeds pose a significant health risk to consumers and that local authorities should be adopting active sun awareness campaigns instead.

“Skin cancer is a major problem in the UK and, by using sunbeds, people are increasing the risk of contracting skin cancer, damaging their immune system and experiencing premature skin ageing,” says CIEH policy officer, Jenny Morris, “As a lead player in protecting public health, it seems wholly inappropriate for local authorities to make money from the provision of sunbeds.”

But Kathy Banks, secretary of the The Sunbed Association (TSA), the body that promotes self-regulation and good practice in the UK indoor tanning industry, defends the responsible use of sunbeds: “There is absolutely no evidence to suggest that responsible use of sunbeds alone contributes to health concerns including skin cancer. On this basis, I don’t understand why local authorities would seek to remove a service that millions of UK adults use each year.”