Listen to your mother and put on your sunscreen.
New research shows fewer teens are putting on sunscreen. In that same vein, the number of teens using indoor tanning beds has barely decreased.
Failure to put on sunscreen and the use of indoor tanning beds are both related to an increased risk of developing skin cancers including melanomas.
According to the study published in Preventing Chronic Disease, researchers at William Paterson University in New Jersey found the number of high school students using sunscreen dropped from 67.7 percent to 56.1 percent between 2001 and 2011.
During approximately this same time frame, 2001-2010, the number of melanoma cases, the most dangerous form of skin cancer, increased 1.6 percent annually among men and 1.4 percent among women.
"It's alarming," said Corey Basch, one of the study authors. "Given that the rates of skin cancer and melanoma are going up, we would have liked to have seen sun protection measures also going up."
Basch said she isn't clear on the reasons for decreased sunscreen use among teens, but hopes that future research will examine why.
"High school years are important years that can impact the future," Basch said. "High school students are starting to make decisions for themselves. This research and other research suggest that adolescents continue to put themselves at risk."
She said these findings also show that society needs to change its mindset that artificially tanned skin is attractive.
Additionally, she said that the number of respondents who reported using tanning devices dropped from 15.6 percent to 13.3 percent, but since the decrease was so small, it's not considered a significant drop.
Dr. Jeanine Daly, a dermatologist not involved in the study, said it is surprising that there is a drop in sunscreen use, especially in light of all the warnings about ultraviolet exposure and skin cancer.
"No matter how hard we've been trying to get that message out, we need to keep at it and work harder," she said. "The bottom line is that skin cancer is largely preventable."
She suggested that people use sunscreen that covers both UVA and UVB rays - usually the presence of zinc in the sunscreen is a good indicator of that. She also said that a tube of sunscreen should only last about a day, but some people use one tube all summer. She said this is an indication that people are not using nearly enough sunscreen.
