FDA rules that tanning beds must have warning labels

Tanning salons across the country are scrambling to comply with the FDA’s decision to require all tanning beds to carry warning labels that caution against people below the age of 18 years old using them. The UV-soaked beds have been found to increase the risk of skin cancer, which has become most common form of cancer in the country. 

“The FDA has taken an important step today to address the risk to public health from sunlamp products,” Dr. Jeffrey Shuren, director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, stated in a press release. “Repeated UV exposure from sunlamp products poses a risk of skin cancer for all users, but the highest risk for skin cancer is in young persons under the age of 18 and people with a family history of skin cancer.”

Vermont, New York and New Jersey are among a select few states that have already banned the use of tanning beds for minors. The Center for Disease Control estimates that roughly 13 percent of high-school aged youth have used tanning beds. The FDA’s decision to mandate labeling on the beds was originally proposed in May of 2013.

The FDA decision also requires manufactures to warn in their advertisements and marketing materials that the use of tanning devices carries an increased risk of developing skin cancer. Instead of ordering a new stock of marketing collateral, simply adding a freshly-printed warning label complies with FDA regulations. 

Tanning bed manufacturers and sellers should consider investing in an in-house color label printer in order to comply with the recent legislation. Custom label printing allows companies in any industry to quickly adapt to changes in labeling requirements.