Sunbeds carry a skin cancer risk twice that of the mid-day Mediterranean sun, researchers warn today.
One sunbed was found to be six times as dangerous as the heat of the Mediterranean, researchers said.
The findings come from tests of levels of ultra-violet radiation in sunbeds in England.
Researchers tested 400 sunbeds and found that 90% had levels of radiation above national and European standards – with levels on average twice the recommended limit.
The research, published in the British Journal of Dermatology, was backed by Cancer Research UK.
Researcher Professor Harry Moseley, of Dundee University, Scotland, said: “The development of high-power sunlamps, along with clear failures of the sunbed industry to regulate themselves effectively, is putting young people at an even greater risk of skin cancer than we previously thought.
“We hope that these findings will make people think twice before using sunbeds as you can’t be sure how much radiation you’re exposing yourself to when you try to top-up a tan.
"People need to be encouraged to take better care of their skin, otherwise the cases of malignant melanoma, the most dangerous form of skin cancer, will continue to increase in England."
Yinka Ebo, of Cancer Research UK, said: “Research has already shown that using sunbeds for the first time before the age of 35 increases the risk of malignant melanoma by 87 per cent.
"They’re not going to do you any good – the best case scenario is that they’ll age and damage your skin; the worst case scenario is a cancer diagnosis and potentially death."
* A second study last night condemned smartphone apps that claim to offer testing for melanoma.
Researchers warned the apps could simply lead to people delaying seeking a proper diagnosis of the disease.
The study, reported in JAMA Dermatology found that three out of four apps wrongly diagnosed as many as 30% of melanomas as "unconcerning".
Only one application was found to work – but this charged five dollars a time to send images to dermatologists for evaluation.
P Tierney et al. Nine out of ten sunbeds in England emit UV radiation levels that exceed current safety limits. British Journal of Dermatology 17 January 2013; doi:10.1111/bjd.12181
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