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Since, the initial
phase of the tanning boom, always a bigger percentage of girls are
seen being big time into it than the boys. This phenomenon has
continued till the present times. The tanning craze is far more
evident in girls. Some looks conscious boys are also seen to venture
into this domain on a sporadic basis. However, if the gender ratio of
the people indulging in tanning is considered, girls out number boys
on every occasion.
The producers of
tanning products also target the female populace predominantly. Their
advertisements are conceived so as to lure the girls into using their
products. The girls too respond to it by falling head over heels in
order to get a tan. Long since the findings of a comprehensive
research came out, conscious people have been crying hoarse over the
prospective, ill-effects of using products like tanning beds.
However, the girls have hardly been deterred. More than one third of
the total number of girls is known to have used tanning beds at least
once. A considerable percentage of them use it more than two or three
times. In comparison to girls, boys use tanning beds many times less.
Barely more than 10% boys have used them at least once and about 7%
have used them more than three times.
Another conspicuous trend in the girls
tanning phenomenon is that girls show an increased inclination
towards using tanning services with the progression of age. Only a
small number of girls in their early teens visit tanning salons. When
they approach the last phase of their teens, the visits increase
noticeably. More than 40% of girls of the 19—20 age group visit
salons more than three times.
This trend is an insidious one,
especially due to the fact that during the formative years, the
ultraviolet factor may cause formidable harm to the skin. Some people
have proposed a tax on teenage salon users with a view to discourage
them from availing frequent tanning services. However, this step has
not yet shown inspiring results, as is evident from the stability in
the number of the teenage tanning users. Girls still continue to
throng the tanning salons, blissfully oblivious of the health risks
associated with it.
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