Over the holidays I was watching TV with my kids and an
advertisement came on for a prescription drug for Psoriasis. It struck me, as
the voice over was listing the possible side effects associated with that
particular drug, that the medical industry has a very warped sense of what is
safe. I am no doctor, but to me, it seems silly, even hypocritical, to say that
these drugs are safer than UV. Not that
they were comparing the two, but what I have heard Dermatologists claim about
tanning versus a product they promote to treat a skin condition is double talk.
Let me explain what I mean.
When I testified last year at 2 legislative hearings to ban anyone under
18 from tanning, there were Dermatologists there testifying about the dangers
of sunbed use. They talked about skin
cancer, of course, and how terrible it is to treat a young person with the
disease. Not one of them testified that they had treated young people with skin
cancer that was a direct result of using sunbeds; they just implied that it
could have been preventable and that young people tan in salons so connect the
dots and you come up with tanning causes cancer so there should be a law
against it. Now, these doctors use
sunbeds regularly to treat psoriasis and the treatment is meant to burn the
skin. That procedure known as Phototherapy actually increases a person’s risk
of skin cancer by 96%, but they don’t want their use of sunbeds to be regulated
or banned. That seems pretty hypocritical to me.
They also prescribe medications to treat the skin condition. I decided
to look up the adverse reactions listed with the prescription Humira as an
example. I have simply copied and pasted the information I found below:
Get emergency medical help if you have any of
these signs of an allergic reaction: hives; difficulty
breathing; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat.
·
fever, night sweats, weight loss, tiredness;
·
feeling full after eating only a small amount;
·
pain in your upper stomach that may spread to your shoulder;
·
easy bruising or bleeding, pale skin, feeling light-headed or
short of breath, rapid heart rate; or
·
nausea, upper stomach pain, itching, loss of appetite, dark urine,
clay-colored stools, jaundice (yellowing of the skin or eyes).
Stop using adalimumab and call your doctor at once if you have any
of these other serious side effects:
·
signs of infection (fever, chills, sore throat, vomiting,
diarrhea, flu symptoms);
·
shortness of breath with swelling of your ankles or feet;
·
confusion, neck stiffness, seizure (convulsions);
·
pain or burning when you urinate;
·
chest pain, ongoing cough, coughing up mucus or blood;
·
numbness or tingly feeling, weakness in your legs;
·
red, purple, or scaly skin rash, hair loss, joint or muscle pain, mouth
sores;
·
joint pain or swelling with fever, swollen glands, muscle aches,
vomiting, unusual thoughts or behavior, and/or seizure (convulsions); or
·
patchy skin color, red spots, or a butterfly-shaped skin rash over
your cheeks and nose (worsens in sunlight).
This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur.
Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects.
Now, interestingly enough, as I am
writing this, the commercial came on the TV. The side effects listed above make
no mention of possible cancer, but the TV commercial does. I also looked up some other Psoriasis
medications and they listed the same kind of adverse reactions and mentioned
cancer. One had the disclaimer highlighted below.
Remember that your doctor has prescribed this medication
because he or she has judged that the benefit to you is greater than the risk
of side effects. Many people using this medication do not have serious side
effects.
I do understand there is some risk with
every medication, but the point I want to make is that these doctors are the
ones saying there is no such thing as a good tan, or UV in any amount is
dangerous. They are not being honest with themselves or with their patients,
that there could be benefits to UV exposure that would outweigh the minimal
risk of cancer. They are ignoring the evidence that a healthy Vitamin D level
is essential to combat many different diseases including several forms of
cancer. They ignore the fact that UV exposure is the most efficient and
effective method to get and maintain a healthy Vitamin D level. Instead, they
are taking the position that any and all UV exposure will lead to cancer. But if
that were true, every one of our ancestors would have died from skin cancer.
Think about it. How did humanity survive for thousands of years before the
invention of sunscreen?
So, how is it ok for Dermatologists to
say to lawmakers that sunbed use should be banned for anyone under 18, but they
should be allowed to use the exact same equipment without restriction? Let’s
not kid ourselves, if they could outlaw professional salons completely for all
ages, they would. I do believe that will be coming up in the future if they have
success with the teen bans.
