Anti-tanning campaign wins international award
The Cancer Institute's graphic anti-tanning campaign 'There's nothing healthy about a tan' has won an international Sulzberger Institute sun safety award.
Cancer Institute NSW cancer prevention manager, Anita Dessaix
said the award is international recognition of the incredible
impact the Cancer Institute's campaigns are having both here and
overseas.
"There's nothing healthy about a tan
has contributed to a change in teenagers tanning behaviours in the
three years it has been on air in New South Wales.
"More teenagers in NSW are seeking shade, wearing protective
clothing, using sunglasses and sunscreen than six years ago.
"But the campaign is having a far greater reach than just New
South Wales through licensing of the campaigns and popularity of
social media. Winning this award is proof that the message is
cutting through."
The announcement came as part of the 68th annual meeting of the
American Academy of
Dermatology. The Sulzberger Institute sun safety video contest
is judged by an expert panel based on delivery of the message,
marketing savvy and production quality.
The contest was created by a group of dermatologists dedicated
to promoting sun safety education, particularly to teenagers.
When the 2005 Australian Secondary School Alcohol and Drug
survey revealed a picture of wide-spread complacency about the
risks associated with unprotected exposure to ultraviolet (UV)
radiation - be it from the sun or artificial tanning devices such
as solariums - the need for challenging the desirability for a tan
was clear.
View
'There's nothing healthy about a tan' online.
The Cancer Institute's There's nothing healthy about a
tan campaign challenges the misconception that a tan is
healthy by showing the damage that can happen to the skin even
before there are signs of burning.
"While the basic 'slip, slop, slap' message remains the same,
the central task for the campaign is to make this message relevant
to everyone, tackling the growing 'it can't happen to me' mentality
and the belief that a tan is healthy," said Ms Dessaix.
"When the campaign went to air few people were regularly taking
even the basic steps to protect themselves from the sun with 31 per
cent of people feeling more healthy with a tan.
"The campaign is changing these behaviours. As awareness of the
dangers associated with tanning grow, young people are becoming
more sun smart and less likely to desire a tan.
"However we need to keep working with all young people, to make
sure the message is getting across."
Prefers no suntan
Percentage growth of NSW students aged 12-17 who prefer no
suntan, from 15% in 1993 to 35% in 2008.
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