For more than 30 years, SunSmart’s been educating Victorians about the dangers of UV exposure.
Beginning with the iconic 1980s ‘Slip, Slop, Slap’ campaign which later expanded to include ‘Seek’ and ‘Slide’ the message has become part of our national identity, helping to shift attitudes toward sun exposure and tanning over time.
The latest data shows public health efforts are having a positive impact.
Results from the most recent Australian Secondary Students’ Alcohol and Drug (ASSAD) Survey1, conducted by our Centre for Behavioural Research in Cancer (CBRC), found that there’s been a significant decline in Victorian students’ attitudes towards tanning, with 85 per cent of Victorian high school students reporting liking a suntan in 1993 compared with 57 per cent in 2022-23.
Too many young people continue to chase a tan with one in three secondary school students attempting to get a tan in the summer before the survey, and 42 per cent of women students surveyed agreeing “most of my friends think a suntan is a good thing.”
Head of SunSmart at Cancer Council Victoria, Emma Glassenbury, said the findings reflect both progress and areas for ongoing attention. “We’ve come a long way in educating young people about the dangers of tanning,” she said.
“But this new research shows many students, especially women students, are still seeking a tan despite the potentially dire health consequences.”
Emerging social media trends celebrating tan lines are amplifying the pressure to chase a tan, undermining efforts by the public health sector while increasing young people’s skin cancer risk.
“It’s dangerous for social media platforms to house this content,” Emma said.
Through communications and programs targeting young people, we’re working to bridge this gap and drive the public health message home.
“Skin damage during the first two decades has a powerful impact on lifetime skin cancer risk,” said Emma.
“Despite what you may see on social media or at the beach, a tan is a sign that your skin’s DNA has been damaged by UV.”
“There’s no such thing as a safe tan.”
1The Australian Secondary Students’ Alcohol and Drug (ASSAD) Survey is a triennial national survey of secondary school students that has been conducted by Cancer Council Victoria since 1993. In 2022-23 (n=1,392) Victorian students aged 12-17 completed the survey online.