SSS 2010-04-19

（单词翻译）

This is Scientific American's Sixty-Second Science. I'm Christopher Intagliata. Got the minute?

Scientists have finally verified something that Jersey¹ Shore stars Snooki and Pauly D have probably known all along—that getting your bronze on at the tanning salon² may be addictive³. And the more often you tan, the more likely you are to get hooked, according to a study in the Archives of Dermatology.

The researchers started with two questionnaires commonly used to assess patients for alcohol abuse and substance-related disorders⁴. But they modified the questions to focus on indoor tanning habits. For example: "Do you try to cut down on the time you spend in tanning beds or booths but find yourself still tanning?"

Then they gave those surveys to a couple hundred undergrads who fake in bake, on average, 23 times a year. The result? Fifty students, or about a fifth of those surveyed, met the authors' criteria⁵ for addiction⁶ to indoor tanning. This group also reported greater symptoms of anxiety, and were more likely to use drugs and alcohol. The investigators⁷ say drugs and tanning lamps might hook you through similar means, including peer pressure.

As for Snooki, it may be time for an intervention⁸. When asked how she would change the world if she could, she said, “I would put tanning beds in everybody's homes."

Thanks for the minute for Scientific American's Sixty-Second Science. I'm Christopher Intagliata.