Special Report: Dark Secret

With beach weather getting closer, many wish they could get an insta-tan. For some that means hitting the tanning booths. But for teens, that kind of tanning could mean trouble.

Marie-France Demierre, M.D., Boston Medical Center
"The younger you are the greater the risk."

That's why in Massachusetts no one under 18 can legally use a tanning salon without parental permission.

But are salons playing by the rules?

7News tried to find out with some 16-year-old girls and a hidden camera.

Two of the six salons we visited turned our teens away because of their age.

But check out this salon. There are no questions asked as the receptionist leads the teens right in, wipes down the bed and leaves them to tan.

At this salon the girls are good to go. They are never asked their age, even as the employee explains how to use the eye protection and the beds.

Here the salon worker not only allows our teens to tan, she encourages them to extend their tanning time. But she never asks how old they are.

And watch as the girls fill out paperwork at this salon. It clearly says teens need their parent's ok, but neither clerk asks their age.

Here in Massachusetts it's up to the local boards of health to make sure tanning salons follow the laws. And doctors say those laws are important because a person's age can make a difference when it comes to skin damage.

Marie-France Demierre, M.D., Boston Medical Center
"The changes in the skin are ongoing much greater when you're young. So any change, mutation, same with a sunburn, will have the greatest impact on your skin health."

The tanning industry maintains that moderate indoor tanning is not dangerous, but they agree with the state's current age restrictions.

Sarah Longwell, Indoor Tanning Association
"We think that it's perfectly healthy and fine for people under 18 to come into tanning salons, but we definitely want their parents to have given permission."

Twenty-four-year-old Kelli Pedroia, wife of Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia, knows the dangers of too much tanning. But she didn't take the health threat seriously when she was a teen.

Kelli Pedroia, Melanoma Survivor/Melanoma Foundation of N.E. Spokesperson
"I would get burned so bad on my back that I would have lines from the fluorescent bulbs."

After years of frequent tanning sessions she was diagnosed with stage two melanoma at just 18-years-old.

Kelli Pedroia, Melanoma Survivor/Melanoma Foundation of N.E. Spokesperson
"It was a terrible experience."

Kelli has beaten her cancer. Now, she hopes teens will hear her message about tanning.

Kelli Pedroia, Melanoma Survivor/Melanoma Foundation of N.E. Spokesperson
"It took a lot for me to realize how dangerous it is and I just want the word to be out now so that nothing happens to them."

A new bill is being proposed here in Massachusetts that would ban anyone 15 and under from tanning salons. Teens 16 and 17 years old would still need written permission from their parents.

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