We’re still getting burned

Despite numerous warnings about the link between sunburn and skin cancer, the percentage of American adults of all races who reported getting burned at least once rose in the five years between 1999 and 2004 from 31.8 percent to 33.7 percent, federal researchers reported recently.

Men were more likely than women to get burned, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which examined sunburn prevalence data for 1999, 2003 and 2004. The 2004 rate was 37 percent among males and about 30 percent among females.

Americans, it seems, are recidivists: Two-thirds said they got burned more than once.

There were ethnic, racial and regional differences as well: Whites were more likely to get burned than any other group. In 2004, nearly 47 percent of white men reported one burn, as did nearly 40 percent of white women. Black men and women were the least likely, with a prevalence rate of 5.8 percent each.

The state with the highest rate of sunburn among its white residents was Utah, where 51 percent said they’d gotten burned; Arizona had the lowest rate, with about 26 percent.

There was a ray of good news: Four states – Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky and Louisiana – reported statistically significant decreases.

The reasons the basic cancer-prevention mantra – wear a hat, use a sunscreen with an SPF of at least 15, wear protective clothing and stay out of the sun from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. – is being ignored merit further study to see whether targeted messages might be more effective, the CDC team says.