All of these statements are false. I feel that the average Durango reader (let’s assume an eighth-grade reading level) could easily interpret this person to be an expert and take these statements as fact. Said reader could then develop potentially fatal skin cancer, and certainly premature skin aging resulting from using tanning beds. This is a gross disservice to the local community and is, frankly, dangerous.

As a physician who has the unfortunate job of telling local mothers, fathers, daughters and sons everyday that they have skin cancer, I feel it is imperative that I speak up for my patients and rebut the comments in the story. Tanning beds are no different than cigarettes, and it’s high time that the media portray them as they are. Would the Herald run a front-page story with a young adult smoking a pack of Camels entitled “Rays of hope for winter smokers?” I think not.

Lauren Loftis

Durango