Mood Shifts After Indoor Tanning: College Study Research Brief
Indoor tanning remains a documented public health concern, especially given the established skin cancer risks from tanning beds. Beyond cosmetic motivations, researchers have investigated the psychological mechanisms that keep individuals returning to sunlamps despite known hazards. A research brief published in 2016 examined how single tanning episodes alter emotional states in young adult women and how those shifts connect with underlying psychiatric and addictive symptoms.
Research Context: Mood Alterations and Tanning Behavior
Indoor tanning has previously been linked with psychiatric and addictive symptoms, and frequent tanning may indicate tanning dependence or behavioral addiction. While many users describe feeling relaxed or calmer after visiting a salon, researchers seek to determine whether these emotional shifts act as a psychological reinforcement mechanism. When an activity temporarily reduces psychological discomfort, that relief can encourage repeat behavior. To evaluate this pathway, investigators designed a study to evaluate the effects of an indoor tanning episode on immediate mood states and explore their association with psychiatric and addictive symptoms among young adult female tanners.
Study Design: Evaluating Affect and Clinical Symptoms
In a 2016 report published in Health psychology research, investigators evaluated mood changes following an indoor tanning session among female university students aged 18-25 years who had indoor tanned. The study used two structured assessment methods to examine participants:
- An online survey that administered the Positive and Negative Affects Scales to measure participant emotional states following their most recent indoor tanning episode.
- A standardized diagnostic telephone interview utilizing the MINI International Neuropsychiatric Interview to screen for specific psychiatric and addictive symptoms.
By comparing post-session mood shifts with clinical interview data, the authors evaluated whether specific psychological vulnerabilities correlated with the acute emotional changes experienced after tanning.
Key Findings: Reductions in Negative Emotions and Affective Shifts
The study determined that psychiatric and addictive symptoms were relatively common among the young adult female indoor tanners who participated. When analyzing emotional changes after their most recent tanning session, the researchers noted significant shifts across specific mood dimensions.
Overall, participants reported significant decreases in both negative and positive mood states:
- Decreases in negative mood states: Participants reported significant reductions in feeling upset, scared, irritable, nervous, jittery, and afraid after their tanning session.
- Decreases in specific positive mood states: Participants also demonstrated a significant reduction in feeling interested following their session.
These findings show that indoor tanning directly alters mood. The drop in negative feelings such as irritability, nervousness, and feeling jittery indicates that an indoor tanning session can produce an immediate sense of emotional relief or tension reduction.
How Underlying Symptoms Reinforce Tanning Habits
Using multivariable linear regression analyses, the researchers identified distinct associations between specific psychiatric characteristics and post-tanning mood changes:
- More frequent indoor tanning in the past month and symptoms of illicit drug use disorders were significantly associated with decreases in negative mood after tanning.
- Symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder were significantly associated with a decrease in feeling interested following a tanning session.
These associations suggest why tanning habits can become difficult to break. For individuals experiencing baseline emotional distress or substance use challenges, stepping into a tanning booth provides immediate negative reinforcement by dampening distressing emotions. When negative feelings like irritability or anxiety temporarily subside, the brain registers the session as a soothing event, strengthening the behavioral loop. This acute relief helps explain the patterns clinicians monitor when assessing tanning dependence in young adults.
Study Limitations and Clinical Perspective
While the 2016 investigation in Health psychology research offers valuable clues regarding behavioral reinforcement, it represents a single study with specific methodological limits that must not be overstated:
- Specific population: The sample was restricted to female university students aged 18-25 years, meaning the findings may not apply across different demographic groups, older individuals, or men.
- Self-reported mood recall: Mood states were evaluated based on participant recall regarding their most recent session rather than continuous real-time laboratory measurements.
- Need for further confirmation: The study authors noted that indoor tanners report relatively high rates of psychiatric and substance use symptoms, including symptoms of tanning dependence, but emphasized that further research is needed to clarify the exact relationships among these variables.
Dermatologists and behavioral health specialists emphasize that relying on ultraviolet radiation to self-soothe carries severe long-term dermatological hazards, including permanent cellular damage and skin cancer. Individuals who find themselves using tanning beds to cope with stress, irritability, or anxiety should seek guidance from a doctor or mental health professional to explore healthy, evidence-based coping strategies.
Sources
Published October 31, 2026. Sources are linked in the text. See our Medical Disclaimer.