MISSISSAUGA, Ont. - Peel Region has passed what is being called the province's toughest municipal bylaw banning teens under the age of 18 from indoor tanning salons.
The Peel bylaw would fine tanning salon operators $10,000 for the first offence and $25,000 for subsequent offences.
The Canadian Cancer Society says it's pleased that Peel has taken such action because the ultraviolet radiation emitted by indoor tanning equipment has been proven to cause cancer.
An expert review of current research published in July in the British Medical Journal showed that people who started using indoor tanning equipment before the age of 35 have an 87 per cent increased risk of skin cancer.
Peel is the second municipality in Ontario, after Oakville, to enact a bylaw restricting youth under the age of 18 from indoor tanning facilities.
Earlier this month, Premier Dalton McGuinty announced plans to adopt NDP health critic France Gelinas's private member's bill which aims to ban youth under 18 from using indoor tanning equipment across the province.
