Young Asian Australians Attitudes Toward Skin Cancer Affected By Western Culture

Many young Asian Australians are engaging in unsafe sun behaviour and putting themselves at risk of developing skin cancer, a study from the University of Adelaide has discovered.

The first of its kind, the study was conducted by Dr Ashley Day for her PhD to better understand the sun-related behaviours of young Australians of an Asian background. Surveying 140 Asian Australians between the ages of 18-26, the research found that while many young Asian Australians maintain the Asian cultural norm that light skin is preferable, many want darker skin and are deliberately tanning.

Dr Day said that until this point, the perceptions of young Asian Australians toward their skin tone and how it affects their behaviour has remained largely a mystery.

"Although the prevailing attitude among Asian cultures is that lighter skin is better, there were a number of young people in this group who desired darker skin than their own perceived skin tone. These people engaged in behaviours that put them at increased risk of skin cancer," she said.

More than half of the women and almost a third of the men surveyed had deliberately tanned themselves at least once in the past few years, and many of these had experienced at least one severe burn in the previous 12 months.

Dr Day said this is indicative of the impact of Australian culture on young people of Asian heritage.

"Studies from the United States show that as they adopt Western culture, people of Asian and Hispanic heritage engage in more tanning behaviour and decreased levels of sun protection," she said.

"This appears to be the case among young Asian people in Australia, with the potential for peer groups, media representations of beauty and celebrity, and overall sun culture influencing their attitudes and behaviour."

Dr Day also found lower levels of understanding about skin cancer risks and sun health among this group.

"This can lead to a combination of increased risks for young Asian Australians: deliberate tanning to darken their skin, and a lack of awareness of skin cancer and its early signs, which may lead to delayed treatment and poor outcomes for patients," Dr Day said.

"We believe increasing skin cancer knowledge in this group will be important. More research is needed to better understand the impact of Western culture on young people's attitudes to skin health."