Worshipping the wrong god

0 Comments | Daily Mirror, The; London (UK), Oct 24, 2008 | by Paul Routledge

FROM ancient times onwards, fair skin was considered more desirable than having a sun tan.

That's because the poor toiled in the fields and got burned by the sun.

The civilised rich lived indoors, and a pale skin proved their wealth.

For reasons I've never been clear on, that all changed in the 20th century, when a tan became a highly prized holiday trophy.

This barmy sun worship spawned a whole "self-regulated" industry of tanning salons in Britain. Now, over three million Brits use sun beds.

It was always an illusion, and increasingly a lethal one. The shocking death of Newcastle mum Dorne Graydon reported this week is a poignant case in point.

Dorne, aged 44, was killed by a malignant melanoma caused by excessive exposure to Ultraviolet rays. She was addicted to sun beds.

Dorne began her fatal addiction when she was only 17. Under-age kids should be banned from these salons, and stricter regulation should be introduced for others.

You can't stop people sunbathing in Spain, but you can save them from a death like Dorne's in sun parlours.

Maybe the Greeks and Romans knew what they were doing after all.