Question 12 of 24
Unprotected sun worship?
The short answer
Solar ultraviolet exposure is a significant and largely preventable driver of skin cancer death. A joint WHO, ILO and IARC analysis estimated that about a third of non-melanoma skin cancer deaths worldwide are attributable to sun exposure at work, with outdoor workers bearing most of that burden.
Pick one to continue — the dead don't get to skip homework.
The tan is the damage
💀 A grim little fact
That golden glow is your skin cells filing an incident report. Using a tanning bed before age 35 raises melanoma risk by about 75%. Women under 30 who tan indoors are roughly 6 times more likely to develop melanoma, and indoor tanning overall is linked to about a 2.85× higher melanoma risk.
Tanning-bed use before 35: ~75% higher melanoma risk.
🔮 Myth vs. Morty
Myth: "I'm building up a base tan so I won't burn on holiday." A tan is not sunscreen; a tan is your DNA visibly panicking and cranking out melanin because it's already been hit. A 'base tan' offers roughly the SPF of a stern look (about 3–4) while adding more damage to get there. It's paying interest on a loan you didn't need.
Morty is very pale and very smug about it.
Sources: American Academy of Dermatology; melanoma meta-analyses · Entertainment only — not medical advice.
Sun exposure, skin cancer and life expectancy: what the evidence shows
Last reviewed · compiled by the ExpireOnDate editorial team · not medically reviewed
What the research shows
1.6 billion working-age people — 28% of the global working-age population — were exposed to solar ultraviolet radiation while working outdoors in 2019.
working-age adults · global, 183 countries · WHO/ILO joint estimates burden-of-disease model · 2023 (2019 exposure data) · International Agency for Research on Cancer / WHO
An estimated 19,000 deaths in 2019 were attributed to non-melanoma skin cancer caused by occupational solar UV exposure — nearly one third of all non-melanoma skin cancer deaths.
working-age adults · global, 183 countries · WHO/ILO joint estimates burden-of-disease model · 2023 (2019 data) · International Agency for Research on Cancer / WHO
Men accounted for 65% of those occupational UV-attributable non-melanoma skin cancer deaths.
global workforce · global · WHO/ILO joint estimates burden-of-disease model · 2023 (2019 data) · International Agency for Research on Cancer / WHO
In absolute terms
About 19,000 deaths a year, from one cancer type and one exposure route.
What it does not show
This estimate covers non-melanoma skin cancer and occupational exposure specifically. It does not capture melanoma, which is often far more lethal per case, nor recreational sun or tanning beds — so it is a floor, not a total. As a burden-of-disease model it also relies on modelled exposure-response relationships rather than case-by-case attribution.
Every figure on this page describes a population, not a person. Associations measured across thousands of people cannot tell any individual how long they will live, and nothing here is medical advice. If something on this page concerns you, talk to a doctor rather than a comedy website.
References
- Working under the sun causes 1 in 3 deaths from non-melanoma skin cancer, say WHO and ILO. International Agency for Research on Cancer / WHO (2023). primary source; accessed 2026-08-15.
- Exposure to Artificial UV Radiation and Skin Cancer. International Agency for Research on Cancer (2018). primary source; accessed 2026-08-15.
Spotted an error or a better source? Tell us — corrections are logged and the review date updated.