The dangers of tanning bed usage and women’s health are a few of Joel Hillhouse’s research specialties.

Joel Hillhouse
(Contributed / ETSU)

According to a recent editorial done by Hillhouse, the associate dean for research in ETSU’s College of Public Health, the funding behind an article about the research of a tanning bed causing skin cancer could influence the results of the research.

“When you’re reading these articles, you need to consider where the funding came from, because if it’s coming from an industry that has a reason to promote positive things about that industry, it’s quite a bit more likely that the article will come out positive for them,” Hillhouse said.

Now, 25 years into his research, his new editorial has been published in the British Medical Journal, which is one of the top medical journals in Britain. Looking toward the future of skin cancer prevention, Hillhouse believes educating people on the dangers of tanning beds is crucial.

“What we had seen 25 years ago when we asked the undergraduate women what do they think of indoor tanning, they said it’s safe, safer than going out in the sun, which is actually the opposite,” said Hillhouse. “Which, now if you ask the average undergraduate woman, she would probably know it’s a danger even if she was doing it, so I think education is really the key.”

Outside of skin cancer prevention and tanning bed research, Hillhouse also has a passion for women’s health and is currently a part of a project that’s looking at women’s reproductive health. It’s a part of a large study based in South Carolina and Alabama that is trying to give women better access to reproductive care. With three years under his belt as a co-lead on this project, Hillhouse believes he’ll be doing that for the next five years, while keeping a balance between skin cancer prevention and tanning bed research.

“I’m involved in two projects that are using social media right now to educate teens and their parents on indoor tanning and other tanning issues,” Hillhouse said. “I’m involved in projects that are looking at an HPV vaccine and women’s health, so I’m going to continue and be involved in each of those at different levels, but probably more time in women’s health because that’s a big project.”

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