Tanning- give me your thoughts

thelovelyLIZ

There are lots of lotions and creams out there that have a sunless tanner in them, I would try one of those. I don't use them myself though, because I tan very easily. A short time out in the sun, and I get darker. I never actively tan though, because honestly it doesn't make a difference to me how light or dark a person is.

rainbowbow

Does anyone have suggestions on fake tanners/spray tans that can be used all over? (face included?) I definetly think the risks of using tanning beds outweigh the positives. I hear mystic tan is notoriously uneven and only last 3-4 days.

butterfly10398

Yes I tan... I understand that there are risks, but you know, there are risks with just about anything you do now adays.... I want to live and be happy with how I look, I look much better with a tan, you don't have to go until you look like a brown paper bag. haha! Just be happy with what you look like... Thats all that matters at the end of the day.

christinet8504

I have to second the Jergens Natural Glow. Im a redhead and my skin is literally WHITE. This is perfect for making me look like a human. And its easy.

juliekbwell

I used to 'fake 'n bake' (tanning bed), but NO MORE! I've seen too many women develop skin cancer and end up with the leather skin and it's just not worth it. If I can't get the desired tan (which I usually do) from the sun, I'll just be white! I have a natural olive complexion and native american in me, so I'm never "white". All I have to do is go lay on the trampoline for an hour or so and I tan fast. To amp up the tan, I will sometimes use baby oil. Another trick is oil sheen (African American Hair Spray), it works great too and makes your skin smooth!

LuckyLeprechaun

The only precaution I do not take which has made an impact on my health is that I keep my eyes open in the tanning bed and do not wear the goggles. My eye sight has definitely gone down hill over the past few years.

Blindness is so sexay. :huh:

minkakross

do some tanning natural or otherwise, yes, yes we all know uv rays cause skin cancer but seriously everything can cause cancer when it's in excess. if you don't have a family history just be sensible avoid burns which are the real danger for skin cancer and keep in mind that there is research that indicates a. we all need some sun aka vitamin D and b. there is a mental health benefit aka reduced depression from sunlight. So the good may outweigh the bad.

beckylawrence70

BAD, BAD, BAD, do the research, nothing good about it except a temporary nice look......you won't like it in 15 yrs!

tjsusong

I work for a company called Sunless Inc and we manufacture and distribute Mystic Tan, VersaSpa and Evolv Sunless Spray Tanning Systems. As some people have noted, UV Tanning isnt really good for you so there is a big boom in our industry right now. There are several places you can go and get sprayed weekly and you will feel great! Your skin will be soft and have a nice, healthy glow. I am very fair complected, and I spray weekly and I love it! I get all the benefits of tanning without the risk of skin cancer!! (Note, I used to be a UV tanner years ago and I think its done some damage to my skin!)

967_1111

I don't tan for the same reason I don't smoke. Keep the big C at bay.

Stay pale. Live longer.

butterfly10398

As for tanning sprays or lotions... I personally think the dove energy glow is the best..... it is more even and doesn't get the orange color that tanning lotions are famous for...

Kim_Diesel

Hey, i totally understand your problem. I am a pro fitness model and figure bodybuilder and tan is something i have to be all the time. I had a bunch of precancer spots removed last year due to uv tanning. now I spray tan (but that gets EXPENSIVE to maintain). but ive found a product called Ocean Potion Bronzing Lotion. You can buy it online but you have to buy 5 at a time for $25. But it lasts forever and i LOVE the natural glow it gives you. I put it on once a day, all over, including hands, feet, joints, face and it doesnt make you patchy like most self tanners do on the joints. You dont need gloves to put it on and it doesnt stain your palms. I put it on at night and go to bed, i wake up with a good glow going on after the first 3 days of using it. i love it so much, im sold for life on this stuff also, if you want to try to conceal your birthmark, try Jan Tana Tattoo cover up. its for bodybuilding competitors who want to cover up stuff while theyre on stage. that stuff works pretty good. hope this helps!

angiemartin78

There are high quality salons that offer air brush tanning with all natural organic ingredients. From what I've read, it's very safe; and from what I've seen with my own two eyes, you can't tell that it's from a hose lol

Just do your research and make sure that they use safe all natural ingredients.

lunamare

I love going to the beach. When I was younger I'd always burn (fair skin) but I loved getting a tan. When I was a lifeguard I was SO dark. I knew it was bad, but I sort of shrugged it off. Fast forward to age 30, and I looked down at the skin on my chest and I was horrified to see how damaged it is from all of those years of burning and being in the sun. I started freaking out. You see those old women who sit in the sun all the time and their skin looks like leather (yack!) I don't want to look like that!! I love having a tan and looking tan but I look at my mother who always kept her skin covered up and she looks fabulous at 65 - I want to look like that! Aveeno used to make a great sunless tanner and they discontinued it. I've tried the Jergens but I don't love it as much as I did the Aveeno. Hoping to find another type for this summer.

LuckyLeprechaun

The amount of Vitamin D you get in a cancer bed is equal to eating a cup of mushrooms. Delicious, non-cancer causing mushrooms.

There is NO good to outweigh the bad. Those beds equal death. If you're too vain and stupid to avoid that, then that's your own fault.

MKloste

I personnaly think that people look better when they are tan and that you actually looks slimmer if you are tan then when you are pale. I know that I will usually go tanning at the end of Spring so that I can get a base tan before summer, espeically if I plan on being outside a ton because it helps me not to burn. If you go tanning in moderation I think you should be fine and start with low mins and work your way up. If you get pink at all lets say you start with 5 mins which is normal starting out mins and do not go again the next day but if you do not get pink you should be fine to go. Also you should go for 5 mins for the first 2 times and then if you don't get pink either of those times increase your mins and keep doing this. I use to work at a tanning salon and that what I was always telling clients.and I follow that rule as well when I first start out tanning and I usually never get burnt or [pink which will help lower your risk of skin cancer!

nikki778

Please Spray tan or tan by natural sunlight. Those beds are so dangerous ( I was obsessed & would go twice a day on top of tanning by the beach or pool for my entire teenage & all through my twentys & early 30s)

Spray tan isnt as relaxing, but it lasts, its a natural shade, its faster to see a glow as where the bed takes a few times, you dont burn & most of all it is SAFE.
Some come with scents & vitamins to help your skin. try it out but be smart & Healthy.

lilieslosinit

I agree that having a tan can make you look thinner. I know you said that you're aware that tanning can cause skin cancer, but because I work in a melanoma lab and my project investigates the effects of indoor tanning, I feel obligated to put my 2 cents in. It's been shown that people under 35 who tan have a 75% greater risk of developing melanoma later in life. It's dangerous because it gives you a MUCH (up to 12 time more) higher dose of UV than normal sunlight that is not filtered in anyway (hitting your skin directly from the lamp rather than filtered through the ozone), causing more DNA damage and thereby influencing cells to potentially become cancerous. I am aware that indoor tanning does have potential health benefits, such as increasing vitamin D levels, but the truth is that most tanning beds emit less UV at the wavelength that induces vitamin D production, so you actually make more vitamin D by being in the sun. Also scary, the amount of UV varies from bed to bed and salon to salon because it's not properly regulated. I would strongly discourage anyone who uses tanning beds from continuing to do it.

jennifers1975

Hi!

Not going to step on my soap box, but I am….. Spray tan, use lotion that will give you a natural glow. Tanning is sooooo not worth it… I should know I am now 5 years cancer free! Had a funny looking mole on my leg, went to dermatologist, and yep stage 3 skin cancer…. Guess where I planted my butt every time I had the chance…. In a tanning bed!

So of course you will do what you want, but believe me it is so not worth it!

Jenn

Meaganandcheese

UV tanning is more likely to turn you orange than spray tan.

I had skin cancer at age 24 thanks to excessive bed tanning. It's really not worth it. There are so many good lotion and spray options out there that do the same thing for your vanity without the risk to your health.

cjipping

I work in skin care and cosmetics, and tanning, even if its just "to get a base" or for a special occasion adds 17 YEARS to the age of your skin. I don't know about you, but I'd rather be pale than look 17 years older than i am

DreamiJeani

My sister has very pale skin. She not outside much and she does have that ghostly look. Im outside a LOT so I cant avoid getting a nice color but I definitly wouldnt go to a cranked out light bed to do it. Considering we are supposed to use sunscreen to shield us from the natural rays it seems like a terrible idea to concentrate them and expose ourselves intentionally. I tried it once and literally 8 minutes got me red and itchy. I can be outside for HOURS before I get that level of red and itchy. You're always going to have a battle on either side, but the proof is there that tanning beds DO contribute to skin cancer.

Odd reference but Toddlers and Tiara's. Those kids get spray tanned all the time and most of them dont end up orange. Just dont go to dark. Go for the healthy glow you want. I can't imagine that the chemicals in that are super good for you either but I would definitly say safer then lamps. One mom on T*T actually found an organic spray tanner so do some research maybe you can find that too

Good luck and "wear sunscreen. If I could offer you one tip for the future sunscreen would be IT. The long term benefits have been proved by scientists wheras the rest of my advice has no basis, more reliable, then my own meandering experience." ---Baz Luhrmann

fj211

Even if you don't care about cancer, sun damage ages you. If you tan, you are trading looking good now for looking awful later--wrinkles, blotchy skin, etc. It's not a trade I'd want to make.

Spot on!! I tanned for a few years and I regret it a million times over. When I was young I didn't want to hear people lecture me on wrinkles, spots, etc.. Now I soooooo wish I had listened more. I never leave the house without sunblock now and I embrace my paleness.

ThorneDust

I have a horrifying story about a tanning bed. My family owns a tanning bed and I was big into tanning as a teen. I'm super pale and I thought the color made me look better/thinner. Well, it had old bulbs for a very long time and you had to heat it up then stay in for a full 20 to do anything. Well, one day someone replaced the bulbs and I didn't realize it. I did my usual routine and thought it was odd when I got out and I was red. I had burned myself so bad that I still have scars from it. Since then, I will not go near a tanning bed. I have had really good sucess with self tanners though. Both the professional spray tan, and the home done self tanning lotions. But for the most part though I've just learned to accept my paleness. LOL Just make sure to exfoliate before doing the spray/home fake bakes and you'll be fine!

AlayshaJ

I'm already brown so I don't have this problem! :laugh:

I only tan outside though. Being in those small, alien space ship-esk tanning beds freaks me out.

cmriverside

The only precaution I do not take which has made an impact on my health is that I keep my eyes open in the tanning bed and do not wear the goggles. My eye sight has definitely gone down hill over the past few years.

Blindness is so sexay. :huh:

Yeah. What reason could there be to keep your eyes open in the beds? Nothing to see......??

I had cataract surgery in both eyes in my 40s because I grew up in FLA and was always out in the sun.

My next door neighbor in FLA died at age 27 from malignant melanoma.

courtney131

I tan and use instant tanning lotions. I don't tan excessively but it makes me feel so much better about myself! My parents are both pretty avid tanners (natural sun, not tanning bed) especially in the summer and my dad has always told me "Tan fat looks better than white fat" hahaha

1HappyRosie

Why would you? After all the work to be healthy and you tan? Doesn't make any sense to me. Tanning is not healthy!

LuckyLeprechaun

I can't imagine that the chemicals in that are super good for you either but I would definitly say safer then lamps. One mom on T*T actually found an organic spray tanner so do some research maybe you can find that too

Good luck and "wear sunscreen. If I could offer you one tip for the future sunscreen would be IT. The long term benefits have been proved by scientists wheras the rest of my advice has no basis, more reliable, then my own meandering experience." ---Baz Luhrmann

The chemicals in there are no more dangerous than any other cosmetic we use all the time. They undergo FDA testing just like all the rest of the products we use on our skin.

LOVE the Sunscreen quote :bigsmile: :flowerforyou:

Meaganandcheese

A "base" tan is actually a myth. Being tan (especially from artificial sunlight) does not protect you from burning at all.