Tanning?

[girl_geek]

I have a question, for those of you that are saying the sunscreen companies are the ones wanting us to wear sunscreen (which I won't argue with, I know they want money), but why do you think so many dermatologists are adament about everyone wearing sunscreen? I doubt they are making money from the sunscreen companies .... my dermatologist is always saying how everyone should wear sunscreen all day, every day to prevent skin cancer!

With that being said, I've always thought that if you just do things in moderation you'll probably be fine, unless there is strong scientific evidence to show otherwise! I know that I burn easily (I'm very fair-skinned) so if I will be outside long enough for my skin to get pink, I use sunscreen. Normally though, I'm not outside for more than 5 minutes walking to class, so I don't wear sunscreen. It's just the way my mom raised me ... she always wanted us to go outside "and get some vitamin D" as she'd say, but she also made sure we were wearing sunscreen whenever we'd be outside for a long time or went swimming or something. Which means that fortunately, I have never had a sunburn in my life (ie, my skin never peeled) and I've only had my skin get red and sore from the sun 2 or 3 times. (In high school when I didn't have summer jobs, I'd lay outside and actually get a slight tan, but now I don't have the time.)

However, my parents both spent their whole lives outside (on the beach or on the farm) and had several sunburns when they were younger, and now they go to the dermatologist at least once a year and have him freeze off a bunch of pre-cancerous spots. (When my mom was a teenager the dermatologist told her to use tanning beds until her skin peeled off to cure acne; that probably didn't help either!) The first few times they went to the dermatologist they came home covered in blisters from having the doctor freeze off so many spots; now they usually only have a couple frozen off each year. They are both fair skin (English and German descent) but have skin that's naturally a few shades darker than me, and started seeing the cancerous spots when they were in their 40's.

 

[Anya1976]

Originally Posted by girl_geek I have a question, for those of you that are saying the sunscreen companies are the ones wanting us to wear sunscreen (which I won't argue with, I know they want money), but why do you think so many dermatologists are adament about everyone wearing sunscreen? I doubt they are making money from the sunscreen companies .... my dermatologist is always saying how everyone should wear sunscreen all day, every day to prevent skin cancer!
With that being said, I've always thought that if you just do things in moderation you'll probably be fine, unless there is strong scientific evidence to show otherwise! I know that I burn easily (I'm very fair-skinned) so if I will be outside long enough for my skin to get pink, I use sunscreen. Normally though, I'm not outside for more than 5 minutes walking to class, so I don't wear sunscreen. It's just the way my mom raised me ... she always wanted us to go outside "and get some vitamin D" as she'd say, but she also made sure we were wearing sunscreen whenever we'd be outside for a long time or went swimming or something. Which means that fortunately, I have never had a sunburn in my life (ie, my skin never peeled) and I've only had my skin get red and sore from the sun 2 or 3 times. (In high school when I didn't have summer jobs, I'd lay outside and actually get a slight tan, but now I don't have the time.)

However, my parents both spent their whole lives outside (on the beach or on the farm) and had several sunburns when they were younger, and now they go to the dermatologist at least once a year and have him freeze off a bunch of pre-cancerous spots. (When my mom was a teenager the dermatologist told her to use tanning beds until her skin peeled off to cure acne; that probably didn't help either!) The first few times they went to the dermatologist they came home covered in blisters from having the doctor freeze off so many spots; now they usually only have a couple frozen off each year. They are both fair skin (English and German descent) but have skin that's naturally a few shades darker than me, and started seeing the cancerous spots when they were in their 40's.

ok well first let me say if you were red for more than 24hrs you have had a burn. there is no denying that. just cus ou haven't peeled doesnt mean you haven't burned.
well i think that the sunscreen companies fund more "sun is bad" studies than they do anything else. and they have been saying this so long why say anything else and sending these biased studies to derms and other docs. they make millions on the scare tactics that the sun is so harmful that you should never be in it without using spf 1000000 (which isn't much better than a spf 15) people get a false security that the higher the # the better the key to keeping from burning is reapplying sunscreen often. if you burn in 10 mins and are wearing a spf 10 you are only getting 10X that 10 min protection. the key to knowing that equation is knowing your skin and how often you will need to apply.

there are places that derms perscribe UV therapy for excema and psoriasis those are tanning beds i have also seen facial tanning lamps in offices that derms use for acne "uv light therapy" is the same as a tanning bed it's just not in a tanning salon and costs more to get that "therapy". maybe they don't use it enough to get a really dark tan.

well you have to remember how much things have changed since the derms told your mother to burn so badly she peels. burning that badly and having severe burns like that in the past do cause abnormal cells that can lead to cancer, i am not saying there is no risk to the sun but not all of it IS a risk yes you have to be careful but you CAN develop tolerance to the sun and you can stay out longer and longer if you do spend time in the sun. but you can't be one of those "i need to burn to tan" morons.

I even use sunscreen if i am going to be in the sun for a very long time. I have some olive in my skin but my mom is 100% polish and my dad is 50% polish and 50% italian I can burn if i am not careful. My face is prone to burning so i use at least an spf 15 to a 30 on it if i am going to be out in the sun for hours on end or on a motorcycle or in a convertable.

my parents and your parents come from "sunburn is good for ya" era. well times have changed and sunburn is NOT good for you. But i personally do not believe that tanning is all that bad if it's done carefully and in moderation.

I tan year round, i don't tan every day when i am trying to get dark i tan maybe 3 times a week not everyday mind you. at my slow time of the year i tan maybe once or twice a week to maintain my color.

now finally that they are saying that the sun CAN actually be good for you it's about time. maybe i won't have to constantly defend my choice to tan. and since it is my choice no one is going to tell me not to do it but if i am doing it i am going to learn as much as i can about it.

 

[girl_geek]

Originally Posted by Anya1976 my parents and your parents come from "sunburn is good for ya" era. well times have changed and sunburn is NOT good for you. But i personally do not believe that tanning is all that bad if it's done carefully and in moderation. Oh, my parents never thought sunburns were good for you, they just burned because they were young and careless

My mom has always emphasized wearing sunscreen if there's a chance you'll burn, but has never been opposed to tanning either. (Like, she always made me wear sunscreen when we went to the pool -- meanwhile hubby said he burned a lot as a kid because his mom never had him wear sunscreen.) She always told me to lay out in the sun long enough to tan but not long enough to turn pink, which seemed to be a good idea to me. I can't imagine that a little tan would hurt you, I was just agreeing that sunburns can hurt you and now my parents have to really be careful about skin cancer. Hopefully I won't be the same since I have tried to be more careful

And maybe I should specify that when I say "tanning" I mean in the sun, not under tanning beds .... I'd always heard that tanning beds are more likely to cause skin cancer than the sun and I've always been scared of them ... plus I'm so pale I'd probably burn after 2 minutes anyway! lol My mom also stays away from them, with the exception of the whole teenage acne thing (and I'm not sure if she used a tanning bed or just a facial lamp for her acne). She wonders how many fewer cancer spots she'd have now if she hadn't used those tanning lamps back then! Even if tanning beds are less dangerous now, I'd just prefer to stay away from them and save my money! lol (Plus I'm already blonde and I hate the whole dark tan with blonde hair look, it looks so unnatural to me unless you're on a beach in California! lol)

 

[lilla]

Hi Teri, welcome to MuT You'll like our board

Originally Posted by amberstar702 Hi Everyone:I am Terri from Las Vegas and this is my first post here. So far I have limited myself to forums about SEO, marketing, web design, etc. and this is a nice change. I just saw the article in our local paper today about the currently perceived benefits of the Sun. My skin tones are medium and if I tan slowly, I do not burn. Only burned once in my life - the first time I went to the beach with a boyfriend and stayed in the Sun for EIGHT hours. No lotion, no sun screen, no "nothing". But that was many years ago.........

Like some of the other forum members, I believe in moderation in just about everything. I have not changed my tanning habits but followed my own regimen as I feel a spiritual connection to the Sun. I tan my body gradually but keep my face covered by wearing a hat and sun glasses. Then I put bronzer on my face and have a fairly even all over tan.

I look forward to being "involved" here in the forum and very much like the information about make-up.

Cheers, :icon_love

 

[Geek]

Hey Terri! How are you? I have seen your website before! In fact, I have seen you on other SEO sites, etc as I frequent them also. One site comes to mind, but I quickly left that site due to people being so disgruntled. (not you)...anyhow...I'm Tony, the admin here and wanted to WELCOME you to our home. MakeupTalk is growing each day, as I run the day to day ops here. MuT isn't your typical forum site, we have to db connectivity throughout the entire site from the reviews to the swaps sections.

Thanks for joinin up and lets have some fun!





Originally Posted by amberstar702

Hi Everyone:I am Terri from Las Vegas and this is my first post here. So far I have limited myself to forums about SEO, marketing, web design, etc. and this is a nice change. I just saw the article in our local paper today about the currently perceived benefits of the Sun. My skin tones are medium and if I tan slowly, I do not burn. Only burned once in my life - the first time I went to the beach with a boyfriend and stayed in the Sun for EIGHT hours. No lotion, no sun screen, no "nothing". But that was many years ago.........

Like some of the other forum members, I believe in moderation in just about everything. I have not changed my tanning habits but followed my own regimen as I feel a spiritual connection to the Sun. I tan my body gradually but keep my face covered by wearing a hat and sun glasses. Then I put bronzer on my face and have a fairly even all over tan.

I look forward to being "involved" here in the forum and very much like the information about make-up.

Cheers, :icon_love

 

[Anya1976]

Originally Posted by girl_geek Oh, my parents never thought sunburns were good for you, they just burned because they were young and careless

My mom has always emphasized wearing sunscreen if there's a chance you'll burn, but has never been opposed to tanning either. (Like, she always made me wear sunscreen when we went to the pool -- meanwhile hubby said he burned a lot as a kid because his mom never had him wear sunscreen.) She always told me to lay out in the sun long enough to tan but not long enough to turn pink, which seemed to be a good idea to me. I can't imagine that a little tan would hurt you, I was just agreeing that sunburns can hurt you and now my parents have to really be careful about skin cancer. Hopefully I won't be the same since I have tried to be more careful

And maybe I should specify that when I say "tanning" I mean in the sun, not under tanning beds .... I'd always heard that tanning beds are more likely to cause skin cancer than the sun and I've always been scared of them ... plus I'm so pale I'd probably burn after 2 minutes anyway! lol My mom also stays away from them, with the exception of the whole teenage acne thing (and I'm not sure if she used a tanning bed or just a facial lamp for her acne). She wonders how many fewer cancer spots she'd have now if she hadn't used those tanning lamps back then! Even if tanning beds are less dangerous now, I'd just prefer to stay away from them and save my money! lol (Plus I'm already blonde and I hate the whole dark tan with blonde hair look, it looks so unnatural to me unless you're on a beach in California! lol)

actually tanning beds aren't as bad as the sun. they are regulated unlike people who go out in the sun and lay there cooking for 8hrs. tanning beds are timed you only get a certain dose of the uv. most states have a 24hr exposure rule only one exposure in 24hrs you cannot tan until the 24hrs is up. some states don't allow people to tan until 48hrs after exposure.tanning lamps are different than they were back then they used to have more UVB in them and now the uvb is low but a burn is still possible for those who are very very pale (you'd start out at 3 mins or so after the tanning salon skin typed you to see what kind of skin you have and how much UV you can handle per session) tanning beds have little tables on the side of them with the different skin types labled and how much exposure each skin type can handle per session and when to move up.

Since tanning professionals are trying to avoid your being overexposed and gradually let you get used to the UV i personally think starting out in a tanning bed rather than a pool where you have unlimited rays and at different times of day and different weather everything varies. it's easier not to burn in a tanningbed than not burning outside since so many things matter, not wearing sunscreen if you are very fair, not reapplying it often if you sweat or swim or have passed the exposure protection time for that spf you have applied.

but of course my preferance to tan in a salon is just that, my preferance.

 

[melzie_fire]

OK, here is my brief foray into this topic.

A tan is *never* good .. sorry, but it's not. A tan means that your skin cells have been damaged, whether you tan or get burned. I'm not saying that you are definitely going to get skin cancer or anything of the sort, but I am simply pointing out that tans in and of themselves are not good. No matter that they *look* nice.

And I do think a bit of sun (even without sunscreen! gasp!) is good, but not a whole lot, maybe 15 minutes a day. Anything after that, it's best to wear sunscreen IMO.

 

[glamslam]

I don't know why derms push sunscreen so hard. I think it's because that's what they're "supposed" to do. A simplistic explanation but I think that says it all. There are SO many doctors, nurses and other health care professionals who go to tanning beds regularly, or lay out in the sun. They just don't go around talking about it, because they know what the reaction would be.

I agree that some kind of SPF is needed if you're going to be in direct sun for some time and you're at risk to burn. A little is ok. What concerns me is constant application, every single day, with super-high SPF's... it definetly has taken on a "scare tactic" mentality. I good-naturedly say the world should take a deep breath, calm down and enjoy some sun!

OH! Hi, Terri and welcome to MuT!

 

[glamslam]

I should mention I do go tanning once a week. My natural skin tone is olive, I'm of mixed ethnicities, but I'm really not that dark. I go tanning to enhance my skin tone and camouflage spider veins and other stuff. I also find it relaxing. Just so y'all know!

 

[Anya1976]

Originally Posted by glamslam I don't know why derms push sunscreen so hard. I think it's because that's what they're "supposed" to do. A simplistic explanation but I think that says it all. There are SO many doctors, nurses and other health care professionals who go to tanning beds regularly, or lay out in the sun. They just don't go around talking about it, because they know what the reaction would be.
I agree that some kind of SPF is needed if you're going to be in direct sun for some time and you're at risk to burn. A little is ok. What concerns me is constant application, every single day, with super-high SPF's... it definetly has taken on a "scare tactic" mentality. I good-naturedly say the world should take a deep breath, calm down and enjoy some sun!

OH! Hi, Terri and welcome to MuT!

like i said b4 my salon is right by a major hospital and tons of docs and nurses come into the salon and tan.

 

[FeistyFemme]

Ya'll have seen my pics, and I'm light-skinned by all means. However, my dad is really dark, so though I don't stay dark all year round, I can get a great tan if I actually spend time in the sun or the tanning bed. However, I haven't purposely tanned (like tanning bed or laying out) since I was 17. The main reason is because skin cancer runs in my family - my grandfather had basil cell sarcoma a few years back, and he still has check ups every few months. They still occasionally have to remove more places. My grandmother has also had some pre-cancerous cells removed, and my mom has quite a bit of sun damage on her hands/arms. So I'm not taking any chances! I religously wear SPF 15 on my face everyday, and SPF 30-45 in the summer. I wear SPF 30 on my body, but only in the summer. I like the sun, and I like being outdoors, especially in the summer. I love nothing more than to go swimming or to the beach, but I also know that everytime I spend prolonged periods of time in the sun, I'm taking a risk so I always make sure to wear sunscreen. If nothing else, hopefully it'll help to prevent wrinkles.

 

[lilla]

Erika, I am glad you're using sun screen. I wouldn't want to risk it either and as you mentioned, better for keeping the wrinkles away

Originally Posted by FeistyFemme Ya'll have seen my pics, and I'm light-skinned by all means. However, my dad is really dark, so though I don't stay dark all year round, I can get a great tan if I actually spend time in the sun or the tanning bed. However, I haven't purposely tanned (like tanning bed or laying out) since I was 17. The main reason is because skin cancer runs in my family - my grandfather had basil cell sarcoma a few years back, and he still has check ups every few months. They still occasionally have to remove more places. My grandmother has also had some pre-cancerous cells removed, and my mom has quite a bit of sun damage on her hands/arms. So I'm not taking any chances! I religously wear SPF 15 on my face everyday, and SPF 30-45 in the summer. I wear SPF 30 on my body, but only in the summer. I like the sun, and I like being outdoors, especially in the summer. I love nothing more than to go swimming or to the beach, but I also know that everytime I spend prolonged periods of time in the sun, I'm taking a risk so I always make sure to wear sunscreen. If nothing else, hopefully it'll help to prevent wrinkles.

 

[Pauline]

Originally Posted by Tony(admin) Tanning Question:
I am the type that can cop a killer tan in 2 days when I haven't been in the sun for months. I mean really REALLY tan! I can get super dark very fast and people who have a hard time maintaining tans or getting them, are like WTF...how do you do that? I have been in the sun now for a few weeks or so, and I am so dark.

I usually use SPF4 if I am going be out in the sun all day, this way, it gives me some son and some SPF.

What I wanna know is: How much of MORE risk am I at for skin cancer?

This in an interesting question and it certainly makes me wonder about the answer.Firstly everyine's skin is different but some skin types are more prone to sun damage/skin cancer than other complexions.Generally people with very fair skin/red heads especially have to be even more careful and use a higher sun protection factor.It does sound that you have the same type of skin as myself, one that takes a tan easily (but i am anorexic)..ha ha and i always use fake tan rather than damage my skin.Obviously your skin Is burning to a degree which is why you get tanned (your skin protecting itself) but i am not sure if you are a high risk or not.Just out of curiosity what color of hair is your natural colour? Generally the fairer and paler you are light hair,blue eyes this skin is the most vulnerable but other skin types take the sun better (like your skin). You could actually look at your skin and see if there are any traces of sun damage and you can even get a type of photograph that shows the sun damage on your skin (possible a UV photo).Thicker skin tends to be stronger and more resilient than thinner skin. Its good you always use a SPF anyway as you don't want to ruin your skin but you do want a tan.its a difficult one!

I would ask a dermatologist or something for a definite answer.