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Sun Safety for Your Skin: It’s Really Not “All about That Base”

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When you visit the tanning salon before hitting the beach, you’re not just paying for a base tan. You’re also potentially putting your health in danger.

Indoor tanning is a risky, often addictive behavior among teens and adults alike. Yet, despite the long-term risks and warnings, around 30 million people visit the tanning salon every year, and 2.3 percent of those tanners are teens!

Indoor tanning increases your risk of developing skin cancer, premature wrinkles, eye damage, and immune suppression. Recent studies revealed a 59 percent increased chance of developing melanoma in individuals who had been exposed to the damaging rays of indoor tanning machines.

The idea that getting a base tan to avoid getting sunburned and reduce the risk of developing skin cancer isn’t based on research and is not endorsed by medical professionals. In fact, you don’t have to get sunburned to get skin cancer. Any exposure to UVA or UVB light from either an indoor tanning device or the sun can lead to skin cancer, so cover up and protect your skin next time you hit the beach!

Tanning Facts – Bottle, Bed or Sun (Part 2)

It’s hard not to associate summer with sunshine and tanning. We all covet that “healthy glow,” but what measures are we willing to take to get it? To make things easier for the tan-lovers out there, your Knoxville Dermatology team put together the facts about bottle, bed and sun tanning. In this entry, we’ll talk about tanning beds.

Bed:

Don’t be fooled by the tanning bed industry. They’ve fed us all lines about “healthy rays” and getting a “base tan” to keep from burning. But the truth is, tanning is just not a part of living a healthy life – whether it’s by bed or by sun.

Further research has shown us the dangers of tanning beds. Last year, the International Agency for Research on Cancer shifted indoor tanning beds to the highest cancer risk category – “carcinogenic to humans.” They cause users to become more vulnerable to melanoma; your risk increases 75% if used only once before the age of 35. Tanning is equivalent to a sunburn in terms of the effect on your skin, so despite developing a “base tan” or easing into it, you are still causing DNA damage to your skin.

Other consequences of indoor tanning are premature aging and wrinkles. Immune system suppression and eye damage are side effects that have also been linked to indoor tanning.

Now we don’t want to mislead you. We are not saying you should avoid the sun and UV rays at all costs. We’re simply saying you should understand the risks and monitor your sun and UV ray exposure. If you have any questions about tanning beds or UV rays, feel free to call us at 865-690-9467 or check out our blog for more information on tanning beds, UVA and UVB rays, SPF and more.