Hey all, I know this has probably been asked before, but I have something of a specific situation. First off I am very pale - I don’t have much of a tan, and what i do have is in the form of a “farmer’s tan.” I’d love to use a tanning bed (no tan lines, etc), but they just aren’t safe. As for the sun, I seem to burn, or get a little tan after a LONG time - it isn’t very efficient.
So I’m looking at self tanners. Problem is, I hear with very pale skin, they can make you look weird. In addition, I take about 2 showers a day, sometimes swim, and I sweat a lot when I lift. Given this, I’m just wondering if any fake tanner is going to last long enough and look good enough for me to waste the time applying it. Thoughts?
Why do you think tanning bed’s are less safe than tanning outside? As long as you don’t burn there shouldn’t be any difference. Am I correct in presuming this? The UVA/UVB rays are similar just more intense in a tanning bed per unit time.
I’ve been very pale all my life, then a friend opened a tanning salon and now I’m quite bronze. Here’s how I did it.
First, I tanned very slowly. 8-10 minutes only at first. Then I started taking massive doses of l-tyrosine, 5-10 grams per day for about 2 days before tanning. PowerDrive has 3 grams per serving, and they say 2 servings a day is OK, so that’s 6 grams right there. Tyrosine is a precursor to melanin as I understand it. No tyrosine, no tan. You’ll get a little buzz off the tyrosine, but its not bad. (Of course, I’m a pretty big guy.) A little extra copper helps too, but be very careful with copper supplements, because copper is a pro-oxidant.
As for safety, if you do some research on vitamin D, you’ll find that D produced in your skin by exposure to UV rays is actually a cellular growth inhibitor and anti-cancer agent. As long as you don’t get burnt, you should be perfectly safe. And you can’t get too much D from UV light, because the conversion mechanism is self-limiting.
Here’s the added benefit. I found this on MedLine. Vitamin D and melanin stimulating hormone (MSH) are also key factors in setting metabolism. I’ve been losing some tough excess fat since tanning.
Once I got the base tan, I’ve started going outside more in the summer sun here in Florida, and I never burn anymore with moderate daytime exposure.
Neutrogena’s Sunless Tanning spray is what I use, within 2 minutes you can put on your whitest shirt and it will never bleed onto it even if you sweat. It looks good too. Stay out of tanning beds and always wear sunscreen when in the sun, skin cancer, even the benign type, leaves ugly scars, and pre-mature aging isn’t good for anyone.
[quote]Zulu wrote:
Are the massive increases in cancer from tanning beds caused by people burning themselves in there?[/quote]
I don’t know of any proof that there are “massive increases in cancer” at all yet alone from tanning beds. Sounds like bullshit to me. Have you been watching too many coppertone ads? The tanning business has been around for years. If it were true, they would have gone out of business years ago. And don’t tell me the “tanning lobby” is bribing the government to hide the stats. They aren’t that big.
You guys are fucking mad! Any tanning, any, is bad for the skin. Tanned skin is a sign of skin damage. If you’ve ever seen someone with skin cancer you’d know how bloody stupid this question is. The only safe tan is a fake tan.
icklemoney, you need to read some basic biochemistry and endocrinology books. Humans evolved in the sunlight and light has a profound effect on biochemistry and hormones. You would rather apply a bunch of chemicals to your skin than tan the way nature intended? Now that’s insane.
Hell, even the quirky Dr. Mercola recommends sun exposure.
[quote]yorik wrote:
icklemoney, you need to read some basic biochemistry and endocrinology books. Humans evolved in the sunlight and light has a profound effect on biochemistry and hormones. You would rather apply a bunch of chemicals to your skin than tan the way nature intended? Now that’s insane.
Hell, even the quirky Dr. Mercola recommends sun exposure.
The safest sunscreen is a natural tan.[/quote]
You assume a lot. I agree that a tan isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Particularly tanning naturally, with the use of sunscreen. Tanning beds on the other hand are almost universally considered awful. Now, I’m not dissing anyone’s choice to tan - I personally think its a bad idea, but if you want to do it, go right ahead.
For me its a double whammy - not everyone was meant to be in the sun. I am of decidedly northern European descent, and stay quite pale. Even after two weeks at the beach, I’m still about a 1/4 as tan as my buddy is in the winter. I also burn in about 15 minutes without sunscreen. So I think tanning beds are a bad idea for me especially.
As for the “chemicals,” they are actually just sugar cane extracts and are known to be completely safe.
So for now, the only suggestion has been neutrogena - I may try it soon - I just wonder how long till it washes off…
I think the stats on increased skin cancer rates are pretty conclusive. However, I think people are just guessing that the cause is tanning beds (which seems logical but not certain).
Moderation is the key. For those who are prepping for contests, photo shoots, etc, they rely on the spray on fake bake type applications and have done so for some time. The sun, especially in Low Ozone regions, can prove to be lethal… At least in a booth you’re on a timer and the tan is gradual.
I have olive skin, and even though I look a little more mediteranian than the average cornfed whiteboy from the midwest, I rarely step outside with anything less than some SPF 15 or better. I’ve seen too many people have melanoma’s cut off of their backs and noses for me to do otherwise.
First, I don’t mean to be rude, and I appreciate the advice you guys have given. But, I have researched tanning booths, and for me personally, its not an option I want to consider. As for the real sun - I’m not a recluse or something - I have just found that I am pale by nature, and regardless of how much I stay in the sun, that doesn’t change all that much.
So, that brings me to sunless tanners. Despite that being the topic, I’ve only gotten one real suggestion - surely others have used these! If you have, please comment
[quote]Sniper99 wrote:
So, that brings me to sunless tanners. Despite that being the topic, I’ve only gotten one real suggestion - surely others have used these! If you have, please comment :)[/quote]
I LOVE Lancome’s Soleil sunless tanner for body. I have very pale skin naturally and this works great for me. Make sure that you exfoliate well before applying, and you’ll need to reapply every 3-4 days to keep a consistent tan. Incidentally, I’ve seen some people get pretty streaky with Neutrogena, so I’m willing to pay a little extra for a streak-free tan. :o)
