I'vs sworn off tanning!

[tmusgrave]

Has anyone tried the "Mystic Tan"? It is the spray on tanner where you go into a booth and they spray you - top to bottom, front to back.

 

I too have very fair skin and have never been able to spend time in the sun. I was 2 years old and got a second degree burn playing outside in May :eek: As a teenager, I succumbed to peer pressure and burned myself to a crisp more than once trying to get a "healthy" tan. I constantly check myself for irregular moles or spots and always have them checked by the doctor.

 

I am extremely pale, my great-grandmother always said I was an Irish beauty - dark hair, light eyes and fair skin, and I would like to have a light tan for the "glow". Just wondering if anyone has tried it and how well it worked.

[Jane110]

Has anyone tried the "Mystic Tan"? It is the spray on tanner where you go into a booth and they spray you - top to bottom, front to back.

 

I too have very fair skin and have never been able to spend time in the sun. I was 2 years old and got a second degree burn playing outside in May :eek: As a teenager, I succumbed to peer pressure and burned myself to a crisp more than once trying to get a "healthy" tan. I constantly check myself for irregular moles or spots and always have them checked by the doctor.

 

I am extremely pale, my great-grandmother always said I was an Irish beauty - dark hair, light eyes and fair skin, and I would like to have a light tan for the "glow". Just wondering if anyone has tried it and how well it worked.

 

I don't know about "mystic tan" as it sounds like a brand or chain store, and since you don't tell us where you live, it's impossible for anyone here to recommend a specific place to you.

 

What I can tell you is that a spray on tan is only as good as the product used, and the person doing it. Many of my friends, who do look better with color, have spray tans done professionally with fantastic results, but unless you live in the NYC area, there's no point in me posting places.

One key to success however, is being fully exfoliated before they start spraying.

[jollycruise]

Has anyone tried the "Mystic Tan"? It is the spray on tanner where you go into a booth and they spray you - top to bottom, front to back.

 

I too have very fair skin and have never been able to spend time in the sun. I was 2 years old and got a second degree burn playing outside in May :eek: As a teenager, I succumbed to peer pressure and burned myself to a crisp more than once trying to get a "healthy" tan. I constantly check myself for irregular moles or spots and always have them checked by the doctor.

 

I am extremely pale, my great-grandmother always said I was an Irish beauty - dark hair, light eyes and fair skin, and I would like to have a light tan for the "glow". Just wondering if anyone has tried it and how well it worked.

 

I did the Mystic tan once and was not happy with the results. I have since used and swear by Jergens self tanning lotions for the body and face. It gives a nice glow and the face lotion also has spf in it.

[Jane110]

No contact lenses I see well still-though I need reading glasses-any seeing trouble I have now is the retinopathy I have in my eyes- my eyes will blur at times from this condition.

 

No. my eyes have faded with age. They were more brown and only slightly hazel when I was younger. LOL! this is the only thing that has improved with age. I love hazel eyes, my hubby has them, though his have more blue than mine.

 

Okay, I just asked because you said, "now I have hazel eyes", so I thought you got colored contact lenses. I didn't know eyes faded color with age.

 

 

 

Jane, people are NUTS if they tell you to tan.

 

There's no shortage of idiots in the world. It's usually strangers, often met on cruise ships or other places where there's an abundance of sun that make stupid comments. Perhaps the sun fries their brain cells along w/ their skin? ;)

 

You would be covered in freckles and at very serious risk of skin cancer. But with beautiful porcelain skin, why would you want to? Perhaps they are jealous, that you have skin that is beautiful without hours of baking?

 

Yes, I would be covered with freckles - aka sun damage.

And no, I don't ever want to be tan and have never had the desire. Tanning is what they do to leather! :)

I have used a light touch of tanning product on my legs in the summer, but have to be careful not to use too much as tan legs w/ a white face, chest, and arms looks rather silly.

[Bunti]

Well... here is the sort of dissenting position. I stopped tanning when I was about 18... more years ago than I care to comment on. Religiously used sunblock, then mostly lived where rain and fog are the norm. Then I moved to Juneau Alaska--no tan for me for over 25 years. (We can only even think of tanning for a few hours (less than 100) in sunny days between June and September- pale is the norm here.)

 

Then I started to have some health problems. Significant ones. And the ones I have are among the ones listed below (not rickets, included it as it shows how vitamin d was discovered):

 

Rickets, a children's disease of soft, painful bones is caused by D deficiency. That's how D was discovered - when a Polish physician learned that mere sunbathing cured rickets.

Lack of Vitamin D also has been linked to depression, of the seasonal-affective variety

Some diseases for which risk is associated with low Vitamin D levels include: osteoporosis, multiple sclerosis, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis and Type I diabetes in children, along with a host of other autoimmune disorders.

Cancers linked to D deficiency include: breast, colon, prostate, lung, pancreatic, ovarian, Hodgkin's lymphom, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, bladder, esophageal and uterine.

.

 

The above was taken from our local Juneau empire. Here is a link to a USA today article about the sun from 2005, and vitamin D:

 

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-05-21-doctors-sunshine-good_x.htm and one from TIME from 2007

http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/top10/article/0,30583,1686204_1686252_1690393,00.html

 

They are not saying get a leathery tan, but what seems to be real, is that we are creatures who need the sun. When I was tested I had vitamin d levels in the dangerously low area. And I take a multivite, and being Alaskan eat more salmon than the average person. So, when I find sunshine, I spend 15 minutes in it and then apply my sunblock. BTW, my blond Scandinavian dad seemed to instinctively know this, lived this way for years and he died at 79 of complications of an injury, and his skin was lovely as long as he was on this earth. (Course he ate naturally and exercised daily too!)

 

So now I am taking prescribed mega-doses of Vitamin D, and dreaming of sunny climates, and will allow my body to manufacture its own vitamin D whenever possible. So a light healthy glow may BE a healthy glow.

 

Should I be wearing a flame-proof suit??

[sandytoesrose]

I'm 60, so besides skin cancer, I also worry about wrinkles - I don't intentionally bake in the sun. Sun tan lotion, long sleeves and a big sun hat are my friends. When I was about 30 I noticed that my mom's skin was so much smoother than her cousin's. They were about the same age, but the cousin spent every summer of her life sunbathing. She had huge wrinkles on her face when she got older. I find myself using more and more moisturizer, I take sun in small doses - either in the morning or late afternoon, never at noon. This summer I had a mole check done by a dermatologist - I will continue to do so every year. The self tanners are great; I'll start using them about a week before I leave on my February cruise.

[BND]

Well... here is the sort of dissenting position. I stopped tanning when I was about 18... more years ago than I care to comment on. Religiously used sunblock, then mostly lived where rain and fog are the norm. Then I moved to Juneau Alaska--no tan for me for over 25 years. (We can only even think of tanning for a few hours (less than 100) in sunny days between June and September- pale is the norm here.)

 

Then I started to have some health problems. Significant ones. And the ones I have are among the ones listed below (not rickets, included it as it shows how vitamin d was discovered):

 

Rickets, a children's disease of soft, painful bones is caused by D deficiency. That's how D was discovered - when a Polish physician learned that mere sunbathing cured rickets.

Lack of Vitamin D also has been linked to depression, of the seasonal-affective variety

Some diseases for which risk is associated with low Vitamin D levels include: osteoporosis, multiple sclerosis, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis and Type I diabetes in children, along with a host of other autoimmune disorders.

Cancers linked to D deficiency include: breast, colon, prostate, lung, pancreatic, ovarian, Hodgkin's lymphom, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, bladder, esophageal and uterine.

.

 

The above was taken from our local Juneau empire. Here is a link to a USA today article about the sun from 2005, and vitamin D:

 

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-05-21-doctors-sunshine-good_x.htm and one from TIME from 2007

http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/top10/article/0,30583,1686204_1686252_1690393,00.html

 

They are not saying get a leathery tan, but what seems to be real, is that we are creatures who need the sun. When I was tested I had vitamin d levels in the dangerously low area. And I take a multivite, and being Alaskan eat more salmon than the average person. So, when I find sunshine, I spend 15 minutes in it and then apply my sunblock. BTW, my blond Scandinavian dad seemed to instinctively know this, lived this way for years and he died at 79 of complications of an injury, and his skin was lovely as long as he was on this earth. (Course he ate naturally and exercised daily too!)

 

So now I am taking prescribed mega-doses of Vitamin D, and dreaming of sunny climates, and will allow my body to manufacture its own vitamin D whenever possible. So a light healthy glow may BE a healthy glow.

 

Should I be wearing a flame-proof suit??

 

There is a big difference between getting a little direct sun a few times/week at most and laying (or using a tanning bed) out for hours a week. You only need a few minutes/day to produce vitamin d. Vitamin D is also added to milk. You don't need a "light healthy glow"(which does not exist) to get enough sun to manufacture Vitamin D. I know lots of people who use sunscreen religiously, but none who have Vitamin D deficiency. I do know lots of people who have sun damaged skin and have had different varieties of skin cancer removed. You live in a different environment than most people.

[Jane110]

 

Should I be wearing a flame-proof suit??

 

No, of course not. But a "glow" from a tan is not a healthy glow.

 

Yes, we need vitamin D and being in sunshine for 15 minutes makes the body manufacture 10,000 units of vit. D.

 

But one can still protect their skin - especially their faces - and avoid sun damage, while still getting enough sun for vitamin D.

[iheartbda]

I'm sure many already know this but there was a time that tanned skin denoted a lower station in life. It meant you were outdoors all the time, most likely working in the fields. Untanned, or milky white meant you were a lady of leisure. They were sure to stay out of the sun lest someone think they got tan, heaven forbid, by working outdoors. Parasols were not protection from the rain, but rather protection from the sun.;)

[BroncosFan2010]

I don't care if my skin is pasty white. When I am 50 and look younger than everyone who baked their whole lives, it will have been worth it!

 

I was a lifeguard for 6 years. I would still get tan, even with TONS of sunscreen. I have never burnt, and do use a little of the tanning lotion to keep a "healthy" glow.

[momofmeg]

There is a big difference between getting a little direct sun a few times/week at most and laying (or using a tanning bed) out for hours a week. You only need a few minutes/day to produce vitamin d. Vitamin D is also added to milk. You don't need a "light healthy glow"(which does not exist) to get enough sun to manufacture Vitamin D. I know lots of people who use sunscreen religiously, but none who have Vitamin D deficiency. I do know lots of people who have sun damaged skin and have had different varieties of skin cancer removed. You live in a different environment than most people.

 

I take a walk every day of about 45 minutes-so I do get in the sun. I also take a calcium supplement that has vitamin D. I don't think I have to worry about a D deficiency. After all, I do not avoid the sun-I just do not bake in the sun, in order to be tan.

[Jane110]

I'm sure many already know this but there was a time that tanned skin denoted a lower station in life. It meant you were outdoors all the time, most likely working in the fields.

 

Yes, true. It's where the term "red neck" comes from.

 

 

Untanned, or milky white meant you were a lady of leisure. They were sure to stay out of the sun lest someone think they got tan, heaven forbid, by working outdoors. Parasols were not protection from the rain, but rather protection from the sun.;)

 

In Asia, parasols are still popular. That's why there are so many pretty paper parasols sold in Chinatown shops around the world - they're used to block sun, not rain.

 

When I was in Vietnam a few years ago, the women in Hanoi all wore long beige cotton gloves all the way up to their upper arms, so that while they were out, their arms didn't get tanned. They also wore pretty straw hats with big brims.

[iheartbda]

 

In Asia, parasols are still popular. That's why there are so many pretty paper parasols sold in Chinatown shops around the world - they're used to block sun, not rain.

 

 

No Chinatown in my small town, therefore I see some of the ladies who work in one of the Chinese restaurants walking to work in the summer with regular old umbrellas.:)

[madge57]

Ok I am going to break the trend!! I use the tanning beds. I amd going to use it before our cruise Jan. 17th. The lst time I used a tanning bed was 4 years ago. So I really don't use them much at all. I got a certificate for Christmas so I'm going to use them and when the sessions are gone then it will be a long time before I use the beds again. I go outside alot in the summer to plant shrubs and flowers plus weed so I get my sun then. I usually get enough sun for color and thats it because I use sun block and get plenty of vitamin D. Tan is a healthy glow to some you just have to be careful in the sun.

[momofmeg]

Ok I am going to break the trend!! I use the tanning beds. I and going to use it before our cruise Jan. 17th. The lst time I used a tanning bed was 4 years ago. So I really don't use them much at all. I got a certificate for Christmas so I'm going to use them and when the sessions are gone then it will be a long time before I use the beds again. I go outside alot in the summer to plant shrubs and flowers plus weed so I get my sun then. I usually get enough sun for color and thats it because I use sun block and get plenty of vitamin D. Tan is a healthy glow to some you just have to be careful in the sun.

 

Madge, my SIL is one eighth Cherokee-so she is naturally tan-she never laid out and "tanned" because she did not need to- but she and her hubby own a boat and own a cabin that is on a lake about 30 miles from their home. During the summer they spent most weekends there-so she was in the sun A LOT. she has always RELIGIOUSLY used sunblock-as she wanted to instill that good habit in her children-who are fairer skinned like their father.

 

She still got a melanoma about 3 years ago and they have sold the cabin and boat.

[PattyW]

You can usually find a shady spot on deck.

 

I just had a visit with my dermatologist who, when he found out I had just returned from a 10 day southern Caribbean cruise, complimented me on my lack of a tan.

 

My children's pediatrician always comments (in a good way) on my children's barely there tan lines whenever I bring them in in the summer for check-ups. It's tough to keep up with them though - my daughter's skin will tan (not burn thankfully) in literally 15 minutes without sunscreen.

[Bunti]

No, of course not. But a "glow" from a tan is not a healthy glow.

 

Yes, we need vitamin D and being in sunshine for 15 minutes makes the body manufacture 10,000 units of vit. D.

 

But one can still protect their skin - especially their faces - and avoid sun damage, while still getting enough sun for vitamin D.

 

This is true.... but sunblock does block Vitamin D production- it needs sun on skin to produce the vitamin-- just not too much. I am currently taking 1000 units a day, and 50,000 once a week. Prior to that I took MDR vitamin D and ate foods high in it. (Fitday said I got plenty!!) It is believed that many Northern women are deficit in "D". I was never even tested for it until last year. I had never even thought about it.

[PrincessE]

I'm going on my Southern Caribbean cruise in 38 days (not that I'm counting or anything!) and...well...I'm going to tan. I'll wear sunblock, but not a strong one. I've had beautiful tans, I've been burned so bad I cried for three weeks. Everything in moderation, I say. I don't worship the sun like I used to, but I do plan on getting a tan while I'm on vacation. Just being honest. =)

[wrp96]

I've always burned not tanned, even when wearing high SPF sunblock. Even growing up in Alaska, I would burn during the summer if I forgot to apply sunblock. I still shudder when I think about the sunburn I got on my Panama Canal cruise when I forgot to reapply as often as I normally do.

 

I don't step out of my bathroom in the morning without applying sunblock at least to my face. If I know I will be in the sun for long periods of time, I apply sunblock to my entire body before I even get dressed. On warm weather cruises, I will be the person you see wearing a long sleeve shirt and a hat, and have something covering my legs. I learned this example from my mother who doesn't go out in the sun without long sleeves and a hat and has younger looking skin than many 30 year olds (she was carded at the age of 52). At 30 years old, I still look young enough that people think I am in high school.

[PrettyLA]

I've decided I'm not going to either. I've been burned too many times and I can't afford that anymore, especially on my face.

[vulcan500]

I've started tanning each fall. Not 3x week, but enough to get a healthy glow, up my vitamin D level and keep me happier in the gloomy winter months; BUT always drape a towel over my face and throat. It helps not to feel so whitewhitewhite when cruise time comes around.

[Gathina]

This is pure speculation, but I suspect most people get enough vitamin d from just their regular day to day activities while outdoors.

 

It is still amazing to me how something that is so unhealthy for you makes you "feel" healthy.

 

I like the Nivea body lotion that has a touch of self tanner in it. Has a great scent, too. That works for me. I don't want to look like a leather prune one day. I've seen scans of what people's faces below the surface with even just a "little" tan. I shudder to think of what mine looks like under the surface!

[floatinrocks]

|'ve used to lay outside and fry when I was younger. Now, I'm 60 and my skin shows it, luckily not my face. LOL

 

I showed my Granddaughter my hands and told her that is from sun damage and my arms are so wrinkled, I showed her that too. She stays out of the sun now. My daughter, however, still tans.

 

My FIL has had cancer removed from the side of his nose twice and his nose will never look normal!

 

This is a good thread for sun lovers to read.

[10splyr]

I am currently sporting about a 2" long incision with 2 layers of sutures, deep and surface, on my left cheek; not a pretty look. I was never a sun-worshiper and "usually" wore sun screen, but always a hat in the sun. This was a squamous and quite deep, and my cheek will probably be numb for the rest of my life as there are so many nerves in your face. Fortunately it doesn't affect facial expressions and will not leave a scar (plastic surgeon dermatologist). He was actually surprised that this is my first b/c of my redhead complexion, altho I guess you do have to count the melanoma on my chest as actually the first:eek:.

 

No sun for me w/o 45 spf. I, too, use either Jergins or Olay with tanners just to keep me from looking like a ghost or an escapee from "Scream."

[MIDWESTCRUIZER]

don't flame me but I tan one month a year and this time it's for our cruise. I don't get very dark as that is just my skin tone but it makes me feel a little better about having a little extra pounds on me - somehow my arms look smaller tan in a tank top :rolleyes: I am 31 and from 25 till about 29 i didn't tan hardly ever but the last couple years it makes me feel better. No different then being out in the sun every day which I work way too much to be out in the sun every day. lol I even own a tanning bed - it fell in my hands and just sits collecting dust....except this month.:D