I am the type of person who always likes to be tan. Before deciding on Penn State, I originally only wanted to go to a school that had warm weather so I could keep a nice color all year round. But then I discovered tanning beds. Tanning beds allowed me to always be tan for a cheap price and minimal effort. I quickly became obsessed with going tanning and friends had to tell me to stop. I told them that because I was only going twice a week, no harm could come from it. Many people, think that indoor tanning is safer than tanning outside. I decided to do my blog post on the topic of how harmful tanning beds actually are.
It is common knowledge that tanning beds are dangerous to the body. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC) this is because of the different types of ultraviolet rays which are hitting your skin. The rays can cause skin to wrinkle much earlier than it usually would, especially if young people are the ones using the beds. And the CDC’s statistics show that most tanning bed users are students and young people. The rays also increase the risk of melanoma in young people also. Another harmful effect of the rays is not to the skin but the eyes. Tanning places suggest that people using the beds wear proper eye protection. I never did this because it would cause an obvious line over the bridge of my nose. The CDC says that if proper eye protection is not worn it can lead to a eye disease which will likely result in blindness. In an article from the Skin Cancer Foundation, it states that over 400,000 skin cancer cases are due to tanning beds. The article then boldly states that this number is higher than the number of lung cancer cases caused by smoking. This statement blew me away. I was brought up learning about how harmful smoking is to the body, and if you smoke you are destined to get lung cancer. Earlier in the semester we discussed in class the correlation between smoking and lung cancer. So now to read that indoor tanning is virtually worse for you than smoking was really eye opening.
Unfortunately, indoor tanning is not safer than outdoors and definitely not safe at all. Writing this blog post has me upset with myself for damaging my skin so much and a little worried about the future of my skin. I would highly advise people to cancel their memberships to indoor tanning salons. It was hard but your skin will thank you in the end!
http://www.skincancer.org/news/tanning/international
http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/skin/basic_info/indoor_tanning.htm
This post is definitely relatable to many young people our age. For me personally, I always feel better when I am tan as well. However, my mother always forbade me from using tanning beds. In the area where I live at home, spray tans and different self tanners were very popular. It was natural then for mothers in my hometown to worry if these methods of obtaining a “sun-kissed glow” were actually harmful. Many started to think that the chemicals used in these products could potentially harm the skin. However, the use of spray tans and self tanners are generally accepted as the safest way to darken your skin. I’ve attached an article below where a credible dermatologist debunks the myths of self tanners and spray tans below.
http://www.skincancer.org/skin-cancer-information/ask-the-experts/self-tanners
This post really caught my attention because my sister is an avid tanner. Skin cancer runs in our family, and she has had several spots removed, yet she continues to go! She defends her unhealthy habit by saying tanning instantly makes her “feel better about herself”. I am going to show her this post hoping it’ll prompt her to drop this habit. This link further explains dangers of tanning, and I found it very informative! http://www.tipsfortanning.com/the-dangers-of-using-tanning-beds-explained/
This post caught my attention, I ask the question; why are people so concerned about going to cover thier bodies in some gross chemically induced paste just to look like Thing from Fantastic Four? First of all, everyone knows its fake, it’s the middle of December and you come walking into class like you just spent a whole summer on the shore, so who are you really trying to impress? Secondly, you can protect your skin from the real sun when you’re outside by using lotion, and still end up getting tan. When you get sprayed or lay in a bed you’re just in a lose, lose situatioin, bad tan, damanged skin. Lastly, your money can be put towards much better, more productive things, and not looking like Snooki.
Your blog post caught my attention immediately because I was also thinking about doing one on tanning beds. For my high school prom I would always use a tanning bed about twice a week, thinking that since I was only doing it for about 2 months of the year that it wouldn’t harm me. It’s scary to think that such a small amount of time of about 7-10 minutes in a tanning bed can cause so much harm to our skin. I too love being tan and one of my favorite parts of the summer is just being able to lay out in the sun and get a nice tan. My favorite thing about your post is that with research, you decided to stop using a tanning bed because you saw the damage it could have on your skin. I think it would be interesting for you to find a study done where it compares the likelihood of someone to get skin cancer from a tanning bed versus from the sun. Here is an article I found on the difference between tanning from the sun and tanning from a bed.
Your post made me remember when a really good friend of mine used to go tanning all of the time. She did it often and seemed to enjoy it a lot, knowing how bad it was for her. A little while later she stopped going because she had burned herself very badly. That’s when she realized how bad it was and now she still goes tanning, but she gets spray tans. Here is an article about why tanning is so dangerous to our body.
http://www.melanoma.org/understand-melanoma/preventing-melanoma/why-is-tanning-dangerous
This topic is very relevant to my life because before my senior prom, I decided to go tanning. I’m extremely light skinned and I wanted to look like a bronzed-goddess on prom day. Little did I know, the damages that tanning beds do to our skin. When I first went tanning, I got a little burnt, but nothing too bad. A couple times after that, I woke up the next morning with red, itchy hives all over my body. I went to the dermatologist and he said that I got an allergic reaction. I immediately stopped going tanning and accepted my pale skin. Tanning is also extremely unsanitary. In this article, http://www.wmbfnews.com/story/24819917/disease-can-flourish-in-tanning-beds-left-unregulated-by-state-health-dept, it states how diseases spread from tanning booths. Think about it, you’re laying in a bed, sweating. Yes, the workers clean the bed after every person is finished, but infections can still spread. There are much more negatives to tanning salons than positives.
Charlotte, I was pretty taken aback by your post. I personally tried using a tanning bed a few times before my senior prom, and I immediately understood where the addiction came from, as it gives a nice glow quick and easily. However, I could also feel the damage it was inflicting on my skin, and I even forgot to put on goggles the first time and had trouble with my eyes for a few minutes after the session. I will never do it again, because the risks are just too high, as you said. Check out this article, it outlines five scary facts about tanning beds, and it really caught my eye and has continued to keep me at a distance from these cancer-causing traps.
http://www.webmd.com/beauty/features/5-scary-facts-about-tanning-beds