No more tempting beaches
bathed in sun. No more white mini skirts that cry out to be worn over tanned
legs
In short: the lure of the tan
no longer calls.
As a former bathing suit
model and sunscreen commercials actress, I was known for my golden bronze and
my livelihood depended on it to a large extent. I never knew when I would be
called to some far off shore to shoot a bathing suit ad.
I needed a year-round base
tan not only to show off the vibrant colors of the clients' clothes but to
prevent against getting burned when called into an all day shoot under a hot
summer sun.
Winter was when many of the ad campaigns for Spring and Summer were
being shot so there was no break from staying bronze. And, let's face it, most
of us look WAY better with some glow than when ghostly.
I thought I was being smart
when I spent time in a tanning bed--with their promise of a SAFER, QUICKER tan.
As I baked under the purple glow I rationalized that I was protecting my skin
and in addition the marketing brochures for all of those places promised dark without
damage.
Like other things that many
of us did when we were in our teens and 20's, I now pay the price.
As a longtime friend of mine
told me decades ago, "You lose your taste for a tan after your first basal
cell." No kidding.
I now routinely have a
complete head to toe skin exam every year and I avoid being in the sun too long
without a hat and seriously protective sunscreen.
You know that it is a myth
that artificial tanning causes less damage than natural sunlight. Not true! It
doesn't matter whether you get your tan from the sun or from any artificial
source such as a sun lamp or tanning bed. The ultraviolet (UV) radiation from
these devices as well as from the sun is linked to skin cancers, including
basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma.
And, that's not all. UV is
also links to all sorts of other skin damage including, yikes, premature skin
aging or "photo-aging."
There are three types of UV
rays--UVA (the longest), UVB (in between), and UVC (the shortest).
For years, people thought
only UVB rays were harmful and since the fluorescent lights used in tanning bed
emit most UVA rays, artificial tanning was OK. Now we know better. Both UVB and
UVA rays damage our cells' DNA, causing mutations that may lead to cancer.
This
same DNA damage is the cause of tanning. In other words, tanning
itself is a sign of DNA damage to the skin.
Can you believe? Despite the
clear evidence that it's unsafe, the use of tanning beds is on the rise. 30
million people, mostly women between the ages of 16 and 49, tan themselves in
tanning salons every year just in the U.S.
They understand the risks but
do it anyway, many of them thinking "it makes them look healthy."
Don't be fooled like I was.
Stay away from tanning salons. And don't get a deep tan every summer. If you
are worried about getting enough vitamin D, take a pill!
For your health,
GretaBFit
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