Just Say ‘No’ to Tanning Beds, Okay?

Growing up, I LOVED a tanning bed. Everyone did. We literally had one IN. OUR. HOUSE. I kid you not. And you bet I fried myself year-round for years before I thought.. “Hm, maybe I should listen to all those people who tell me how terrible this is for my skin.”

Tanning beds might get you nice and tan, but they definitely don’t give you that tan without giving you a few things you DON’T want along with it.. Like accelerating the appearance of wrinkles and dark spots, loss of firmness of the skin, and overall premature aging. NO thank you. Who wants that?!?

(Thank goodness for spray tans coming to save our skin and keep us tan, am I right, or am I right?)

Not to mention the scary truth that 1 in 5 Americans will develop a form of skin cancer by the age of 70. If you ask me, there is no reason to hop into a tanning bed ever again. There are plenty of safer options to getting that glow you’re looking for without damaging your skin in the process. 

While we’re here, let’s lay a couple myths to rest when it comes to tanning beds.

MYTH 1: The base tan.

Getting a tan prior to your beach trip will NOT prevent you from burning later on. Same goes for your Air-Tan. You definitely can still burn even if you got a little color beforehand. Sunscreen is your friend – layer up!

MYTH 2: Tanning in the tanning bed is safer than tanning in the sun. 

While sun tanning is definitely damaging to the skin, tanning in a tanning bed has been found to pose even more of a risk for developing skin cancers. In one study done on a group of women diagnosed with melanoma before the age of 30, 97% of them said they used tanning beds.

So skip the tanning bed, get your Air-Tan, wear your sunscreen and take care of that beautiful skin of yours!