Best Simple Remedies's video: Tanning Beds and Skin Cancer Risks

Tanning Beds and Skin Cancer Risks. What is a tan?. Highlights. 1.A tan is your skin’s defense mechanism in response to receiving too much ultraviolet (UV) radiation from sunlight or other sources. 2.Tanning beds are not safer alternatives to natural sunlight. 3.You can achieve the same glowing, bronze look from sunless tanners and sprays found in drugstores. Our society associates a glowing tan with health, youth, and attractiveness. However, the plain truth is that a tan or sunburn is your body’s way of telling you that you’ve been exposed to too much ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Exposure to the sun’s UV rays causes skin cells (melanocytes) to darken your skin by producing more melanin (which makes your skin appear darker). The darkening process is actually your skin’s defense against more UV damage. While the tan will fade, the damage that occurs to your skin is long-lasting. This damage increases your risk for skin cancers such as melanoma as well as signs of premature aging with increased wrinkles. Some people use tanning beds in the pursuit of a bronzed glow year-round. However, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advises that we completely avoid artificial UV sources such as tanning beds. According to the FDA, the sunlamps in tanning beds may be more dangerous than the sun. Unlike the sun, which comes and goes depending on the weather, you can use tanning beds at the same intensity every day of the year. This increases exposure and health risk. On that same note, the United States Department of Health and Human Services and the World Health Organization's International Agency of Research on Cancer panel have stated that UV radiation from the sun as well as artificial sources like tanning beds are a known carcinogen, which means that they may cause cancer. What are the types of UV radiation?. Ultraviolet light is the invisible radiation in light and contains the following three layers: *UVA: weakest UV ray, ages skin and tends to cause allergic reactions (rash). *UVB: burns and ages skin, most responsible for sunburns. *UVC: most dangerous, but not seen as a threat because it doesn’t penetrate the Earth’s ozone layer. Why do people use tanning beds?. Historically, tan skin revealed that you did hard labor outdoors. Most people frowned on tanned skin, seeing it as weathered and a sign of the working class. The wealthier class stayed inside or shielded themselves with parasols when outside to maintain their porcelain skin. Enter Coco Chanel. The fashion designer started a fad in 1923 when she returned from a trip to the Riviera with a brand new shade of golden brown skin. A trend was born. Everyone from celebrities to housewives suddenly craved the sun and sought sunny locations to work on their tans. By the 1950s, bikini bathing suits appeared on the scene and heightened the craze for a full-body tan. As the decades passed, the rise in skin cancers began to cause alarm. Warnings came from dermatologists and doctors about the skin damage and dangers of the sun’s harmful radiation. Tanning booths appeared in the early part of the 20th century as a means of medical research. In light of doctors’ warnings about sun radiation, tanning beds gained popularity in the 1970s as a supposedly healthy alternative to tanning in natural sunlight. What are the risks associated with tanning beds?. All Photos Licensed Under CC Source : www.pexels.com www.pixabay.com www.commons.wikimedia.org