Are there any health ppl here?

[Clueless Blonde]

I've started tanning this winter (I can't believe I'm admitting to actually doing this), and I'm just curious if it really does contribute to cancer. Looking tan is great, but it's not something I really wonna die over.

:rolleyes:

[MrCow]

only in certain ways it can. so yes it can cause skin cancer to answer your question.

[Jigglysaint]

I believe that the idea of the "heathly tan" is just one of those things that people in society must have carried over from another time period. Right now, we can get vitamin D from milk and other foods supplimented(I believe its flour in the UK). The origin of tanning must have been some sort of old indicator of health based on the simple logic that non-tanned people weren't as healthy because being poor, they couldn't possibly understand the benefits of a tan. I'm not sure about that, though.

Anyway, a person can lead a perfectly healthy life without a tan. the only think that a tan will do is make people assume that you are healthy because you have a tan. Most people subscribe to the golden rule of body image: "If they look healthy, the MUST be healthy". This is very false indead.

Edit: Name a benefit of tanning.

Edit2: No wonder they call you Clueless Blond, LOL!

[Clueless Blonde]

It's that I'm in search of looking "healthy", I just want to look good.
But what I'm really wondering, is, is it dangerous?

[Daarkseid]

Prolonged exposure to sun can increase the risk of skin cancer, particularly later in life. How great the risk is depends on several factors, including genetics. People with fair skin, particularly with blond or red hair, are at the greatest risk. The risk gets smaller as natural skin color is darker, though the risk is still there. Also, if you had any severe sun burns when very young(like in the first few years of your life) that will greatly increase the risk of skin cancer.

And like all forms of cancer, family history can be a good indicator of your risk level.

Essentially though, its up to you. If you decide to tan because you like how it looks and enjoy being in the sun, then you won't have god or satan or whoever to blame if you happen to get skin cancer later in life.

I have some fairly pale skin myself(though I tan more easily than I would realize) and spend my days basking like a lizard in the sun(and sometimes atop a large warm rock if available). If I do get skin cancer, I'll probably have no one to blame but myself.