May is Melanoma Awareness month! And even though May is coming to an end we still need to be aware of the dangers of melanoma.
What is the leading cause of melanoma? UV radiation from the sun and tanning beds! Not good news for those of us who like to get a little (or a lot) of color when the temperatures rise and you’ll be showing more skin. While melanoma typically strikes those of us with light-colored skin and light-colored eyes more often, melanoma does not discriminate! Yes, even those of you with darker skin and eyes can get melanoma, though it is not as common.
What’s a girl (or guy) to do?! When summer rolls around and the sun comes out, many people crave a golden glow. Nobody wants to sport shorts and sundresses with white legs! Heck, even in the winter months I like some color! Who doesn’t look better with a tan?! Bronzed, radiant skin can increase your confidence, make you look slimmer, and may prompt your friends to ask with envy, “Did you just get back from a beach vacation?”
Even if you adore sporting a tan in the summertime, you surely know about the dangers of sun exposure, and a natural tan simply isn’t worth risking your health. If you’re yearning for a golden glow, consider the benefits of a spray tan before you visit a tanning salon or sunbathe all day at the beach.
Now this doesn’t mean covering up from head to toe at the beach or by the pool. But, if you already have a spray tan you can use sunscreen and not be so concerned about “getting some sun”. (Natural, of course. Conventional sunscreens are laden with chemicals that some think have accelerated the skin cancer epidemic. But that’s a whole other topic that I could write a whole blog post about!) Beauty Counter offers fantastic, safe sunscreens! Visit my friend Juile’s Beauty Counter page here to buy some!
Being a kid in the 80’s and a young adult in the 90’s I have spent many a day baking in the sun and laying in tanning beds to get a tan. At one point we even had a tanning lamp that you put your face in front of to tan! WTF?!?! Unfortunately now I am paying for it with more wrinkles than I probably should have now AND the dermatologist has already had to remove a few suspicious spots from my Irish skin over the last several years. The most recent spot was just removed in April and turned out to be a basal cell carcinoma! Thankfully basal cells aren’t too worrisome, but a little scary nonetheless and now I have a scar where it was removed 😦
So, here’s why you should consider a sunless airbrush spray tan:
AVOID DANGEROUS UV RAYS
As you likely know, a tan can create serious side effects that last for years. Ultraviolet (UV) exposure from the sun and artificial sources (like tanning beds) significantly increases your risk of contracting skin cancer. In fact, experts believe that up to 90% of melanomas are caused by UV exposure (source). In addition, although some tanning salons try to convince consumers that vitamin D (a valuable organic compound) can be obtained from tanning beds, the truth is that you can get plenty of vitamin D through a healthy diet or a vitamin supplement. After finding out that my own Vitamin D levels were low I began using this supplement. If you’re concerned about your vitamin D levels, visit a doctor – not a tanning salon. Finally, whether you use a tanning salon or the sun, cumulative damage caused by UV radiation can cause premature aging. To avoid wrinkles, brown spots, and leathery skin, you need to avoid excessive sun exposure and wear sunscreen every day.
A YEAR ROUND GLOW
Some people only like a tan in the summer, but others love to stay bronze all year round, like me! If that sounds like you, you’ll love spray tanning. Snow, ice, and frigid temperatures won’t be obstacles. In a comfortable and climate-controlled environment, you can update your tan throughout the year to maintain your confidence and that glow that you adore. And, you can customize your color based on the time of year. No need to be super dark in the winter, but a touch of color is always nice. Which brings me to the next point…
AIRBRUSH TANS HAVE COME A LONG WAY
In the early days of sunless spray tans people often complained of turning orange. Today’s tanning solutions don’t do that. These days, it is hard to tell the difference between a “natural” tan and a spray tan, when done by a professional. What you will get is a nice brown color, whether it be light, medium, or dark. And, many of today’s solutions offer beneficial natural and organic skin ingredients like aloe, hyaluronic acid, acai berry, and various nut oils, to name a few. They often are free of parabens, soy, and gluten!
CUSTOMIZED OUTCOME
There is no sure way to lessen the intensity of the sun’s rays to achieve the aesthetic effect that you want. You may try to control the amount of color that you get by shortening or lengthening sun exposure time, but hoping for good results from a trial-and-error method is risky, you could end up with a sunburn! With the benefits of a spray tan, you can achieve a light, medium, or dark tone that gives you exactly what you want. I personally like mixing a medium and dark solution to get the perfect color for my skin tone!
QUICK RESULTS
With a spray tan, you can enjoy a beautiful tan without spending hours sitting in the sun racking up skin damage. Time spent sunbathing can feel endless when you’re hot and perspiring. With a spray tan, you get a beautiful glow in about 15 minutes in air-conditioned comfort.
So what do you think? Would you like a healthy, golden glow this summer?
If you live in Houston in the Memorial, Galleria, Spring Branch, or Town & Country areas I can help you achieve a lovely bronze tan this summer! I have recently started a mobile spray tan business called Modern Glow. Click here to go to my Facebook page and request an appointment.
Happy sunless tanning!!
the ANGELA edit 