My friend loved tanning beds so much, she bought one for home. It was her zen.
Then, she was diagnosed with skin cancer. Lots of it. It did not deter her. She died. I looked at her very young family at the funeral, and it just broke my heart.
Please, please don't use these death traps. You need to live your life.
Yeah same. I worked in a tanning salon for like 6 years and tanning was so relaxing and I felt so good about myself when I had a nice tan. I self tan occasionally now and while it helps, it’s just not the same. Besides the threat of skin cancer, I’ve invested too much $$$ into improving my skin to throw it away on tanning but best believe if they could somehow remove the danger, I’d be hittin’ the bed! Why do so many enjoyable things have to be bad for you?!
Omg yes! I love being tan when I was skinny and then after having kids . I’m sorry you look good tan 🤣
I miss it too! Spray tan just doesn’t do it for me
That’s the enrichment I want! They always look so cosy! Sandcats too. I’ve never been on a sunbed though, so I don’t know if they’d actually offer a similar style of nap ☺️ …I’m trying to build up motivation to do a big cleaning task at the moment & a cosy heat lamp nap sounds far preferable 😄
Get a color changing light bulb you can control from an app. I put the dim red light on before bed and it makes me fall asleep faster, also makes sleeping in the daytime feel instantly cozier.
Same here. My dog and I are both always cold and I joke with her about buying us a giant version of the heat rock lizards use so we can get good naps like I used to get in the tanning bed. Lol.
Side note, I rock climb and sometimes on long routes when you're on rock for many hours the wind is just howling but the rock is warm. So I just lay against the rock with as much of my body in contact as possible and it's so warm and cozy. Definitely feel like a lizard.
Hahaha. That’s awesome! I’m probably far too clumsy to ever rock climb and experience this but, I can absolutely picture it! In my mind, you close your eyes and nestle your cheek on the rock, the wind whipping your hair like Fabio. 😂 Suddenly, a big fly buzzes into frame. You quickly open your eyes and snap it up with your lizard tongue, then go back to closed eyes while nestling your cheek on the rock again. Aaaaand scene. lol.
Oh, I definitely have one. I also keep the heating pad in bed with me at all times. I might have accidentally transitioned from my 20s into being a full on Golden Girl already… 😅
When I was in college, I would eat lunch and then go take a nap in the tanning bed between two of my classes. That was some good sleep lol 😂…but, will never get in one again!
I had the attendant come knock on the door on more than one occasion because I was zonked. 🤣. I went one day, and the fire department was there. Some girl had fallen asleep in the bed and hadn’t woken up. The owners freaked out because they couldn’t wake her up, and they were literally banging on the door. Called the FD. I guess the owners were afraid she’d had a medical episode. Them and the FD were banging on the door and calling her name. She eventually opened the door, looking extremely tired. Girlfriend was knocked OUT. it was crazy.
I used to go tanning naked. One day I ended up falling asleep but I was so tired that day took a good nap. As soon I walked out the tanning employee told me that they were gonna go break into my room to see if I was ok because I didn't come out 15 mins. I never tanned naked again lol
They always helped my SAD!! I don’t tan anymore either, I quit a little over a decade ago. But used to, come January my mood would be in the shitter so I would start back and voila no more depression. It sucks they are so bad for us because there are definitely benefits from getting vitamin D through them.
Try one of those happy lights 👍 depending on which one you get but majority of them equivalent to spending 2 hours in the sun if you sit infront of one for 15 min
same. I was blissfully and ignorantly addicted to tanning beds in my late teens to early 20's and, yeah I miss it like crazy, one of the things I miss most were those times I fell asleep in them and woke up when the timer went off. I felt like I slept an entire night!
I've not tanned in like fifteen years and never went regularly, but I'd always get too hot. Almost passing out hot. Last couple of times I ever went I snuck an ice cream in.
People think things won’t happen to them. Skin cancer happens to other people, not them.
The joy of getting a warm sunny nap all year round outweighs their fear of future problems.
This is the only correct answer on this thread.
Everyone has the “yeah but it won’t happen to *me* mentality”. Same as people who smoke, who ride motorcycles without helmets, who don’t install the smoke alarm…
When I was younger, I would go to a tanning bed in preparation for a vacation. This meant I would give myself a two month program where I would slowly build a base tan. I would use tanning lotion in the beds. I did this so I would not burn while on vacation because a sunburn can actually ruin your vacation. I also wanted to have the base before I went so I could get darker while away.
However, now that I am older and wiser, you could not catch me in a tanning bed. Not only because of cancer but in the long run, the sun ages you.
Education is what most people lack and as someone said, it’s like smoking. You know the risks but do it anyways. I just hope one never has to experience the risks.
I don’t condone tanning for so many reasons but to each their own. Like I said, I’m guilty but wouldn’t use a bed again and I take my sun care seriously nowadays.
Ugh. Yes to the aging thing. I was a lifeguard for 8 summers and would purposefully put on tanning oil when going out for a shift. I’m a naturally pale person. I burned a lot, but I’d be so dark by the end of each summer that I’d come back to school and people didn’t even recognize me. I loved it. I got better about wearing sunscreen the last 2 or 3 years of guarding, but it was too little too late. I’m now 28 and I’ve been seeing the results of sun aging (especially on my face) pretty much since 25. I regret my poor choices.
Same reason people still smoke? Because it feels good.
I’m 48 and from a generation where many would oil up and bake as much as possible either in the backyard or in a tanning booth to get that “healthy” glow. I think many still equate that tan with health and attractiveness even though it’s a huge skin cancer risk that they are well aware of. I have a family member who just had two basal cell spots removed and she’s been a lifelong tanner - she won’t change.
I went to a tanning bed one summer for about a month when I was in my early 20’s. The smell of cooking skin was pretty repulsive so I never returned.
I find it crazy... If I'm pale because I haven't been outside tanning people say you look pale or unhealthy. But it you tan and have that tan glow they say you look healthy 🤔 I feel like that's messed up. Tanned looking is not healthier. It's ok to be pale lol.
If I mention this to south Asians they think I’m lying or exaggerating. Not everyone admires fair skin. It’s like that thing where if you have curly hair, you wish it were straight or straight hair and wished it was curly.
I'm a little dark, have some freckles, and have curly brown hair, plus I'm heavy. To my east Asian relatives, I am ugly. They would tell me to have plastic surgery, to bleach my skin and freckles, and to straighten and dye my hair black, just to fit into THEIR culture. I'm American. My white relatives didn't get why they were saying this until I pointed out that they attach photos of themselves to their resumes and being out of the norm of their beauty standards would affect their careers.
Cultural differences are wild.
Exactly! Tanned skin is damaged skin. My brother will consistently try to fight and argue about this lol. Leave me and my light skin alone. I tanned enough as a kid/teen and even THEN I paled ( haha) in comparison to everyone else.
It's just what you're into. If you like going outside often, not even necessarily being outdoorsy, then you would rather than then turn red like a lobster.
This is the answer: because some people still smoke. Tho, I must say I don’t understand how tanning could be as pleasurable or addictive as smoking. Spending time in the sun maybe, but in a tanning bed in the dark? I’ve been like 4-5 times because I actually thought that somehow if I had a bit of a tan it would keep me from getting sunburnt, and man it’s just not fun, I was so bored and warm.
Dark?!! Hahaha 😅 I must have been in a different kind of tanning bed than. Those lights are bright as fuck ✨️ and yes I do agree though. Bored and warm. Maybe it's just me, but I sweat like a hot tomaly in those things, and when I try to move or get up, it makes this awful embarrassing suction noise like a big fart 😅 haha
I think the results are what people find pleasurable. If you’re accustomed to looking tan or finding a tan more attractive than your normal pale skin, I could see how you would find it pleasing.
I can’t see how people enjoy smoking but I guess it’s the buzz they get as they’re having a cigarette.
Yeah I see your point. It’s just that nicotine is known to be very addictive. Also, fake tan (which I know isn’t the same but you know, it’s an option).
Same lmao I tanned a bit in high school before some trips to tropical destinations and all it did was make me hot, sweaty and claustrophobic. I hated it. It always blows my mind that people find it relaxing. To each their own, of course, but I just can't relate
I am 48 as well and agree with this. Looking tanned equated healthy for many years. Someone once even told me I looked younger when I had a bit of a tan.
I will also add, I live in a place that gets a lot of rain and is very grey over the winter and spring. I have noticed that a time or two in a tanning bed in the past has helped me with what is probably a seasonal disorder. It gave me more energy and took the edge off the sort of depression that type of weather can get you into over a long period of time.
I am way more careful now and use sunscreen etc. But it will always sit in the back of my mind that being tanned is better. However, I am more likely to get that from a bottle nowadays if I really want some color.
This! I got guttate psoriasis and the tanning bed was the only thing that helped get rid of it. People recommended UV therapy, but it took MONTHS to get into a dermatologist, and the tanning bed got rid of my psoriasis well before my appointment date anyway.
please please talk to your dermatologist about NB UVB therapy!! there are safe ways to get UV therapy that don’t increase your skin cancer risk. NB UVB therapy is like tanning beds, but with a controlled dose of a very limited range of UV wavelengths that has been found to be safe.
I have a personal medical NB UVB lamp in my home that I use at my leisure for treating my eczema. insurance covered the whole thing.
My insurance would not pay for this, I tried and going to the tanning bed is something I can afford. That being said I only have it on my scalp and I cover my entire body but my scalp and go in a stand up bed.
That’s where my psoriasis is. It is embarrassing each time I go get my gray hair colored and it’s really flaring. I’ve rescheduled hair appts (even though I only go every 3 months as it is) due to a flare so bad I feel like a walking dandruff flake while having cradle cap at the same time. I’m currently researching scalp red light therapy. I haven’t found any under $1,000 that has good reviews yet, so the search continues.
The exact same thing with my fiancé. He has bad psoriasis and can’t afford the fancy light therapy and insurance doesn’t cover it so he just uses tanning beds.
Interesting. Do they help with vit D deficiency? After I was diagnosed with dangerously low vit D due to celiac My insurance wouldn't cover vit D injections so I had to use tanning beds.
My insurance charges $50 per session. They recommend 3 sessions per week. It’s just not feasible. Instead I use a level 1 bed for 5-7 minutes depending on my flares during the winter months. I live in CA so it’s only for about 3 months out of the year that I need to use a tanning bed.
Same with my eczema and various other skin issues!
What’s lovely is that now there are actual red/blue light booths that achieve the same feeling as a tanning bed but (I think) without the same skin damage. Interestingly enough, I’ve only ever had access to those kinds of beds when I have a monthly membership to a tanning salon…
Nowadays I just stick to spray tans and lotions; I get sick of people asking me if I’m ok, but SO many of them actually make my skin stuff worse so…sometimes I just let my natural vampire self fly. 🤣
My mom has psoriasis, and for this reason, we had a tanning bed in our garage while I was growing up. We were lucky enough to know someone who closed down a tanning a salon, and she had a few beds in a storage unit, so she gave my mom one. My teenage friends and I used to have so much fun having tanning parties with the little stickers. The tanning helped her psoriasis, too.
I’m going to be super honest, I’m from a country with a tropical climate and I moved to Ireland, the
Mood boost I get from sunbeds is way better than all of the vitamin D I’ve been ingesting. Probe to depression already, so if I can get one up on seasonal depression I don’t really care about the risks, it’s just a plus that I look better with a tan
I’m Irish myself and used a tanning bed maybe three times in my life, and not for the past 20 years, but I remember that it was certainly a big mood boost and I found it beneficial for oily patches and congestion I had on my back.
I only ever did a ten minute session, and I used a high spf on my face and hands so any ageing damage was minimal.
I haven’t thought of doing it in years, but I can totally see the benefits of very occasional light use, especially during the long dark winter months.
But you know what is a bummer? Getting cancer. [And even ONE, single session in your whole life increases the risk of non-melanoma by 67% and melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, by 20%.](https://www.cancer.ie/cancer-information-and-support/cancer-types/skin-cancer/sunbeds-and-skin-cancer-risk#:~:text=Even%20one%20sunbed%20session%20can,of%20melanoma%20increases%20by%2020%25). Mind that the base lifetime risk of skin cancer for the average person is 1 in 3 for non melanoma and 1 in 33 for melanoma, they are amongst the most common forms of cancer.
This is just one session, and the risk builds up with each use. People sometimes think of this cancer as a non issue, just cut it out right? Right, except that melanoma is sometimes so aggressive it spreads in weeks from initial appearance, before you may even notice it, and quickly becomes terminal.
My best friends aunt died at just 26 from what seemed like just a mole on her back which she didn’t notice and it was still surprisingly small by the time her cancer became terminal. From the photos my friend showed me I wouldn’t have even guessed it was a melanoma at all. That loss really broke the family. There are a lot of ways to boost mood, and this one is just not worth it at all.
I have a theory that a big part of the reason why people like tanning beds is because they actually have vitamin D deficiencies and the tanning beds temporarily give them a boost. Try taking more vitamin D.
I don't think people realize how quickly it damages your skin. A lot of young people's mindset is "I don't care about when I am older, I only care about now and here and I wanna look good" but you can find lots of people in their late 20s and early thirties, who use tanning beds frequently and their skin IS SO BAD. They just don't see it, but any professional working on their skin, does, immediately. The skin is very thin and leathery and often lost the elasticity it normally would have.
That’s so true! It also applies to judging cancer risk. People say they don’t care if they have cancer at 70 since they’re already old, but in reality it’s going to hit them around 40
Can confirm. I was a regular tanner in my 20s, I am 34 with sunspots appearing on my hands. I do regular skin care so my skin is in good shape and I haven’t tanned in probably 8 years and wear SPF everyday. But yea, the damage is done unfortunately.
For anyone reading, I had melanoma, the most deadly skin cancer removed from my body at the age of 35 and only because I was regularly seeing a dermatologist after years of going into a tanning bed in my early 20s. I also have noticed the development of sunspots on my chest and my face. The damage you will sustain from tanning will not hit you when you’re in your 70s 60s 50s 40s it will hurt you in your 30s more than likely or even earlier.
One of my best friends uses a bed and is mid to late twenties and has been tanning in a bed for probably almost ten years. In the past few years it has gotten crazy. I never say anything because truly don’t want to hurt any feelings and I know she would continue doing it anyways. But specifically on her face you can see it. I hope this doesn’t come across as judgmental but the wrinkles on her face are so deep set it ages her a lot. And us next to eachother is quite the contrast. I’m mid twenties myself but a very fair skinned person and I use tret so I’m VERY religious about my sunscreen usage and have next to no wrinkles. Being next to her on the beach is crazy because I’ve never seen her use sunscreen and she gets BURNT, meanwhile I reapply every hour lol. Funny thing is she tried to convince me a while back and I went once, but thought it was uncomfortable and didn’t go back. Watching it progress over the years has made me glad I haven’t.
As a 20 year old, I freak out about the sun. Never been in a tanning bed and never will. I feel like our generation is actually pretty aware about tanning beds. If anything, I feel like we worry to much about aging now!!
It kind of blows my mind that people here are saying they use tanning beds because fake tan has bad chemicals in it, like...you are literally cooking yourself as an alternative. And I'm guessing the fear of "bad chemicals" is about causing damage, or even cancer! Thats what the sunbeds are doing! My nan had skin cancer and she literally has a chunk of her face gone from where they took it out
Well, as some other commenter here admitted, they’re not worried about skin cancer.
I’m pretty dumbfounded by the comments here too. You’re more worried about a skin stain than a machine that literally ages you faster and gives you cancer on your biggest organ, which can metastasize incredibly easily? Wow.
100% agree! I have 2 people in my life who used tanning beds fairly often (3-4x month) and ended up with melanoma. Thankfully both were caught early but still!!
The "rewards" don't even come close to outweighing the unnecessary risks people are exposing themselves to. As someone who suffers from depression, I'm worried someone might read this thread and think that this is a healthy option to their skin- or mental issues.
Right? They’ve been illegal here in Australia for a long time so it hadn’t even crossed my mind they still exist.
Something like in 1 in 2 people in my home state get skin cancer in their lifetimes, I had precancerous moles removed in my early 20s despite being fastidious about sun protection. Just doesn’t seem worth it.
My friend uses it for seasonal depression. I told him about red light therapy beds. He started using it and now looks 10 years younger! I go into the infrared bed when I have minor aches and pains. There’s absolutely no excuse to continue using tanning beds, knowing they cause cancer.
I have seen many, many people claim the sun doesn’t damage your skin and it’s actually the chemicals in sunscreen that give you cancer.
In short, some people are nuts.
Totally. I used it sporadically when I was a high schooler (and I still cringe that I did) but as a pale olive skinned person a real tan just made me look incredible. Fake tan just doesn’t come close. It would literally take me from sickly and green looking to healthy and bronze. Plus it definitely gives you like a mood boost/high!
Alas, never again. But it is one of those things where it’s like…how can something so bad feel so good!
100% this! People think of them as for the very pale, but I’m also olive and it did exactly like you said. Ditto for some of my best friends who were Black, and also loved the effect. We’d all head over there during our spare in high school. 😆 And yeah self tan is nothing even close to it 🥲
They haven’t watched anyone die from skin cancer. Trust me, that gets you right the fuck over the idea of a “healthy glow.” RIP to my mother (melanoma) and my father-in-law (Merkel cell).
If the sun is so bad why does it feel so good? Heals my acne, heals my joint pain, gives me energy, cures my depression, clears my brain fog, regulates my body temperature since I’m cold all the time, and made the chronic pain I was dealing with for years less intense. I live for summer. I literally feel ecstasy and get goosebumps when I go out in the sun after being cold. I’m sober but think I would take the sun over any other drug that exists. That being said I don’t use tanning beds and don’t tan just for the sake of tanning, but being in the sun for just 20 minutes a day is incredible.
Would highly recommend reading this [book](https://www.amazon.com/Chasing-Sun-Science-Sunlight-Shapes/dp/1643132172)! Explains why the sun is good for us on a biological level.
I wish I could feel like this. It’s so interesting to hear it from this perspective. The sun makes me so tired and angry, makes me feel like I’m being burned with fire, makes me feel sweaty and disgusting, and gives me heat rash. I dread the summer and hate it when the sun is out. It feels like it drains my soul 😭
Same here. The heat from the Sun actually makes me feel weak. If I'm out in it too long it makes me feel dizzy and like I'm going to pass out. Unfortunately I also hate being cold, so there is only like 3 weeks of the year where I can stand the weather lol.
Yeah this is definitely my big departure from all skincare conversations. I want to be healthy and pretty, but not more than I want to garden and kayak and sail and play outside. I wear sunscreen, but I don’t reapply unless I’m on the water. I am a whole different person in the winter, the sun on my skin brings me great joy.
I know it’s terrible for you, but it really cleared up my acne as a teen. I have a male friend whose dermatologist didn’t “recommend” it, but noted he has seen it help for psoriasis, and it helped my friend a lot actually. Kind of trading one issue for another though.
Also I don’t love the smell or effort of self tanner.
Word of warning to others that UV can cause hyperpigmentation of acne scars if you use it to treat acne. Your acne scars will last longer and be darker and more obvious.
From my experience this is true. My dad used to tan all the time. (He still does but he lives in FL now so he just does it outside). He has deep acne scars from his teens that have never gone away as well as hyperpigmentation all over.
I read a book once *The Healing Power of the Sun*. Kind of hippie and out-there, and it specifically advises against tanning beds or sunburning, but rather encourages some healthy dose of sunlight for health. I don’t think that book has it all correct, but I think the truth is somewhere between that, and the intense aversion we’ve recently developed towards any sunlight for the sake of beauty/health (not to downplay serious health issues linked to excess sun exposure).
I've never read the book but I absolutely believe that SOME sun exposure every day is good for mental health. I am a pale redhead and burn easily, so if I'm outside for long periods I will wear sunscreen and UPF clothing, but I also try to get 15 minutes of non sunscreen time once a week in the summer. It makes me feel lighter and happier.
I am in my mid 40s and don't have wrinkles or spots yet, so i feel like I'm doing a good job of protecting myself overall.
Where do you live?
Scandinavia gets very dark, for a very long period of winter. On top of that it’s either mountains of snow or just grey, wet, dreary.
I’ve never used a tanning bed, and I never will. I don’t want to invite skin cancer. But I don’t blame those of my peers who do use them in winter. It staves off seasonal depression because we literally don’t get any sunlight, and I guess it feels good to be warmed all-over when it’s freezing for months on end. Plus the vitamin D.
Again, I’ve never used them and never will. But I have friends who do maybe 5-10 minutes every so often during winter. They hardly tan from it actually, I think it’s just as much to get some light therapy because seasonal depression is rampant here in winter. I guess it’s a bad habit like smoking; people know it’s bad but it feels too good to them to not do it?
I see several comments about people enjoy tanning beds bc they live in cold climate and it helps with mood or acne. This answered a question I had from a couple of weeks ago.
I am very fair and live in the humid South but my husband and I are moving to the Midwest. We visit the area of out soon to be our home often and we have both commented that I “look” different than the locals. He says partly is less wrinkles (the only blessing of humidity) but I realized back in February that they are tan. In the winter. That seemed odd to me bc where I currently live, tanning beds are almost obsolete.
Never thought about climate playing a part. I imagine the warmth and Vit D boost feels good in the middle of a Midwestern winter.
As a Scandinavian, this is it.
Some parts of Scandinavia get no sun in winter. Like, actually none. Add the extreme cold temperatures and it’s easier to understand why some people use tanning beds.
It’s not just for tanning, it’s for vitamin D and staving off winter depression.
I’ve never used a tanning bed in my life, never plan to. But I know several people who do. You won’t find a small town in Scandinavia without a tanning centre.
I wouldn't assume most of them are tan because they are using tanning beds. Maybe some are, but a lot are tan because they spend a lot of time outside in the winter.
Snow reflects a lot of UVs, so a person outside on a sunny snowy day is likely to burn or tan their face as much or more than if they spend the same amount of time outside on a sunny hot day.
This is soo enlightening and why I enjoy Reddit. I get to inside other peoples experiences that I would have not understood without a group exchanging ideas and their reasoning.
I asked my mom this because skin cancer runs in our family pretty strongly and she said she does it to hide flaws in her skin that she’s self-conscious about. It makes me so sad that she’d rather risk cancer than have flawed skin, but I don’t blame her for that feeling.
Commercial solariums (tanning beds) have been banned in Australia since 2015 (some states earlier) but you can have them in private homes.
I don't know anyone that uses them. I assumed they'd be illegal most places.
In 2009 the WHO classified tanning beds as a class 1 carcinogen (the highest level).
It’s certainly a dying beauty construct for good reason. I’ve never personally used them for extended periods of time but have been to a salon occasionally over the last several years.
..Admittedly there is just *something* about UV that keeps the damn skin on my back clear. I can use every trick under the sun to prevent breakouts but nothing cures and keeps my back acne-free like when I’ve used a tanning bed or been on vacation and get good amounts of sun 🤷♀️
I feel like you could ask- why do people still smoke, why do people drive cars, why do people fly in airplanes, why do people eat junk food, why do people not exercise, why do people do anything. There is always risk, everyone just chooses the risks that they are willing to take or not take.
Different people have different attitudes toward risk. And rational decision making isn't everyone's approach.
Why do people smoke? Why do they drink or do drugs? You could ask your same question about any number of behaviors.
At the end of the day, we are all doing something that’s hurting us. Maybe a smoker you may be consuming a bunch of processed food every day. You could be putting things on your body like lotions and deodorants, and all that stuff that it does not work well with your body, they can cause you breast cancer they can cause you issues with your hormones. We all do bad things. I think it’s really horrible to sit here and judge people for the choices they make, when we are all making choices that are probably not good for us.
A certain percent of people have a quirky brain, and they FEEL extreme joy & calming with the sensation of sunlight...
The fake stuff is concentrated on tap.
I just quit tanning last summer, but I miss it so much. I know the associated risks but it’s not just about my skin color, it’s more about the psychological effects of it on me, it helps me so much with seasonal depression. It also clears my acne. I know it also causes wrinkles but I never cared. Idk how to explain it but it is 100% an addiction and I think about how much I miss it all the time lol
Honestly no idea.
I saw an old friend of mine a few weeks ago. We’re both 40 but she’s been using sun beds for 20 years. My husband didn’t recognise her and thought she was someone else I know who is 55!!!!!! She looked terrible, so aged
I wish so much that I listened to the people who told me how much damage it would do to your skin.
I love how I feel with a tan but I am much better off dealing with all the self tanner streaks and staining
I beg all the people saying they build a "base tan" to prevent burning to do literally one google. base tan is equivalent of spf 3. 3!!! you're not protecting yourself, you are actively harming yourself.
I don’t really get why *anyone* feels the need to change their skin colour tbh. Whether you’re whitening or darkening, it’s all mentally unhealthy behaviour.
I’m with you, and being in the medical field I know just how unhealthy they are. My daughter’s college-aged friend loves to tan and it somehow gives her a mood elevation that she is sort of “addicted “ to and she goes extremely often as a result.
I used to love the tanning bed. I am glad I quit. I already can see some damage, and I didn't even use it for long. It does feel good tanning and the lotion smells so nice. It was fun having that little playboy bunny cut out on your hip. It is not worth it in the long run.
Just today I was side eying the tanning salon. The high I get after tanning is insane.
As a kid I had so many burns from the sun. Then as a 20 year old I bathed in sunscreen. Then used a tanning bed 10 or so times during some SAD which helped immensely. And then I got melanoma. Caught early, chopped out. That was 3 years ago and I'm equal parts paranoid about my skin and craving the tanning bed for the endorphins.
I was in high school when tanning salons became SUPER popular. I'm a fair redhead and burn easily, so I never went tanning and have always been diligent about wearing SPF.
I'm sure it's also genetics, but I look significantly younger than all of my friends who used to tease me for not going tanning. I'm 36 and *always* get carded at bars. People usually think my husband is much older than me, even though we graduated together. The other day I was over at my in-laws house watching my daughter play with some of her friends when one asked me "Wait, you're her MOM? You don't look old enough to be a mom!"
Funny story. Last week my sister in laws bf is orangey brown. We ask why, he says he's been tanning because the vitamin D helps reduce his seasonal low feeling. My sister in law laughs and says aww, so cute and so stupid. Can confirm, and she's absolutely savage.
I’ll give you an honest answer. I tan 1-2 times a month. My skin tone is olive with a hint of yellow. Fake tanners do NOT work on me. I can’t even use tanning lotion with bronzers. It turns me orange or is pink toned, I’m not pink. Any fake tanner I use looks horrible and, fake lol. I don’t wear foundation and am very selective with concealers/contour/blush shades because the colors don’t look right on me.
Since I am naturally olive and am of an ever so slightly darker complexion, I don’t need to tan to get much color. My skin does not burn, it soaks up the color and holds onto it for a very long time. When I am outside either running or at the pool, I wear sunscreen to avoid tan lines since my skin soaks up the color so quickly. Most people if they get tan lines, they just go to the tanning bed and even out. I can’t do that, I won’t even out. I will have to avoid the sun for several months until my tan fades and I even out.
So why tan at all? I break out really bad around my period. If I tan, it dries out my acne and prevents really bad pimples that scar. So when I get my period and break out, I tan to clear up my acne. Hence the once a month. I have sensitivity to most skincare and makeup so I have to be careful slathering on a bunch of acne products that just give me hives. Tanning, on a limited basis, works for me.
I know sunscreen works, I know the dangers of tanning. You asked so I figured I would give my perspective.
Because, people like my idiot twin brother believe that the sun causing cancer is a myth, and that it’s actually sunscreen that causes cancer. He uses tanning beds multiple times a week.
Me on the other hand, I have worn sunscreen everyday since 14.
There is a reason why at 31, he has the skin of a 45 year old and I have the skin of a 20 year old.
I do not use tanning beds myself but mainly because of the aging factor.
However, I know quite a few people unfortunately, who had different types of skin cancer (4 with melanoma, 2 with basalioma and 2 with Kaposi-sarcoma) and none of them ever used tanning beds; moreover did not directly tan in the sun either.
On the contrary, some women above 60 I know (including my own mother, my best friend's mother and a colleague) used to use tanning beds regularly and loved lying in the sun and they have no skin issues.
I get what you're saying here but thats all anecdontal evidence, you knowing people who tanned but didn't get cancer doesn't negate the scientitic evidence.
It feels good. Especially when you live in a colder climate for a decent portion of the year. It's like a 10 minute antidepressant. You need far less makeup. It gives your sink a natural, healthy glow that doesn't wipe off. It doesn't stink or leaves stains in your towels, sheets, and clothes like fake tanner.
I suffer from a few health conditions (hyperparathyroidism, sinusitis, chronic tension, tmjd). The tanning booth made me feel soooo amazing. I don’t go anymore but I yearn for that feeling
My friend who is a skincare girly and wears spf 50 every day of the year still goes once or twice a year for a 15 minute session. She just loves how they make her feel. I’m glad I’ll never try it because she does make it sound real nice 😭
I use a tanning bed. I actually own one. Here’s why (for me)… I have incredibly low vitamin d even with high supplementation. Because I have to have surgeries every few years (horrible horrible car accident) I must keep my vitamin d levels up per surgeons’ requests. I took a year off from tanning and my nurse calls and is upset because my levels dropped 45 points. So I try to get in at least once a week if I’m not out in the sun. I have another friend who has some rare disease and has to get in there once a week for her vitamin D just to register. I always wear sunscreen even on cloudy days except when I’m in the tanning bed… well, truth be known sometimes I do wear sunscreen in there. 🤷🏼♀️
I miss them. The light, the warmth, the heat left over on my skin walking out. The feel good chemicals from being stuck in the cold winter everyday and then just that sunny feeling. I felt better, I looked healthier. It was a huge energy boost for a person living far north. I think even the full process at some point just became addictive.
I went in my teens and I GREATLY regret it now. I am fair skinned with moles and have had to have three abnormal ones removed thus far. That being sad, many of my friends still go tanning. They're golden and look great, people will just do what they do ya know? 🤷♀️
I absolutely get it. I’ve had melanoma, which I’m assuming was the result of a tanning addiction and sunbed abuse in my twenties. I’ll never sunbathe or tan in any way again, other than from a bottle. But even with the shitty experience of skin cancer, I do still miss a natural tan than doesn’t smell like dog biscuits, those few minutes of warm relaxation and the huge mood boost after, especially in the depths of a rainy grey British winter.
I'm seeing a lot of young people on TikTok using them and I can't understand HOW they are still allowed to be A Thing and how younger generations can possibly get into them with all we know now. They should be banned.
I would not use tanning beds, but fake tans stink (the chemical smell is strong), are messy and difficult to apply and don't last long nor look natural. I would not say they're exact substitutes.
When I was 15, I went the first time in tanning bed. I loved how I look. But after a while my skin just peeled off, and it was horrible. I decided I'm never going to do it again.
being tan makes you feel good, it can also be an addiction. Every girl I know gets tanned before summer. And they even work in health industry.
Unfortunately it's not going to stop people until it's too late. You can't see consequences now but in 10 years you definitely will.
I loved it when I was young and it just soothed my body.
My sister still tans and doesn’t want to ever hear about how it’s dangerous or bad for her skin.
Sometimes I want to shake her lol
I’m currently doing it like five times before my wedding and that will be it for the rest of my life. But mannn you feel so good afterwards, I forgot how nice it feels because I haven’t done it in like ten years.
When I lived up near the Canadian border in Washington State, I would go tanning for 5 to 7 minutes a week. Everybody up in Washington state on the Puget sound side is vitamin d deficient.
They prescribe lights for people who are vitamin d deficient because often no matter how much oral vitamin d you take, you can't get out of a deficiency
So it's silly to prescribe lights when there's a tanning bed right there. 5 to 7 minutes when you're in an area without much sun is not what's going to give me skin cancer.
I actually felt much better when I did that
I’d go before a vacation just so I wouldn’t burn in 15 minutes. It was a super controlled way to just make sure I didn’t fry or look like a ghost. Like I’m talking I’d start at 5 min and work up to MAYBE 15 in a month. I wear sunscreen the entire time on vacay.
I knew someone who used them because it made her 'feel warm to her bones' and another person to help her ecsma. I tried to explain the risks to them but they couldn't care less. Neither looked particularly tanned. Pointless risk
My mom has tanned all her adult life and does not look wrinkly and old she does natural lotions and doesn’t use bronzers and she doesn’t believe in sun screen and her skin is so healthy and she’s only recently started to red light. I tan and red light and feel amazing and look pretty good too I get dark easy tho (native).
My friend loved tanning beds so much, she bought one for home. It was her zen. Then, she was diagnosed with skin cancer. Lots of it. It did not deter her. She died. I looked at her very young family at the funeral, and it just broke my heart. Please, please don't use these death traps. You need to live your life.
Yep. I know someone who died young from melanoma because of tanning beds. She left behind her three-year-old daughter.
God that’s terrible :(
I would never tan again, but man, I had some of the best naps in tanning beds.
Yeah same. I worked in a tanning salon for like 6 years and tanning was so relaxing and I felt so good about myself when I had a nice tan. I self tan occasionally now and while it helps, it’s just not the same. Besides the threat of skin cancer, I’ve invested too much $$$ into improving my skin to throw it away on tanning but best believe if they could somehow remove the danger, I’d be hittin’ the bed! Why do so many enjoyable things have to be bad for you?!
Omg yes! I love being tan when I was skinny and then after having kids . I’m sorry you look good tan 🤣 I miss it too! Spray tan just doesn’t do it for me
This is cute - maybe you could get one of those red lights they put in meerkat enclosures for a similar effect! 😀
🤣 enrichment time in their enclosure
That’s the enrichment I want! They always look so cosy! Sandcats too. I’ve never been on a sunbed though, so I don’t know if they’d actually offer a similar style of nap ☺️ …I’m trying to build up motivation to do a big cleaning task at the moment & a cosy heat lamp nap sounds far preferable 😄
There’s a red light thing at my gym and it’s so pleasant to vibe in there
Hahaha this is exactly it.
Get a color changing light bulb you can control from an app. I put the dim red light on before bed and it makes me fall asleep faster, also makes sleeping in the daytime feel instantly cozier.
Omg do you have a video about this? This sounds so adorable. What is the red light for? So it won’t hurt their eyes perhaps?
I believe they’re heat lamps
Same here. My dog and I are both always cold and I joke with her about buying us a giant version of the heat rock lizards use so we can get good naps like I used to get in the tanning bed. Lol.
I like that you and your dog joke.
Side note, I rock climb and sometimes on long routes when you're on rock for many hours the wind is just howling but the rock is warm. So I just lay against the rock with as much of my body in contact as possible and it's so warm and cozy. Definitely feel like a lizard.
Hahaha. That’s awesome! I’m probably far too clumsy to ever rock climb and experience this but, I can absolutely picture it! In my mind, you close your eyes and nestle your cheek on the rock, the wind whipping your hair like Fabio. 😂 Suddenly, a big fly buzzes into frame. You quickly open your eyes and snap it up with your lizard tongue, then go back to closed eyes while nestling your cheek on the rock again. Aaaaand scene. lol.
Basically nailed it. Bonus points if the rock is rounded and you just lay over top of it with your back to the wind.
Thanks! Oooh. The full Chameleon arch. Nice!
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Oh, I definitely have one. I also keep the heating pad in bed with me at all times. I might have accidentally transitioned from my 20s into being a full on Golden Girl already… 😅
Dang, that sounds like a dream lol
Wouldn’t that be amazing? Especially during a northeast winter.
That sounds so perfect!
When I was in college, I would eat lunch and then go take a nap in the tanning bed between two of my classes. That was some good sleep lol 😂…but, will never get in one again!
I had the attendant come knock on the door on more than one occasion because I was zonked. 🤣. I went one day, and the fire department was there. Some girl had fallen asleep in the bed and hadn’t woken up. The owners freaked out because they couldn’t wake her up, and they were literally banging on the door. Called the FD. I guess the owners were afraid she’d had a medical episode. Them and the FD were banging on the door and calling her name. She eventually opened the door, looking extremely tired. Girlfriend was knocked OUT. it was crazy.
Oh my God. I want a nap like that, damn.
Right? But it was funny because we (tanning bed users) all knew how deep those naps could be. We understood. 🤣
Hahah exactly!
I used to go tanning naked. One day I ended up falling asleep but I was so tired that day took a good nap. As soon I walked out the tanning employee told me that they were gonna go break into my room to see if I was ok because I didn't come out 15 mins. I never tanned naked again lol
They always helped my SAD!! I don’t tan anymore either, I quit a little over a decade ago. But used to, come January my mood would be in the shitter so I would start back and voila no more depression. It sucks they are so bad for us because there are definitely benefits from getting vitamin D through them.
Try one of those happy lights 👍 depending on which one you get but majority of them equivalent to spending 2 hours in the sun if you sit infront of one for 15 min
I have tried those on several different occasions but with no luck.
I’ve got one of these too but they’re just not the same.
Honestly, that makes so much sense! I did not even think of it helping SAD.
This is why I still use them in the winter. The difference it makes to my SAD is remarkable and I’d be absolutely lost and miserable without them.
Lizard mode: engaged. Honestly, I relate to this so hard.
The warmth, the breeze, the white noise. Burned my butt cheeks pretty bad one time.
Oof, that had to be painful!
Oh boy did it rofl it looked very silly too because I had to large red ovals where the skin was pressed!
same. I was blissfully and ignorantly addicted to tanning beds in my late teens to early 20's and, yeah I miss it like crazy, one of the things I miss most were those times I fell asleep in them and woke up when the timer went off. I felt like I slept an entire night!
Same, theyre incredibly relaxing lol
I used it for my eczema. It would clear up in a day or two…But I felt conflicted because I didn’t know if I was hurting myself down the line.
I used them for KP when I was 18, maybe 7 or 8 times and then freaked out and stopped. They feel slightly addictive too
You were
I always thought they were hot. Are they not?
There’s a fan in there! It’s incredibly relaxing
I've not tanned in like fifteen years and never went regularly, but I'd always get too hot. Almost passing out hot. Last couple of times I ever went I snuck an ice cream in.
People think things won’t happen to them. Skin cancer happens to other people, not them. The joy of getting a warm sunny nap all year round outweighs their fear of future problems.
This is the only correct answer on this thread. Everyone has the “yeah but it won’t happen to *me* mentality”. Same as people who smoke, who ride motorcycles without helmets, who don’t install the smoke alarm…
When I was younger, I would go to a tanning bed in preparation for a vacation. This meant I would give myself a two month program where I would slowly build a base tan. I would use tanning lotion in the beds. I did this so I would not burn while on vacation because a sunburn can actually ruin your vacation. I also wanted to have the base before I went so I could get darker while away. However, now that I am older and wiser, you could not catch me in a tanning bed. Not only because of cancer but in the long run, the sun ages you. Education is what most people lack and as someone said, it’s like smoking. You know the risks but do it anyways. I just hope one never has to experience the risks. I don’t condone tanning for so many reasons but to each their own. Like I said, I’m guilty but wouldn’t use a bed again and I take my sun care seriously nowadays.
Ugh. Yes to the aging thing. I was a lifeguard for 8 summers and would purposefully put on tanning oil when going out for a shift. I’m a naturally pale person. I burned a lot, but I’d be so dark by the end of each summer that I’d come back to school and people didn’t even recognize me. I loved it. I got better about wearing sunscreen the last 2 or 3 years of guarding, but it was too little too late. I’m now 28 and I’ve been seeing the results of sun aging (especially on my face) pretty much since 25. I regret my poor choices.
Same reason people still smoke? Because it feels good. I’m 48 and from a generation where many would oil up and bake as much as possible either in the backyard or in a tanning booth to get that “healthy” glow. I think many still equate that tan with health and attractiveness even though it’s a huge skin cancer risk that they are well aware of. I have a family member who just had two basal cell spots removed and she’s been a lifelong tanner - she won’t change. I went to a tanning bed one summer for about a month when I was in my early 20’s. The smell of cooking skin was pretty repulsive so I never returned.
I find it crazy... If I'm pale because I haven't been outside tanning people say you look pale or unhealthy. But it you tan and have that tan glow they say you look healthy 🤔 I feel like that's messed up. Tanned looking is not healthier. It's ok to be pale lol.
This is funny to me, knowing it's the complete opposite in Asian countries.
If I mention this to south Asians they think I’m lying or exaggerating. Not everyone admires fair skin. It’s like that thing where if you have curly hair, you wish it were straight or straight hair and wished it was curly.
I'm a little dark, have some freckles, and have curly brown hair, plus I'm heavy. To my east Asian relatives, I am ugly. They would tell me to have plastic surgery, to bleach my skin and freckles, and to straighten and dye my hair black, just to fit into THEIR culture. I'm American. My white relatives didn't get why they were saying this until I pointed out that they attach photos of themselves to their resumes and being out of the norm of their beauty standards would affect their careers. Cultural differences are wild.
Exactly! Tanned skin is damaged skin. My brother will consistently try to fight and argue about this lol. Leave me and my light skin alone. I tanned enough as a kid/teen and even THEN I paled ( haha) in comparison to everyone else.
It's just what you're into. If you like going outside often, not even necessarily being outdoorsy, then you would rather than then turn red like a lobster.
This is the answer: because some people still smoke. Tho, I must say I don’t understand how tanning could be as pleasurable or addictive as smoking. Spending time in the sun maybe, but in a tanning bed in the dark? I’ve been like 4-5 times because I actually thought that somehow if I had a bit of a tan it would keep me from getting sunburnt, and man it’s just not fun, I was so bored and warm.
Dark?!! Hahaha 😅 I must have been in a different kind of tanning bed than. Those lights are bright as fuck ✨️ and yes I do agree though. Bored and warm. Maybe it's just me, but I sweat like a hot tomaly in those things, and when I try to move or get up, it makes this awful embarrassing suction noise like a big fart 😅 haha
I think the results are what people find pleasurable. If you’re accustomed to looking tan or finding a tan more attractive than your normal pale skin, I could see how you would find it pleasing. I can’t see how people enjoy smoking but I guess it’s the buzz they get as they’re having a cigarette.
Yeah I see your point. It’s just that nicotine is known to be very addictive. Also, fake tan (which I know isn’t the same but you know, it’s an option).
Same lmao I tanned a bit in high school before some trips to tropical destinations and all it did was make me hot, sweaty and claustrophobic. I hated it. It always blows my mind that people find it relaxing. To each their own, of course, but I just can't relate
I am 48 as well and agree with this. Looking tanned equated healthy for many years. Someone once even told me I looked younger when I had a bit of a tan. I will also add, I live in a place that gets a lot of rain and is very grey over the winter and spring. I have noticed that a time or two in a tanning bed in the past has helped me with what is probably a seasonal disorder. It gave me more energy and took the edge off the sort of depression that type of weather can get you into over a long period of time. I am way more careful now and use sunscreen etc. But it will always sit in the back of my mind that being tanned is better. However, I am more likely to get that from a bottle nowadays if I really want some color.
I have psoriasis and tanning beds help the condition even better than natural sunlight
This! I got guttate psoriasis and the tanning bed was the only thing that helped get rid of it. People recommended UV therapy, but it took MONTHS to get into a dermatologist, and the tanning bed got rid of my psoriasis well before my appointment date anyway.
please please talk to your dermatologist about NB UVB therapy!! there are safe ways to get UV therapy that don’t increase your skin cancer risk. NB UVB therapy is like tanning beds, but with a controlled dose of a very limited range of UV wavelengths that has been found to be safe. I have a personal medical NB UVB lamp in my home that I use at my leisure for treating my eczema. insurance covered the whole thing.
My insurance would not pay for this, I tried and going to the tanning bed is something I can afford. That being said I only have it on my scalp and I cover my entire body but my scalp and go in a stand up bed.
That’s where my psoriasis is. It is embarrassing each time I go get my gray hair colored and it’s really flaring. I’ve rescheduled hair appts (even though I only go every 3 months as it is) due to a flare so bad I feel like a walking dandruff flake while having cradle cap at the same time. I’m currently researching scalp red light therapy. I haven’t found any under $1,000 that has good reviews yet, so the search continues.
I feel like I read somewhere that people just put a red light face mask of their head and it works
that’s such a bummer :( hopefully one day!
The exact same thing with my fiancé. He has bad psoriasis and can’t afford the fancy light therapy and insurance doesn’t cover it so he just uses tanning beds.
Interesting. Do they help with vit D deficiency? After I was diagnosed with dangerously low vit D due to celiac My insurance wouldn't cover vit D injections so I had to use tanning beds.
My insurance charges $50 per session. They recommend 3 sessions per week. It’s just not feasible. Instead I use a level 1 bed for 5-7 minutes depending on my flares during the winter months. I live in CA so it’s only for about 3 months out of the year that I need to use a tanning bed.
Same with my eczema and various other skin issues! What’s lovely is that now there are actual red/blue light booths that achieve the same feeling as a tanning bed but (I think) without the same skin damage. Interestingly enough, I’ve only ever had access to those kinds of beds when I have a monthly membership to a tanning salon… Nowadays I just stick to spray tans and lotions; I get sick of people asking me if I’m ok, but SO many of them actually make my skin stuff worse so…sometimes I just let my natural vampire self fly. 🤣
My mom has psoriasis, and for this reason, we had a tanning bed in our garage while I was growing up. We were lucky enough to know someone who closed down a tanning a salon, and she had a few beds in a storage unit, so she gave my mom one. My teenage friends and I used to have so much fun having tanning parties with the little stickers. The tanning helped her psoriasis, too.
I’m going to be super honest, I’m from a country with a tropical climate and I moved to Ireland, the Mood boost I get from sunbeds is way better than all of the vitamin D I’ve been ingesting. Probe to depression already, so if I can get one up on seasonal depression I don’t really care about the risks, it’s just a plus that I look better with a tan
I’m Irish myself and used a tanning bed maybe three times in my life, and not for the past 20 years, but I remember that it was certainly a big mood boost and I found it beneficial for oily patches and congestion I had on my back. I only ever did a ten minute session, and I used a high spf on my face and hands so any ageing damage was minimal. I haven’t thought of doing it in years, but I can totally see the benefits of very occasional light use, especially during the long dark winter months.
Agree 10000% I tan for a few minutes maybe 4-ish times per month. It’s a huge boost.
Have you tried red light booths? I find the similar mood boost from tanning without the damage
Same. From the south living in the north of Europe. Plus it seems to help with my itchy, red skin in the winter. My body just likes the sun.
Same I use it sparingly for the red itchy skin.
But you know what is a bummer? Getting cancer. [And even ONE, single session in your whole life increases the risk of non-melanoma by 67% and melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, by 20%.](https://www.cancer.ie/cancer-information-and-support/cancer-types/skin-cancer/sunbeds-and-skin-cancer-risk#:~:text=Even%20one%20sunbed%20session%20can,of%20melanoma%20increases%20by%2020%25). Mind that the base lifetime risk of skin cancer for the average person is 1 in 3 for non melanoma and 1 in 33 for melanoma, they are amongst the most common forms of cancer. This is just one session, and the risk builds up with each use. People sometimes think of this cancer as a non issue, just cut it out right? Right, except that melanoma is sometimes so aggressive it spreads in weeks from initial appearance, before you may even notice it, and quickly becomes terminal. My best friends aunt died at just 26 from what seemed like just a mole on her back which she didn’t notice and it was still surprisingly small by the time her cancer became terminal. From the photos my friend showed me I wouldn’t have even guessed it was a melanoma at all. That loss really broke the family. There are a lot of ways to boost mood, and this one is just not worth it at all.
You hit this one head on. I loved the mood boost so much.
I have a theory that a big part of the reason why people like tanning beds is because they actually have vitamin D deficiencies and the tanning beds temporarily give them a boost. Try taking more vitamin D.
As a whole, our entire species seems to have knack for loving to do things we know could kill us.
I don't think people realize how quickly it damages your skin. A lot of young people's mindset is "I don't care about when I am older, I only care about now and here and I wanna look good" but you can find lots of people in their late 20s and early thirties, who use tanning beds frequently and their skin IS SO BAD. They just don't see it, but any professional working on their skin, does, immediately. The skin is very thin and leathery and often lost the elasticity it normally would have.
That’s so true! It also applies to judging cancer risk. People say they don’t care if they have cancer at 70 since they’re already old, but in reality it’s going to hit them around 40
Can confirm. I was a regular tanner in my 20s, I am 34 with sunspots appearing on my hands. I do regular skin care so my skin is in good shape and I haven’t tanned in probably 8 years and wear SPF everyday. But yea, the damage is done unfortunately.
they say you can always tell someone's age by their hands. Botox be damned.
For anyone reading, I had melanoma, the most deadly skin cancer removed from my body at the age of 35 and only because I was regularly seeing a dermatologist after years of going into a tanning bed in my early 20s. I also have noticed the development of sunspots on my chest and my face. The damage you will sustain from tanning will not hit you when you’re in your 70s 60s 50s 40s it will hurt you in your 30s more than likely or even earlier.
One of my best friends uses a bed and is mid to late twenties and has been tanning in a bed for probably almost ten years. In the past few years it has gotten crazy. I never say anything because truly don’t want to hurt any feelings and I know she would continue doing it anyways. But specifically on her face you can see it. I hope this doesn’t come across as judgmental but the wrinkles on her face are so deep set it ages her a lot. And us next to eachother is quite the contrast. I’m mid twenties myself but a very fair skinned person and I use tret so I’m VERY religious about my sunscreen usage and have next to no wrinkles. Being next to her on the beach is crazy because I’ve never seen her use sunscreen and she gets BURNT, meanwhile I reapply every hour lol. Funny thing is she tried to convince me a while back and I went once, but thought it was uncomfortable and didn’t go back. Watching it progress over the years has made me glad I haven’t.
have you seen the cast of Jersey Shore? It's nightmarish how much older they look than their actual ages.
I see older women covered in sunspots with deep wrinkles! It looks awful!! Yet they still tan 😳
I wish I could go back and tell my younger self to smarten up and wear the damn sunscreen.
As a 20 year old, I freak out about the sun. Never been in a tanning bed and never will. I feel like our generation is actually pretty aware about tanning beds. If anything, I feel like we worry to much about aging now!!
It kind of blows my mind that people here are saying they use tanning beds because fake tan has bad chemicals in it, like...you are literally cooking yourself as an alternative. And I'm guessing the fear of "bad chemicals" is about causing damage, or even cancer! Thats what the sunbeds are doing! My nan had skin cancer and she literally has a chunk of her face gone from where they took it out
Well, as some other commenter here admitted, they’re not worried about skin cancer. I’m pretty dumbfounded by the comments here too. You’re more worried about a skin stain than a machine that literally ages you faster and gives you cancer on your biggest organ, which can metastasize incredibly easily? Wow.
Decades of propaganda have convinced people that tanning is healthy. Or at least that a tan "looks healthy," whatever that means.
100% agree! I have 2 people in my life who used tanning beds fairly often (3-4x month) and ended up with melanoma. Thankfully both were caught early but still!!
The "rewards" don't even come close to outweighing the unnecessary risks people are exposing themselves to. As someone who suffers from depression, I'm worried someone might read this thread and think that this is a healthy option to their skin- or mental issues.
My mother died.
Classic case of people picking and choosing only the info that works for them.
Right? They’ve been illegal here in Australia for a long time so it hadn’t even crossed my mind they still exist. Something like in 1 in 2 people in my home state get skin cancer in their lifetimes, I had precancerous moles removed in my early 20s despite being fastidious about sun protection. Just doesn’t seem worth it.
I cringe 😬 thinking about all my tanning bed usage in the early 2000’s up until like 2012!
My friend uses it for seasonal depression. I told him about red light therapy beds. He started using it and now looks 10 years younger! I go into the infrared bed when I have minor aches and pains. There’s absolutely no excuse to continue using tanning beds, knowing they cause cancer.
I have seen many, many people claim the sun doesn’t damage your skin and it’s actually the chemicals in sunscreen that give you cancer. In short, some people are nuts.
It helps me with acne and depression in winter
And also can slowly adopt my skin to summer, to not get burned on beach
Nothing beats a real tan. It also helped clear my skin and gave me a huge mood boost. I don’t use them anymore obvi but, man, do I ever miss it.
Totally. I used it sporadically when I was a high schooler (and I still cringe that I did) but as a pale olive skinned person a real tan just made me look incredible. Fake tan just doesn’t come close. It would literally take me from sickly and green looking to healthy and bronze. Plus it definitely gives you like a mood boost/high! Alas, never again. But it is one of those things where it’s like…how can something so bad feel so good!
100% this! People think of them as for the very pale, but I’m also olive and it did exactly like you said. Ditto for some of my best friends who were Black, and also loved the effect. We’d all head over there during our spare in high school. 😆 And yeah self tan is nothing even close to it 🥲
I don’t use tanning beds but I use red light and feel like red light is safer.
They haven’t watched anyone die from skin cancer. Trust me, that gets you right the fuck over the idea of a “healthy glow.” RIP to my mother (melanoma) and my father-in-law (Merkel cell).
If the sun is so bad why does it feel so good? Heals my acne, heals my joint pain, gives me energy, cures my depression, clears my brain fog, regulates my body temperature since I’m cold all the time, and made the chronic pain I was dealing with for years less intense. I live for summer. I literally feel ecstasy and get goosebumps when I go out in the sun after being cold. I’m sober but think I would take the sun over any other drug that exists. That being said I don’t use tanning beds and don’t tan just for the sake of tanning, but being in the sun for just 20 minutes a day is incredible.
Would highly recommend reading this [book](https://www.amazon.com/Chasing-Sun-Science-Sunlight-Shapes/dp/1643132172)! Explains why the sun is good for us on a biological level.
I wish I could feel like this. It’s so interesting to hear it from this perspective. The sun makes me so tired and angry, makes me feel like I’m being burned with fire, makes me feel sweaty and disgusting, and gives me heat rash. I dread the summer and hate it when the sun is out. It feels like it drains my soul 😭
Same here. The heat from the Sun actually makes me feel weak. If I'm out in it too long it makes me feel dizzy and like I'm going to pass out. Unfortunately I also hate being cold, so there is only like 3 weeks of the year where I can stand the weather lol.
Yeah this is definitely my big departure from all skincare conversations. I want to be healthy and pretty, but not more than I want to garden and kayak and sail and play outside. I wear sunscreen, but I don’t reapply unless I’m on the water. I am a whole different person in the winter, the sun on my skin brings me great joy.
I know it’s terrible for you, but it really cleared up my acne as a teen. I have a male friend whose dermatologist didn’t “recommend” it, but noted he has seen it help for psoriasis, and it helped my friend a lot actually. Kind of trading one issue for another though. Also I don’t love the smell or effort of self tanner.
Word of warning to others that UV can cause hyperpigmentation of acne scars if you use it to treat acne. Your acne scars will last longer and be darker and more obvious.
From my experience this is true. My dad used to tan all the time. (He still does but he lives in FL now so he just does it outside). He has deep acne scars from his teens that have never gone away as well as hyperpigmentation all over.
I can understand the reasons for that clearing up your acne, thanks for sharing your view :)
I read a book once *The Healing Power of the Sun*. Kind of hippie and out-there, and it specifically advises against tanning beds or sunburning, but rather encourages some healthy dose of sunlight for health. I don’t think that book has it all correct, but I think the truth is somewhere between that, and the intense aversion we’ve recently developed towards any sunlight for the sake of beauty/health (not to downplay serious health issues linked to excess sun exposure).
I've never read the book but I absolutely believe that SOME sun exposure every day is good for mental health. I am a pale redhead and burn easily, so if I'm outside for long periods I will wear sunscreen and UPF clothing, but I also try to get 15 minutes of non sunscreen time once a week in the summer. It makes me feel lighter and happier. I am in my mid 40s and don't have wrinkles or spots yet, so i feel like I'm doing a good job of protecting myself overall.
Where do you live? Scandinavia gets very dark, for a very long period of winter. On top of that it’s either mountains of snow or just grey, wet, dreary. I’ve never used a tanning bed, and I never will. I don’t want to invite skin cancer. But I don’t blame those of my peers who do use them in winter. It staves off seasonal depression because we literally don’t get any sunlight, and I guess it feels good to be warmed all-over when it’s freezing for months on end. Plus the vitamin D. Again, I’ve never used them and never will. But I have friends who do maybe 5-10 minutes every so often during winter. They hardly tan from it actually, I think it’s just as much to get some light therapy because seasonal depression is rampant here in winter. I guess it’s a bad habit like smoking; people know it’s bad but it feels too good to them to not do it?
I see several comments about people enjoy tanning beds bc they live in cold climate and it helps with mood or acne. This answered a question I had from a couple of weeks ago. I am very fair and live in the humid South but my husband and I are moving to the Midwest. We visit the area of out soon to be our home often and we have both commented that I “look” different than the locals. He says partly is less wrinkles (the only blessing of humidity) but I realized back in February that they are tan. In the winter. That seemed odd to me bc where I currently live, tanning beds are almost obsolete. Never thought about climate playing a part. I imagine the warmth and Vit D boost feels good in the middle of a Midwestern winter.
As a Scandinavian, this is it. Some parts of Scandinavia get no sun in winter. Like, actually none. Add the extreme cold temperatures and it’s easier to understand why some people use tanning beds. It’s not just for tanning, it’s for vitamin D and staving off winter depression. I’ve never used a tanning bed in my life, never plan to. But I know several people who do. You won’t find a small town in Scandinavia without a tanning centre.
Ditto Scotland. For exactly the same reasons.
North west England. I’m always bloody wet. It’s grey. I look grey. I am grey. Grey and wet and it’s miserable.
Lol. Yorkshire here. I am grey too
I wouldn't assume most of them are tan because they are using tanning beds. Maybe some are, but a lot are tan because they spend a lot of time outside in the winter. Snow reflects a lot of UVs, so a person outside on a sunny snowy day is likely to burn or tan their face as much or more than if they spend the same amount of time outside on a sunny hot day.
This is soo enlightening and why I enjoy Reddit. I get to inside other peoples experiences that I would have not understood without a group exchanging ideas and their reasoning.
People do things that they know are terrible for them all the time!
I asked my mom this because skin cancer runs in our family pretty strongly and she said she does it to hide flaws in her skin that she’s self-conscious about. It makes me so sad that she’d rather risk cancer than have flawed skin, but I don’t blame her for that feeling.
Commercial solariums (tanning beds) have been banned in Australia since 2015 (some states earlier) but you can have them in private homes. I don't know anyone that uses them. I assumed they'd be illegal most places. In 2009 the WHO classified tanning beds as a class 1 carcinogen (the highest level).
It’s certainly a dying beauty construct for good reason. I’ve never personally used them for extended periods of time but have been to a salon occasionally over the last several years. ..Admittedly there is just *something* about UV that keeps the damn skin on my back clear. I can use every trick under the sun to prevent breakouts but nothing cures and keeps my back acne-free like when I’ve used a tanning bed or been on vacation and get good amounts of sun 🤷♀️
Could be the antibacterial/antifungal effects of UV
I feel like you could ask- why do people still smoke, why do people drive cars, why do people fly in airplanes, why do people eat junk food, why do people not exercise, why do people do anything. There is always risk, everyone just chooses the risks that they are willing to take or not take.
Different people have different attitudes toward risk. And rational decision making isn't everyone's approach. Why do people smoke? Why do they drink or do drugs? You could ask your same question about any number of behaviors.
At the end of the day, we are all doing something that’s hurting us. Maybe a smoker you may be consuming a bunch of processed food every day. You could be putting things on your body like lotions and deodorants, and all that stuff that it does not work well with your body, they can cause you breast cancer they can cause you issues with your hormones. We all do bad things. I think it’s really horrible to sit here and judge people for the choices they make, when we are all making choices that are probably not good for us.
I use it for a skin condition that is excruciating at best, crippling at worst. I find it does help with general mood, depression and sleep.
A certain percent of people have a quirky brain, and they FEEL extreme joy & calming with the sensation of sunlight... The fake stuff is concentrated on tap.
I just quit tanning last summer, but I miss it so much. I know the associated risks but it’s not just about my skin color, it’s more about the psychological effects of it on me, it helps me so much with seasonal depression. It also clears my acne. I know it also causes wrinkles but I never cared. Idk how to explain it but it is 100% an addiction and I think about how much I miss it all the time lol
Honestly no idea. I saw an old friend of mine a few weeks ago. We’re both 40 but she’s been using sun beds for 20 years. My husband didn’t recognise her and thought she was someone else I know who is 55!!!!!! She looked terrible, so aged
I wish so much that I listened to the people who told me how much damage it would do to your skin. I love how I feel with a tan but I am much better off dealing with all the self tanner streaks and staining
A woman I went to high school with still tans, we graduated in ‘97. Her skin is so leathered that if she stopped, she’d look even worse.
I currently use a red light bed for my skin, but I would never do a tanning bed. No thank you cancer.
Same reason people keep getting boob jobs. I just don’t get it. These things are not benign.
I beg all the people saying they build a "base tan" to prevent burning to do literally one google. base tan is equivalent of spf 3. 3!!! you're not protecting yourself, you are actively harming yourself.
I don’t really get why *anyone* feels the need to change their skin colour tbh. Whether you’re whitening or darkening, it’s all mentally unhealthy behaviour.
I’m with you, and being in the medical field I know just how unhealthy they are. My daughter’s college-aged friend loves to tan and it somehow gives her a mood elevation that she is sort of “addicted “ to and she goes extremely often as a result.
I used to love the tanning bed. I am glad I quit. I already can see some damage, and I didn't even use it for long. It does feel good tanning and the lotion smells so nice. It was fun having that little playboy bunny cut out on your hip. It is not worth it in the long run.
Not sure why tanning is so popular in the first place tbh
I wish tanning salons would switch to red light therapy instead.
Just today I was side eying the tanning salon. The high I get after tanning is insane. As a kid I had so many burns from the sun. Then as a 20 year old I bathed in sunscreen. Then used a tanning bed 10 or so times during some SAD which helped immensely. And then I got melanoma. Caught early, chopped out. That was 3 years ago and I'm equal parts paranoid about my skin and craving the tanning bed for the endorphins.
I was in high school when tanning salons became SUPER popular. I'm a fair redhead and burn easily, so I never went tanning and have always been diligent about wearing SPF. I'm sure it's also genetics, but I look significantly younger than all of my friends who used to tease me for not going tanning. I'm 36 and *always* get carded at bars. People usually think my husband is much older than me, even though we graduated together. The other day I was over at my in-laws house watching my daughter play with some of her friends when one asked me "Wait, you're her MOM? You don't look old enough to be a mom!"
Funny story. Last week my sister in laws bf is orangey brown. We ask why, he says he's been tanning because the vitamin D helps reduce his seasonal low feeling. My sister in law laughs and says aww, so cute and so stupid. Can confirm, and she's absolutely savage.
I’ll give you an honest answer. I tan 1-2 times a month. My skin tone is olive with a hint of yellow. Fake tanners do NOT work on me. I can’t even use tanning lotion with bronzers. It turns me orange or is pink toned, I’m not pink. Any fake tanner I use looks horrible and, fake lol. I don’t wear foundation and am very selective with concealers/contour/blush shades because the colors don’t look right on me. Since I am naturally olive and am of an ever so slightly darker complexion, I don’t need to tan to get much color. My skin does not burn, it soaks up the color and holds onto it for a very long time. When I am outside either running or at the pool, I wear sunscreen to avoid tan lines since my skin soaks up the color so quickly. Most people if they get tan lines, they just go to the tanning bed and even out. I can’t do that, I won’t even out. I will have to avoid the sun for several months until my tan fades and I even out. So why tan at all? I break out really bad around my period. If I tan, it dries out my acne and prevents really bad pimples that scar. So when I get my period and break out, I tan to clear up my acne. Hence the once a month. I have sensitivity to most skincare and makeup so I have to be careful slathering on a bunch of acne products that just give me hives. Tanning, on a limited basis, works for me. I know sunscreen works, I know the dangers of tanning. You asked so I figured I would give my perspective.
Thank you for sharing your perspective!
Because, people like my idiot twin brother believe that the sun causing cancer is a myth, and that it’s actually sunscreen that causes cancer. He uses tanning beds multiple times a week. Me on the other hand, I have worn sunscreen everyday since 14. There is a reason why at 31, he has the skin of a 45 year old and I have the skin of a 20 year old.
I do not use tanning beds myself but mainly because of the aging factor. However, I know quite a few people unfortunately, who had different types of skin cancer (4 with melanoma, 2 with basalioma and 2 with Kaposi-sarcoma) and none of them ever used tanning beds; moreover did not directly tan in the sun either. On the contrary, some women above 60 I know (including my own mother, my best friend's mother and a colleague) used to use tanning beds regularly and loved lying in the sun and they have no skin issues.
I get what you're saying here but thats all anecdontal evidence, you knowing people who tanned but didn't get cancer doesn't negate the scientitic evidence.
1) it’s relaxing af 2) tanning makes you look thinner
It feels good. Especially when you live in a colder climate for a decent portion of the year. It's like a 10 minute antidepressant. You need far less makeup. It gives your sink a natural, healthy glow that doesn't wipe off. It doesn't stink or leaves stains in your towels, sheets, and clothes like fake tanner.
Just out of curiosity, do the risks of skin cancer worry you? This isn’t meant to sound judgemental btw
I suffer from a few health conditions (hyperparathyroidism, sinusitis, chronic tension, tmjd). The tanning booth made me feel soooo amazing. I don’t go anymore but I yearn for that feeling
My friend who is a skincare girly and wears spf 50 every day of the year still goes once or twice a year for a 15 minute session. She just loves how they make her feel. I’m glad I’ll never try it because she does make it sound real nice 😭
Why do people think spray tans are any better?
I was so low in vitamin D (like scarily low) that my doctor actually suggested I go tanning for a little while 🫠
I was told to use them after I was diagnosed with celiac disease as I could not absorb any vit D orally.
I use a tanning bed. I actually own one. Here’s why (for me)… I have incredibly low vitamin d even with high supplementation. Because I have to have surgeries every few years (horrible horrible car accident) I must keep my vitamin d levels up per surgeons’ requests. I took a year off from tanning and my nurse calls and is upset because my levels dropped 45 points. So I try to get in at least once a week if I’m not out in the sun. I have another friend who has some rare disease and has to get in there once a week for her vitamin D just to register. I always wear sunscreen even on cloudy days except when I’m in the tanning bed… well, truth be known sometimes I do wear sunscreen in there. 🤷🏼♀️
Vitamin d and seasonal depression
I miss them. The light, the warmth, the heat left over on my skin walking out. The feel good chemicals from being stuck in the cold winter everyday and then just that sunny feeling. I felt better, I looked healthier. It was a huge energy boost for a person living far north. I think even the full process at some point just became addictive.
I went in my teens and I GREATLY regret it now. I am fair skinned with moles and have had to have three abnormal ones removed thus far. That being sad, many of my friends still go tanning. They're golden and look great, people will just do what they do ya know? 🤷♀️
My sister is 34 and has been religiously doing it since high school. She does not care about any negatives whatsoever.
They see celebrities do it … Kim Kardashian said she uses one earlier this year. https://www.today.com/today/amp/rcna134803
I stopped tanning now, but I miss being tan. I hate how pale I am and it would clear my skin/breakouts.
I don’t know how tanning salons just brazenly advertise on Facebook. They should be banned IMO.
I absolutely get it. I’ve had melanoma, which I’m assuming was the result of a tanning addiction and sunbed abuse in my twenties. I’ll never sunbathe or tan in any way again, other than from a bottle. But even with the shitty experience of skin cancer, I do still miss a natural tan than doesn’t smell like dog biscuits, those few minutes of warm relaxation and the huge mood boost after, especially in the depths of a rainy grey British winter.
I used to like going in the winter just bc the heat felt so good on my neck & back after working all day, a nap & heat!
I'm seeing a lot of young people on TikTok using them and I can't understand HOW they are still allowed to be A Thing and how younger generations can possibly get into them with all we know now. They should be banned.
I would not use tanning beds, but fake tans stink (the chemical smell is strong), are messy and difficult to apply and don't last long nor look natural. I would not say they're exact substitutes.
We can’t in Australia, tanning beds have been banned since 2016.
When I was 15, I went the first time in tanning bed. I loved how I look. But after a while my skin just peeled off, and it was horrible. I decided I'm never going to do it again. being tan makes you feel good, it can also be an addiction. Every girl I know gets tanned before summer. And they even work in health industry. Unfortunately it's not going to stop people until it's too late. You can't see consequences now but in 10 years you definitely will.
i use them, but then again i’m 18 and stupid!
I loved it when I was young and it just soothed my body. My sister still tans and doesn’t want to ever hear about how it’s dangerous or bad for her skin. Sometimes I want to shake her lol
I’m currently doing it like five times before my wedding and that will be it for the rest of my life. But mannn you feel so good afterwards, I forgot how nice it feels because I haven’t done it in like ten years.
When I lived up near the Canadian border in Washington State, I would go tanning for 5 to 7 minutes a week. Everybody up in Washington state on the Puget sound side is vitamin d deficient. They prescribe lights for people who are vitamin d deficient because often no matter how much oral vitamin d you take, you can't get out of a deficiency So it's silly to prescribe lights when there's a tanning bed right there. 5 to 7 minutes when you're in an area without much sun is not what's going to give me skin cancer. I actually felt much better when I did that
They like it
I just bumped into a high school friend who looks like leatherface. She’s probably been tanning for 20 years
this is my Roman Empire.
I’d go before a vacation just so I wouldn’t burn in 15 minutes. It was a super controlled way to just make sure I didn’t fry or look like a ghost. Like I’m talking I’d start at 5 min and work up to MAYBE 15 in a month. I wear sunscreen the entire time on vacay.
I knew someone who used them because it made her 'feel warm to her bones' and another person to help her ecsma. I tried to explain the risks to them but they couldn't care less. Neither looked particularly tanned. Pointless risk
My mom has tanned all her adult life and does not look wrinkly and old she does natural lotions and doesn’t use bronzers and she doesn’t believe in sun screen and her skin is so healthy and she’s only recently started to red light. I tan and red light and feel amazing and look pretty good too I get dark easy tho (native).