Base tans: fact or fiction

Why am I bringing up tanning in the middle of January you ask? Well, how many of you have thought "I need to get a base tan before I go on my winter or spring break to Mexico!"? I'm gonna go ahead and guess that most of my fellow ghost-like compatriots have thought this once or twice in their lives. But I'm here to dispel that myth.

According to the Mayo Clinic and the Skin Cancer Foundation a "base tan" will give you an SPF of 4. This means that it will take you four times as long to burn. I can burn in about 15 minutes so that base will maybe give me an hour. However, the long-term risks associated with tanning beds FAR outweigh that possible hour of burn-free skin.

Tanning beds have a high amount of UVA rays, which penetrate more deeply into the skin than UVB radiation. This means that the damage is below the surface of the skin and can take a long time to show up. If you've ever gotten the chance to look at your skin under a Wood's lamp you may have seen some brown spots that don't show up under normal light. This is sun damage that is sitting just below the surface of the skin. And not to bring up the C word but skin cancers are increasing at alarming rates. Where the average age of those with melanoma is still 62 the number of cases seen in women in their mid-thirties is nothing to scoff at. Kinda makes you think twice about that tanning bed, doesn't it?

Don't get me wrong. I love the sun and the vitamin D that it provides. I just don't think that people should get it from a tanning bed. Even if you slather on sunscreen beforehand (and let's be honest, how many people do?), you're still putting your body at greater risk of damage and sickness. So take that sunscreen, pack it in your suitcase and join me in Mexico! I'll be the one by the pool with the big floppy hat and neon-colored drink in her hand.