With the summer season upon us, many teenagers are looking forward to one main thing which is tanning! Tanning is an action or activity of exposing one’s skin to the sun in order to achieve a darkened and bronze complexion. Many people often struggle with tanning, whether it’s because their skin is prone to sunburn or because they simply can’t get tan quickly enough. Although many people have come to the conclusion that they “can’t tan” there are many ways to help you achieve that perfect tan!
While tanning, the number one rule is that you must wear sunscreen! Many people believe that wearing SPF (Sun Protection Factor) will stop you from getting the tan results you won, but this is just a myth. Sunscreen acts as a shield for your skin, but this does not mean that you cannot tan! Yes, wearing sunscreen does slow down the process of tanning but being patient is key. Sunburns are the outcome of ultraviolet radiation (UV) reaching the skin which damages skin cells and results in mutations in their DNA. Tanning without any sunscreen greatly increases the chances of hyperpigmentation, photoaging (your skin aging prematurely), and the chances of developing skin cancer. Another common misconception is that getting sunburnt is the best way to get tan, although sunburns do turn into a tan, every burn drastically increases the chances of developing non-melanoma skin cancer. Before you go out for a tan thinking you don’t need sunscreen, think about all of the risks you will be taking! A minimum of SPF15 is recommended for day-to-day use.
A huge factor in your results is where and when you tan. A great way to step up your tanning game is by tanning near a body of water. This could vary from a pool, ocean, and even a lake. The water is capable of reflecting up to 30% of the UV rays it receives. The best place to tan, in my opinion, is the beach. At the beach your skin will be able to receive the UV rays reflected from the water, but surprisingly also the sand! Sand is capable of reflecting 17% of the UV rays it receives! It’s also important to note that you should always face in the direction of the sun so you can get the full effect. One piece of advice I give to everyone is to mainly tan when the UV index is 7 or above. There is no issue with tanning while the UV is lower than 7, but from personal experience, I have gotten tanner much quicker when the UV is above 7. The best time to tan would have to be between 10 am and 4 pm. This is when the UV radiation is generally the highest which will make your tanning session much easier! A very important thing to do when tanning is to make sure you are tanning the front and back of your body for the same amount of time.
The most disliked part of tanning is having to sit out in the burning hot weather for hours on end, but what if I told you that there was a way to cut that time in half? The secret is finding the best tanning products! Thousands of tanning oils, creams, butter, and lotions claim to give you the best tan, but in reality, they hardly work. After testing what seemed like a million different products, I finally found my top three that truly worked for me! My all-time favorite would have to be the “Malibu Fast Tanning Bronzer Butter.” This product is currently going viral on social media for all the right reasons. It helps you get that perfect bronze tan in a much shorter amount of time! The only con to this is that it has no SPF in the product. Therefore you must put on sunscreen under this product to avoid sunburn! Another great product is the “Coco and Eve Sunny Honey Tan Boosting Anti-Ageing Body Oil.” This product works wonders and there is no need to use SPF! It helps create such a beautiful glowy tan. These two products however are on the pricier side, but a great affordable alternative would be the “Hawaiian Tropic Dark Tanning Oil.” This oil does not have any SPF in it either so you must wear sunscreen under, but it still helps you get that perfect tan!
Tanning is something that will have a different outcome for everybody. It all comes down to your personal skin type so what works for others may not work for you. However, everybody is capable of getting a gorgeous tan. You just have to experiment and see what works best for you! All of these tricks and products have helped me every single summer without fail and I am positive they will help others too!
