Tan! It's actually good for you.

 

Sun kissed skin is a great coat of armor. The idea behind purposely using a tanning bed was not because of the beauty aspect, it was to benefit your health but it gained its negativity from celebrities’ usage. To be more specific, I think it was looked down upon greatly once Jersey Shore aired. The cast of this show excessively tan, which is irresponsibly, and brag about how being the darkest is the best thing in the world. So of course the audience this shows catches is the teenage girls who want to be like them to fit in and be “pretty”. However, tanning is more beneficial for one than the media portrays. Indoor tanning beds originated in Europe in 1906 from a German medical company named Heraeus. They were created to help patients produce more Vitamin D to help them absorb calcium better. Then in the 1920’s Coco Chanel and Josephine Baker founded a new beauty trend of looking better with having golden skin. Once they introduced this new beauty trend to the public, many wanted to have this look so that is when the industry of tanning beds grew. Later in the 1970’s a scientist named Friedrich Wolff decided to do further experiment with tanning beds and founded many positive aspects about the use of tanning beds and proved the safety in using these beds. Some benefits from using tanning beds is that makes you happier and less stressed, reduces heart disease, relieves aches and pains, helps bad skin conditions, reduces risks of cancers. Tanning cheers you up because it increases your serotonin levels which the body’s happy hormone. It decreases your chances of heart disease because gives you a supply of Vitamin D which is how people usually get heart disease from not having enough Vitamin D. It relieves aches and pains because being exposed to the warmth of the UV rays can ease up stiffness and the heat will warm up the body’s muscles. Being exposed to the sun can help fix skin conditions such as eczema and acne. When one obtains a decent amount of Vitamin D provided by the sun, it helps one reduce the risks of getting other types of cancers. There is only ONE bad thing people can say about tanning which is that it can cause skin cancer. You never hear anyone give any other bad health issue tanning may cause one besides skin cancer; but they also fail to mention the numerous amount of health benefits one can get from tanning. I love to tan because it does help me reduce stress and acne and not because I am trying to get fit in the celebrities. Sure I like being tan that’s not everything. So when I get judged for tanning I do a debate does arise between me and others because they think they know everything about tanning but they do not. Having nice golden skin as I stated is nice but there is more to it than meets the eye. Responsibility is highly needed by one who chooses to tan. Many doctors agree: "I believe the health benefits of exposure to UVA and UVB rays greatly outweigh the disadvantages, even if that means using a sunbed during winter months." So when I ever recommend tanning to someone I also mention to tan wisely and to remember always the right reasons why one is doing so.