Can You Tan Without Ultraviolet Radiation?

Tanning beds utilized the effects of ultraviolet radiation on the skin. The UV rays work by inducing the skin to produce more melanin than it normally does. Thus, the skin darkens and the person gets a summer tan. But not everyone can get a perfect tan when using this technology.

If you have a pale white skin, you will never get a tan. Your skin will only become red. If you have a really white skin, you can get a slight tan, a light brown. But you cannot hope to get your desired color, the one that others can obtain while romping freely in the sun, sea, and sand.

Or if you are like many other people who are still dubious about using the artificially produced ultraviolet radiation from tanning bulbs. You have read and heard that using tanning beds can do harm to your skin, to your immune system and to your eyes. Your apprehension and concern about indoor tanning do have scientific basis. UV is high-energy radiation and your skin may not tolerate it as much as other skins do. If members of your family or close relatives are prone to cancer, especially skin cancer, then using tanning beds and tanning bulbs is not a safe or wise idea.

Is it then hopeless for you to get a great tan? There is another way to get a tan without using any radiation. You may use tanning sprays.

The main ingredient of tanning sprays is a substance called DHA or dihydroxyacetone. DHA is actually a food grade product that is orally administered to people who are being treated for their diabetes. It is also an active ingredient in many weight loss products.

Then in 1957, a hospital doctor accidentally discovered that DHA can make the skin “brown”. Further experiments on the substance revealed that when DHA is sprayed on the skin, it forms a brown-colored coat (a DHA-derived polymer) in two to three hours. This “tan” continues to grow darker for the next six hours. The tan is water-resistant.

You can take a bath without washing away the color. And this tan will last up to four or five days. Your body takes this long to completely shed off the dead cells on the uppermost surface of the skin called stratum corneum. The DHA-derived polymers can offer additional protection (as sunscreen) against the type A UV radiation.

They can prevent some UV-A from going deeper into the body. But the DHA-derived polymers cannot protect you from the type B ultraviolet radiation since UV-B works only on the skin.

So far, tanning sprays with DHA are considered safe. These have no toxins, allergens, or carcinogens. But, each time you use the tanning spray, you have to be extra careful not to spray on the eyes and lips. These sensitive body parts must have some form of protection such as winkies and lip balms.

Home Tanning Beds

Can You Tan Without Ultraviolet Radiation?