Do you like to tan?

It's getting to be that time of year again and one of my friends made a comment yesterday that she really needs to work on her tan. Part of my family makes sure they have the "perfect tan" year round by going to tanning places.

Now I can't be bothered to lie out in the sun. I get bored and hot. :lol3: I do a lot of work in my yard so I get the farmers tan on my arms and a little color on my face during the summer. If I know I will be in a situation where I could burn, I put on a strong sunscreen.


So, do you try to get a tan in the summer?



****. Please keep the preaching out of this thread. This isn't IMO. Thanks.

Nope. I don't tan.  I have fair skin and tend to burn.  Back when I was in my early 20's, I wore a high sunscreen and walked 2 blocks to watch a parade. I was outside less than 20 minutes and had to go home because I felt like I was getting sun stroke.  A few hours later my skin was lobster red and the next day I found myself at the ER with blisters on my forehead.  I had to have my skin debrided (not fun at all!!!!) on a daily basis for a week or more. I had second degree burns. They were surprised that I didn't end up with scars.

Also, I work in a cancercare centre. Melanoma is one of the most deadly types of skin cancer.  It's beyond me why people would voluntarily put themselves at risk of getting something like melanoma just because they want a different skin colour than what they were born with.

Nope. I'm really fair-skinned and I have only 2 shades: Gothic pale and lobster red.

Even if I do tan, it fades within 48 hours, and I get bored lying outside so I've never really worried about my tan. I just tell people I'm going for the Victorian look.

No, skin cancer runs in my family (my dad is currently being treated for a basal cell carcinoma) and I won't take the risk of tanning on purpose. And I don't have the patience for it anyway :lol3:. But I'm also not sold on slathering chemicals all over my skin on a daily basis (although I will use sunscreen if I'll be out all day and might burn) so I do have a farmer's tan.

I did for years and years.Spent most of the summer laying in the sun on the beach. Then I had two basel cell skin cancers on my face....One on the lower eye lid that required skin grafts! So no more do I worry about a tan I  lather on the sun svcreen and wear a wide brim sun hat !
 

Not really.  I like to sit inside with the A/C on.  I get enough sun just taking care of outdoor chores.

I am whiter than a grain of rice on a paper plate in a blizzard. I burn, peel and go back to white. So now its sunscreen and limited sun exposure.

Not any more.   Maybe just a "little" color when we go on our cruise vacations (none this year though).    When I was a teenager (and I'm not telling how long ago that was!) I used to spend time in the sun and tan.   One time I fell asleep on the beach and got burned on the backs of my legs ---- terrible pain and uncomfort.     Don't do dumb things like that anymore now that we know that while sun can be your friend it can also be your enemy!    I can't understand these people who go to tanning beds --- they have to be crazy!

Since I live in Florida, I don't go to tanning beds. I do lay out on the pool deck every few weeks in my bikini, though. Not to get a Kim Kardashian tan, but just to get a tiny little bit of color, because otherwise people ask me if I'm anemic because I'm so pale (seriously).

Guilty! Well, I have never been to a tanning bed, but I live in Florida too and love, Love LOVE the beach. I go once a week.

Not any more I was SOOO bad in my twenties with tanning and burning. I have fair skin and blue eyes and burn easily. Now I do all I can to protect my skin from the sun, especially my face. Wear lots of hats and sunscreen. I am pale in the summer now :lol3: I did go to a tanning salon once about ten years ago before we took our trip to Mexico. That way I had a base. I got SOOOO tan on that vacation. Have never been that brown! But now I am much more cautious.

Good heavens, no!  My husband used to always be on my case about how much better I'd look with a tan.  I'd watch him lay on the deck getting beautifully brown while I stayed white.  He is 7 years younger than me and he looks 15 years older.  At 65 I have very few wrinkles whereas his face is terribly wrinkled.  Perhaps he looked better than I when we were young but not anymore.

I live in a seniors' condo and there are several past sun worshipers here who are fighting skin cancer.  I figure there are enough other diseases and issues out there to affect me at this age, why take a chance on another.

NOPE!  Another fair skinned "I burn only" person here.  As someone who has been in the Spa industry for yrs., doing massage, & skincare,

 I must say, I am very proud to read that most of you have all said that you stay out of the sun, or protected, when in it. 

When I read the question, I thought I was going to have to say,  on here! LOL!!

"I'm proud of you guys!!"

catspaw66 said:

Not really.  I like to sit inside with the A/C on.  

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I hate getting really hot and I don't tan even if I tried (which I don't). Last Friday, I sat outside on the patio at a restaurant for a couple of hours and by the time I got home, I was very sore and my scalp was badly burnt. I normally wear sunscreen, but didn't realize I was going to be outside that day and didn't bring any with me. 

I still remember the horrible burn I got on Waikiki Beach when I was in the Navy.  It was so bad the doctor gave me a special chit for No outdoor inspections.   I peeled for a week and a half. 

I don't tan on purpose, but I do get tan pretty quickly on the rare occasions I am outside :lol3:. I very rarely wear sunscreen even tho skin cancer runs in my family :emba: but I didn't get the fair skin from that side, my mom's side, I got the darker skin from my dad's side.... altho oddly enough, both sides are German/English :dk:

one tip for anyone who does realize they have gotten overexposed: take a cool shower as soon as possible, it stops the burn. I once fell asleep on the beach and when I woke up knew that I was in trouble- ran straight to the shower and the only thing that peeled were my eyelids. I ended up with a really nice tan too :lol3:

I don't tan on purpose because of the risks of skin cancer and aging. But, that being said it's still important to get at least 20 minutes of sunshine a day into you for vitamin D

A friend of mine who literally bakes herself in it always comments on my complexion, but she's wrecked hers,  and the browner she goes the more her skin looks like leather 

Rosiemac said:

I don't tan on purpose because of the risks of skin cancer and aging. But, that being said it's still important to get at least 20 minutes of sunshine a day into you for vitamin D

A friend of mine who literally bakes herself in it always comments on my complexion, but she's wrecked hers,  and the browner she goes the more her skin looks like leather 

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We used to have a teacher that looked like that; all leather like.  She had a great figure from what I remember; but her skin made her look much older, even if it was nice and brown.  I'm actually scared to guess how old she actually was.  Probably around 40....I think. 

I dont tan on purpose really.  Every now and then I'll put my legs up and roll up my pants when I'm outside with DD.  The last time I did it was because were doing my maternity/family pictures on the beach.  I still looked pretty pale in them though!  I do tan very nicely; but I will burn if I dont wear sunscreen.  DH is a redhead and very particular about that.  Not just for himself but our kiddos too (both have my coloring fortunately!).  His Mother has had a few spots removed.  She used to do a lot of gardening and things like that and is also a red-head like DH.  DH had a customer nick-name him "Coppertone" because he always smells like it in the summer!

Originally Posted by Rosiemac  

it's still important to get at least 20 minutes of sunshine a day into you for vitamin D

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5 to 10 minutes without sunscreen is all you need.  Get the rays between 11:00 am and 2:00 pm.  And you don't even have to expose all of your body.  Your arms are enough.

I hate sitting in the sun even for 5 minutes.  So I get my Vit D year round through pills. I take about 5,000 iu daily during the summer, and increase to 10,000 iu daily during the fall, winter and spring.

I understand there are very real risks from sun exposure. I pray that God protects me from them.

I feel so at peace at the beach. If I don't get my beach day every week, I feel a little depressed - not severely, but somewhat. I also noticed that with a little color, the mosquitos don't bother me as much. I used to be a bug magnet! I mean, people would beg me to go camping with them. LOL. When I turned 50, I got over that "I'm not perfect in a swimsuit" feeling and started living for myself. God bless the beach! It  is my sanctuary.

Oh yeah - I could stand to lose a few pounds and (on me, anyway) tan fat looks better than white fat.