Thursday, 07 February 2008

By Julia Harr
The Appalachian

Sun kissed goddesses are expected in the middle of summer, or even in the tropics, but in the middle of winter in Boone?

It seems everywhere I look I see yet another woman with perfectly bronzed skin. What I want to know is how they got their skin that lovely shade of tan?

I’m pretty sure spending quality time basking in the sun on Sanford Mall covered in sunscreen is not the culprit since Tuesday offered the first break in the winter weather in quite some time.

And I have yet to see faux tanning methods look flawlessly streak free so the only possible answer is that these ladies are spending a lot of quality time in a hot coffin filled with death bulbs - the tanning bed.

I’m not sure who decided that a tan should last the entire year, but that person obviously has no fear of skin cancer or premature aging.

Some women may protest they are not burning their skin, but only tanning it.

A tan is still skin damage. Skin damage leads to skin cancer that can run unforgivingly through the body.

I personally know a male freshman that left Appalachian due to skin cancer. That cancer has since spread to vital organs and his brain. He didn’t protect his skin and now has unfortunate circumstances to deal with.

“According to a review of all studies done up until March 2006 investigating the relationship between tanning beds use and cancer, the use of sunbeds before age 35 can substantially increase the risk of developing melanoma,” according to International Journal of Cancer.

The journal went on to say, “Men and women who had ever used sunbeds at any point in their lives were 15 percent more likely to develop melanoma. Exposure to tanning beds before age 35 increased melanoma risk by 75 percent.”

It’s rare that one might hear someone say, “I know smoking causes cancer – but I just look so cool doing it that I’m willing to take the risk.”

Why is the same idea not transferable to the tanning bed?

Young people tan regularly in hopes to look more glamorous in the eyes of their peers with complete disregard for the problems that could ensue.

Tanning beds encourage women with lies like, “we carefully balance the UVA and UVB rays to cause less damage.”

That’s as dumb as saying filtered cigarettes aren’t dangerous.

If skin cancer isn’t scary enough, UVA rays (found along with UVB rays in tanning beds) cause aging, wrinkling, and loss of elasticity, according to the American Academy of Dermatology.

This means a tan may look flattering today, but will turn you into a piece of leather 10 years from now.

I would rather be a bit ghostly now and look my age when I’m 30 instead of 10 to 15 years older.

Going to the tanning bed isn’t just bad for your skin - it’s also bad for your eyes.

The required eye pieces are annoying and often neglected. Not wearing proper eyewear in the tanning bed can cause retinal damage and encourage cataracts.

The American Academy of Dermatology says some sun exposure is necessary so the body can manufacture vitamin D; the amount needed could be acquired in a short walk around campus. Lying on hot ultraviolet bulbs is rather unnecessary.

So what in the world can the female population do to ensure a tanned body? Go to the drugstore and buy some faux tanner if you must.

Many companies are getting pretty good at making streak-free varieties. I guarantee you’ll spend less money on it than buying tanning sessions…or chemotherapy.

Being a little streaky now seems infinitely better than being a little dead, or extra wrinkly, in a few decades.