In case you haven't noticed already, the facts about tanning beds and their safety can be a bit confusing to say the least. Watch one so-called expert speak on the topic on the net or TV, and he or she will tell you that they will give you skin cancer. Then watch yet another so-called expert on the topic talk, and you get a completely different story. "Go ahead and tan with them because the risk is overstated."
Just what is the risk of cancer then, and what about what some people are saying about light waves penetrating to even harm your internal organs? So the simple answer to that first question is "yes". Prolonged or excess exposure to tanning lights and the sun is not a good idea. Do keep in mind though that the sun and tanning is not inherently bad for you, and in fact avoiding the sun also brings with it proven risks.
Then as far as the lights from a tanning bed penetrating your skin and damaging your organs is concerned, it's simply untrue. The light waves simply can't go deep enough and besides, people have been running around in shorts with no shirt on for thousands of years. It's just a scare tactic. Now your eyes do qualify as an organ but as long as you cover them up there's no risk.
Then you may have heard some talk of a risk of contacting STDs off of tanning parlor beds. Can this be possible? The fact is that this is the same type of urban myth that has circulated for years about public toilet seats. Through it all though, "not one documented case" has been reported. So "no", this is not something that you have to concern yourself with.
You see, the fact is that the microbes that are responsible for STDs can't live outside of the human body. They need a warm moist environment to survive. It's the same thing with a lot of living things that need this type of environment to live in. Even so, you do want to make a point of asking to make sure that a salon you are visiting has a policy of adequately cleaning the beds between uses.
So what it all boils down to is that just like so many other things in life, there are some risk factors that come with indoor and outdoor tanning. Just the same though, you do have a say in how great these risk factors are. For instance over or obsessive tanning is not only bad for your health, it's bad for your skin and causes premature aging. So moderation and common sense really are the keys to safety.
Just what is the risk of cancer then, and what about what some people are saying about light waves penetrating to even harm your internal organs? So the simple answer to that first question is "yes". Prolonged or excess exposure to tanning lights and the sun is not a good idea. Do keep in mind though that the sun and tanning is not inherently bad for you, and in fact avoiding the sun also brings with it proven risks.
Then as far as the lights from a tanning bed penetrating your skin and damaging your organs is concerned, it's simply untrue. The light waves simply can't go deep enough and besides, people have been running around in shorts with no shirt on for thousands of years. It's just a scare tactic. Now your eyes do qualify as an organ but as long as you cover them up there's no risk.
Then you may have heard some talk of a risk of contacting STDs off of tanning parlor beds. Can this be possible? The fact is that this is the same type of urban myth that has circulated for years about public toilet seats. Through it all though, "not one documented case" has been reported. So "no", this is not something that you have to concern yourself with.
You see, the fact is that the microbes that are responsible for STDs can't live outside of the human body. They need a warm moist environment to survive. It's the same thing with a lot of living things that need this type of environment to live in. Even so, you do want to make a point of asking to make sure that a salon you are visiting has a policy of adequately cleaning the beds between uses.
So what it all boils down to is that just like so many other things in life, there are some risk factors that come with indoor and outdoor tanning. Just the same though, you do have a say in how great these risk factors are. For instance over or obsessive tanning is not only bad for your health, it's bad for your skin and causes premature aging. So moderation and common sense really are the keys to safety.
About the Author:
Learn more about tanning beds and other bath and beauty machines like hot tubs. Stop by Minnie Pascal's site where you can find out all about them and what they can do for you.
