I hear a lot of people are getting tans now, mostly chicks. Should I?
Yes, but in a restrained way.
As a general rule, light tanning (or just exposure to sunlight) is beneficial. Ignore the retards who talk about skin cancer obsessively- a reasonable amount of sun, be it from intentional tanning or just being outside, will help you immensely. If I am not mistaken, it also can help prevent acne or at least hide some skin blemishes.
As for the method to approach, it’s up to you. Some guys are entirely fine with using tanning beds, while others prefer to stay outside. No matter what you do, keep the tan light- meaning, no matter what, don’t go overboard. In some respects, you could burn yourself (which hurts), in others, you could look super-brown and nasty. As a general rule, go just dark enough to have a tan line, but the closer to brown you look, the more fake you are going to look (unless you have that skin tone anyway, in which this entire tanning post is pretty much irrelevant).
Still, I can’t stress enough, keep it light and natural. No freaking bronzing solutions or sprays allowed. Leave those for the nasty popped collar guidos.
Tags: tanning
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as a medical note tanning is important for the production of vitamin D which is needed for the absorbtion of calcium into bone. some studies have shown that alot of the general population have low levels of vitamin D and that it plays a important role in the control of both blood pressure as well as diabeties. the recommendation is to have at least 10 to 30 minutes of sun exposure before 10 and after 4 with at least a pair of your limbs exposed (i.e. forearms, shins) if you use sunscreen the exposure you need is greatly increased which is why in countries like australia people are starting to have lower vitamin d levels
but as always protect yourself from skin cancers and the like (hence why before 10 and after 4)
I wouldn’t recommend trying to tan if you are of some Anglo descent.
Personally, I am unable to tan; I confirmed this with a dermatologist. If you’re as fair (read: pasty) as I am, you can only burn and freckle.
Seriously, go check with a dermatologist before trying to tan. You’ll save yourself hundreds and the pain of some very bad sunburn.