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Everything you need to know about a healthy tan

Tan from A to Z

Smooth tan - a sign of health and a bright element of a stylish image. In pursuit of beauty, ladies and even some men are getting crunchy on the beaches, and the most desperate are attacking tanning salons in the winter. However, getting a tan is not an innocuous way to increase attractiveness. Doctors and cosmetologists insist - you need to sunbathe with the mind.

Epidermis is the body's defense against external factors, and sunlight is one of the most insidious enemies of human. Exceptionally useful with short contact, it is deadly in large quantities. Tanning is a visible result of its effect on the skin, but more serious changes occur inside. The sun violates the lipid balance and provokes the rapid evaporation of moisture, because the growth of cells rich in melanin is accelerated to protect against UV radiation. This pigment is able to absorb ultraviolet and infrared rays, but the body's reserve is limited.

Врачи и косметологи настаивают — загорать нужно с умом

Doctors and cosmetologists insist - you need to sunbathe with the mind, photo WEB

Over time, careless sunbathing causes a decrease in skin elasticity, the appearance of wrinkles and pigment spots. The aggregate of these processes has a generalizing definition - photo-aging. Such changes occur gradually, and this is their cunning, but in addition, they are irreversible, and the older a person is, the harder it is to maintain a healthy skin that is regularly exposed to sunlight.

However, you can live with ugly skin. Much more dangerous is the potential risk of developing benign and malignant tumors. The dependence of the appearance of melanoma on exposure to ultraviolet - a scientifically based fact, which is risky to neglect. It is becuase of the sun's rays “composition”: 80% are waves of the spectrum of A (UVA), and 20% are waves of the spectrum of B (UVB). The first ones are almost safe, but the second ones are extremely aggressive - they provoke burns and have a mutagenic effect. This means that healthy cells mutate under their influence, and then give the same to offspring that is changed at the gene level. By the way, all this applies to tanning beds.


Photo-aging, photo WEB

However, no one denies the positive effect of the measured effect of sunlight on health. For example, without the influence of the sun, the human body does not synthesize vitamin D, a vital substance which help to absorb calcium and phosphorus in the intestine. It also participates in the development of various hormones, among which is the "hormone of happiness". People with vitamin D deficiency are prone to depression, have fragile bones and other signs macronutrients's lack, and this is a powerful argument in favor of sunbathing. But experts say that for the synthesis of vitamin's D norm, a person needs to be in the sun up to 15 minutes three times a week. And it's not about staying on the beach or in the solarium - a walk around the city is fine. In addition, the substance accumulates in the body, which means that the winter shortage of the sun is easily compensated by summer “savings”.

The sun is the main source of vitamin D

The sun is the main source of vitamin D, photo WEB

Understanding the mechanism of the tan's appearance dispelled most myths about its benefits. Today, everybody who is not indifferent to their own health is aware of the need for a conscious approach to sunbathing. The basic rules are simple. So, you can open the season from 10–15 minutes in the sun, and this time should be increased gradually. It is better to lie down under the sunrays until 11 in the morning or after 16 in the evening, and for those who have fair skin it is desirable to do it under a beach umbrella - the ultraviolet will “reach” the target there. Back home or in a room, you need to sate dehydrated epidermis with the help of moisturizing agents and drink a cup of tea. But from alcoholic beverages on the beach is better to abstain - the skin will literally die from thirst. Be sure to use sunscreen before sunbathing. It is necessary to renew its layer every couple of hours, as well as after a shower, a pool and swimming in the sea.

When tanning, be sure to use sunscreen.

When tanning, be sure to use sunscreen, photo WEB

When buying a cream, it is better to abandon the products of no name firms, and the main criterion must be the value of SPF. It shows the degree of increase in skin resistance to UV radiation. By the way, SPF-100 is just a marketing ploy, and the maximum real value is 50. It’s good if the proportion of UVB filters to UVA is 3: 1.

Doctors recommend using sunscreens not only before going to the beach, but during the entire season of solar activity. Today, this is the same natural concern for your own health, as well as washing hands. Love yourself!

Victoria Romanova, Russia, Moscow