Dr. Cranquis' Mumbled Gripes
(Disclaimer: Questions related to medical topics will be answered to the best of Dr. Cranquis' (and Google's) knowledge, but the internet-delivered wisdom on this blog CAN NOT AND SHOULD NOT SUBSTITUTE for your Real-Life Doctor's personal attention + examination, and your own common sense too! If you think you're having a medical emergency, hang up and go email 911. The author of this blog takes no responsibility for any medical, relationship, scholastic, financial, or other decisions you may make based on information found in this blog.)
Fantastic! :)
“74% greater risk of melanoma among tanning-bed users”… Wow!
Winter is coming in the US — a time when many turn to tanning beds to “get their sunlight”. Just thought I’d remind you that it’s a BAD IDEA. Better to invest in a $70-100 “Light Therapy” lamp, to get all the Vitamin-D-stimulating effects of sunlight without all the melanoma-inducing effects of a tanning bed!
Guess I’ll start promoting “smoking for weight loss” then! Good grief… This is a lawsuit waiting to happen.
“74% greater risk of melanoma among tanning-bed users”… Wow!
Anonymous Asks:
Does tanning in beds truly put you at a higher risk of cancer than just plain going outside? I could see an argument where someone would say, "Well you stay in a bed for a certain amount of time and don't burn whereas outside people tend to forget to reapply sunscreen after the SPF runs out resulting in a burn. Therefore, they're more likely to get cancer from that."
I mean, I don't really understand how a tanning bed works, and I know there are things such as self-tanning bronzers and whatnot, but I was just wondering. Not asking this because I want to get on the cast of Jersey Shore or some nonsense, haha, I think it's rather odd seeing people in my school look orange in the middle of winter, though. *chuckle*
cranquis Said:
Well, Farmer Stan, tanning is the process of damaging your skin cells, in order to make your skin looker darker than it was designed to be. (There, does that definition clarify my feelings about it?). This damage (intentional or not) is caused by ultraviolet radiation within light, which makes your existing melanin turn darker by oxidizing it, and also stimulates your irradiated skin cells to release more melanin.
Whether your tanning light source is the sun or a tanning bed, it’s the UV rays that do the tanning, and it’s those same UV rays that make you burn — so it is absolutely possible to get sunburn in a tanning bed. And since many people feel that they need to “get the most tan for their dollar” when they’re in a tanning bed, they’ll often tan (nearly/totally) naked, therefore exposing more skin surface to the UV rays than if they were outdoors (at least, for most people) — and therefore exposing themselves to a higher “load” of radiation in one tanning session, compared to tanning outdoors.
And what’s the big deal about UV radiation? Oh, not much — except that frequent exposure to UV radiation greatly increases your chance of skin cancer (including melanoma), reduces your skin’s ability to repair damage, and leads to worse looking skin with more wrinkles in the long term.
Does this mean you should wear a burlap sack and avoid all sunlight entirely? NO!! Sunshine and UV light does have an important role to play: it helps you generate Vitamin D within your body, which is very important for your immune system. But all you need is 10-15 minutes of non-sunscreened sun exposure to your arms and face per day in order to generate enough Vitamin D (for the average healthy adult human) — not an hour of baby-oil-enhanced melanocyte abuse!
***Pending Cranquis-Mails: 44***
