How to Get a Healthy Tan This Fall

tanning

by Heather Listhartke

As the summer season has slowly come to a close and we are approaching the end of sunny summer days, tanning is unlikely to happen in the sun (not that you should be tanning in the sun anyways.) Sunless tanning has been a growing trend that, quite frankly, if done right looks better and keeps your skin healthier.

The bygone age of tanning beds

Tanning beds used to be the most popular type of tanning as it was a way that you could get a tan on your whole body fairly fast. You could also regulate how much of a tan you were getting and how often. However recently, in the last 10 or so years, studies have shown that the synthetic UV rays weren’t much better than natural sunlight when it comes to potential skin damage, especially cancer. While some think spacing out the tanning visits with low amounts of time in the bed in combination with a tanning bed lotion will keep your risk down, the World Health Organization’s official statement indicates that tanning beds contribute an increased risk of melanoma. Both natural tanning and tanning beds tend to give you a tan for about 10 days.

Spray tans offer safer alternative to tanning beds

Spray tanning has become increasingly popular as companies have been trying to find a safer alternative to the harmful UV rays. Most tanning salons now offer the much safer spray tan booths that utilize DHA based solutions. The DHA products, such as VersaSpa, that these salons use are the only solution that has been approved by the FDA for external use.  These typically last about a week at full quality and then fade, but they can be extended with products and proper care for much longer.

Many products offer the customer better skin along with the safe tanning solution. VersaSpa, for instance, tans, moisturizes and protects your skin from damage, and you can choose to have an extended tan that goes on clear which then develops a long lasting, natural tan over the next 4-8 hours or you can choose one that has an instant cosmetic bronzer which gives an immediate deep, natural color that is infused with the extended tan. Their solution is formulated with eco-certified DHA, Erythrylose to make it long lasting, and Grape Seed Extract to help stimulate collagen and improve skin appearance. To extend the tan even longer, VersaSpa recommends preparing skin with their Perfector to balance skin pH for a deeper tan sooner and a moisturizer formulated with Green Tea Extract for protection from free-radical and environmental stress on the skin and Ginger Root Extract to increase circulation.

You can further prepare your skin for the spray tan by exfoliating and shaving the day before and refraining from using moisturizers, perfumes, lotions, oils or deodorants that may create a barrier between the skin and the sunless tanning solution.

This beauty advice brought to you by A Moments Peace Salon & Day Spa in Cool Springs, where they offer VersaSpa Sunless Tanning. Call A Moments Peace Salon & Day Spa at 615-224-0770 or visit them at 9050 Carothers Pkwy.