Making The Most Of Your Tanning Tips

HOW TO TAN Faster, Safer & Less Costly 

Professionals share their stories from experience and research to the benefit of all.  

See our BLOG and post your experience www.SmartTanSalonsUVplus.com/blog

How often should I tan?  every 1-3 days to build; every 3-14 days (depending upon skin type, and choice of equipment/lotion) to maintain and to experience the mental and physical health benefits.

How do I Tan Safely & Effectively  Save money, time and your youthful appearance by avoiding traditional beds and seeking State-of-the-Art equipment with maximum UVA (tanning) and minimum UVB (burning). Tanning in high-end UVA machines is faster, safer, and no more expensive than tanning many more times in less effective beds. ALWAYS use machines with High-Pressure facials (pure UVA) for the more delicate, and difficult to tan, skin of the face. Tanning beds equipped with after-bronzers provide the ideal opportunity for safer, more effective tanning.  If still concerned, alternate UV & UV Free weekly.

Eye Protection: Long-term, repeated unprotected exposure risks reducing night vision. Essential, and the law, goggles protect your light sensitive eyes, protect the delicate skin around the eye and keep any naturally dark circles around the eyes from getting darker.  Avoid “raccoon eyes” by repositioning/flipping the goggles during the session, or, although we don’t advocate the following, some remove the goggles a few minutes prior to the end of the session.

Scientific Fact: The benefits of moderate and regular tanning far outweigh the risks. “To Tan is Healthier than Not to Tan!”  HarvardUniversity recommends 15-30 minutes/week all year to realize the proven benefits related to obesity, depression, arthritis, osteoporosis, MS, muscle and joint pain, and, amongst many other things, reduced risk of 14 types of known cancers.

Non-Scientific Fact: Everyone is more confident, looks and feels better with a tan.

Risk: the groups with a statistically significant measure of risk related to long-term sun exposure are those who experience repeated serious burning prior to adulthood and/or have a genetic pre-disposition to skin cancer; this risk becomes even less significant when burning is eliminated and/or when tanning is done indoors.

Maximize Tanning & Skin Care: Indoor tanning lotions (accelerators) pay for themselves by accelerating tanning up to 30% by stimulating melanin production. Dry skin slows tanning by up to 60% (Consumer Reports ‘06).  Lotions reduce the risk of burning thereby, allowing you to tan up to 10% longer on every visit, PLUS lotions preserve your skin’s youthfulness. Face:  At the very least, ALWAYS use accelerator on your face to eliminate premature aging and to maximize tanning because the face tans more slowly and exfoliates more quickly. Another plus: the face and neck require very little product (~$15/yr). Lips: have no melanin to protect them so keep your lips fun to kiss w/ SPF lip balm ($3/yr).

Maximize Lotion Performance: Lotion will continue to stimulate melanin for up to 3-4 hours after tanning. If showering early, just rinse off and pat dry, don’t wash off; avoid lotions with Mineral Oil or Baby Oil because they actually strip & fade your tan. The amount of tan gained per session peaks at the base tan stage and after that it can take up to twice as much time to gain the same amount of color. This is normal and only accelerator lotions and higher level equipment can help.

Redness: is a sign of stressing the skin by tanning too long or by putting too much time between sessions.  Redness that lasts more than 24 hours is harsh on the skin and will ultimately peal or exfoliate more quickly.  It’s a myth that you must get red before you can tan.  Avoid getting red by tanning a bit more frequently, using a tanning lotion, and/or using a higher level tanning bed w/ more UVA (tanning) & less UVB (burning).

Balanced and even tanning: If your sides, shoulders, shoulder blades and/or butt are not tanning evenly, use a bed equipped with side and shoulder tanners, a contoured bed acrylic and/or use a stand-up machine (ideally with face and leg intensifiers) every 3^rd or 4^th visit.

Reduce Salon Congestion and Promote Maximum Hygiene by cleaning your bed when finished, at least roughly, thereby allowing staff to follow-up more quickly and thoroughly; Bonus: you may even help to keep prices down by reducing labor costs.