How to Get a Perfect Tan Without the Risk of Skin Cancer

Provided by: ARA

(ARA) - Summer is the time of year people like to be tan. Some will spend hours baking in the sun to achieve that bronzed look, others will go to tanning salons; but both methods can be harmful to your health.

According to the American Academy of Dermatology, 90 percent of the 1 million plus new cases of skin cancer diagnosed this year will be traced to ultraviolet light (UV) exposure; and cancer isn't the only illness people who spend a lot of time in the sun or on tanning beds can get. Overexposure to harmful UV rays can also cause cataracts, immune system changes, wrinkles, and premature aging of the skin.

"What many people don't realize is that skin cancer and tanning don't have to go hand in hand. You can get a sunless tan that looks great," says Lester Szurko, CEO of Fantasy Tan, the world's first airbrush tanning company. "All you have to do is walk into one of the salons that offers our cutting-edge sunless technology, and you can walk out looking like you spent two weeks on the beach in Hawaii."

Sunless tanning is nothing new. The concept has been around since the 1960s when Coppertone introduced the first sunless-tanning product -- QT or Quick Tanning Lotion. These days, you can find tanning pills, sunless or self-tanners and bronzers that allow you to smooth, swipe or spray on a light bronze glow or a deep, dark tan.

A Fantasy Tan is applied via a special air brush system resulting in an even, natural looking tan. The formula as well as the specialized air brush system are the result of years of research and testing. What sets a Fantasy Tan apart from one you could achieve with a sunless tanning cream or lotion is its ability to evenly cover the body without blotching. "The airbrush sprays it on perfectly every time," says Szurko.

Gail Doonan, 51, of Tinley Park, Ill., a suburb of Chicago, considers herself one of Fantasy Tan's biggest fans. "I started sunbathing when I was a teenager and did it religiously until last year when I was diagnosed with skin cancer near my eye," she says. "I promised my doctor I'd stay out of the sun from now on, but missed the look and feel of being tan."

Doonan went out and bought some sunless tanning lotions, but says they didn't work as well as she'd hoped. "My skin got all orange and blotchy. It was terrible." To cheer her up, one of Doonan's friends recommended she get a Fantasy Tan, a service available at a salon not too far from where she worked.

"I love the coverage, and how natural it looks," says Doonan. "People often ask me if I just returned home from vacation. They don't realize I haven't spent any time in the sun at all."

According to the American Academy of Dermatology, the main ingredient in a Fantasy Tan, dihydroxyacetone (DHA), is the most effective sunless tanning product available today. As the colorless sugar interacts with the dead skin cells located in the stratum corneum - outer layer of the epidermis --- a color change occurs.

"This change usually lasts about seven to ten days from the initial application, longer for people who take the time to maintain their tans," says Szurko. By maintenance, he means frequent moisturizing and the use of soaps and washes that don't promote exfoliating.

"Many soaps, moisturizers, and body washes contain ingredients that make the skin exfoliate. Realizing the negative impact they have on a Fantasy Tan's longevity, we developed our own line of friendly products our clients can use," he says.

Fantasy Tan makes a mild body cleanser guaranteed not to cause exfoliation. The company also has a daily moisturizer to keep the skin hydrated, a personal bronzer to touch up areas of the tan that are fading, and an exfoliator people can use to cleanse their skin before they come in to get a new tan sprayed on.

Doonan says she gets a new Fantasy Tan every week to ten days. She has been doing it for more than a year now. "It's just like getting your nails done. You go in every so often for a touch up," says Doonan. "I don't mind it at all. The entire process takes just 15 minutes to complete."

Fantasy Tan made its first appearance in Hilton Head, South Carolina in 1997, and is now offered at hundreds of locations in the United States. You can also find the technology in use in 30 foreign countries. To find the salon nearest you, log on to www.fantasytan.com and click on the button that says "Salon Locator."

Courtesy of ARA Content

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