How to Break Your Addiction to Tanning

Reader Comments
Back to blog

dvw of FL is flat wrong. Just a few minutes of casual sunlight a day gives a human plenty of vitamin D. Advocating for tanning which is simply sun-damaged skin is misguided.

RL of TX 4:44PM May 05, 2010

The improvement in mood is a result of the vitamin D that the UVB creates in the skin. If you’re vitamin D deficient, the increase in vitamin D alleviates the mild to moderate depression associated with vitamin D deficiency. (Google “vitamin D” and “depression” for a review of the literature or use PubMed.)
You can treat this “addiction” to tanning very simply by taking vitamin D supplements to become vitamin D sufficient. It’ll take much more than 400 IUs a day but it’s quite safe. It will also probably take at least a couple of weeks. (See the Vitamin D Council http://www.vitamindcouncil.org/ for more information.) Once you’re vitamin D levels are in the sufficient range, you’ll no longer be mildly or moderately depressed. You’ll feel much less of an urge to tan to lift your mood because you’ll already feel better

Mike Anderson of WA 6:04PM April 21, 2010

I would not consider myself a addict to tanning. I live in a northern state where the ammount of daily sunlight available is well lacking from what professionals would consider healthy. I considered ADs for a period but found that the mild depression I was facing was only aggrivated by the use of pills. My doctor reccommended tanning... yes a doctor. I now tan about once a week for 20 minutes and have yet to have a bout of skin cancer.... I wish these articles would produce results stating what constitutes too much tanning.

Z of MT 1:46PM April 20, 2010

The biggest motivator for stopping too much tanning would be for the fashion magazines to truly embrace 'all skin colors' as beautiful. They should quit telling caucasians they will look better 'tanned.' Ebony magazine trying to convince their black readers to start using hydroquinone ( to lighten skin ) for beauty purposes would never be allowed. It would be considered racist. So, why do we allow white people to be told their skin color is not beautiful unless it's darkened ? It makes no sense.
Appearantly, loving the skin you are in, so to speak, only applies to non-white people.

Sophie of TX 9:16PM March 27, 2010

royal reliable shelf suggest society

radburnurb of AL 10:25AM March 27, 2010

roughly simulation http://theairlineblog.blogspot.com radiative degree http://www.hp.com area http://www.hummer.com period http://www.dawn.com

wanrrickwo of AL 10:25AM March 27, 2010

I'm just curious if anyone... ANYONE out there can state what the difference in UV concentration in a tanning bed is compared to 20 minutes in the Florida summer sun? or sunliight anywhere in any location in the US? Anyone? Now I'm reading that tanning is how your body shows its"insulted" by exposure to sunlight. Sunlight that causes your body to produce vitamin D. Vitamin that your body is designed to produce naturally. So that 50 or 60 years from now all those "misguided" tanners will NOT be the 911 calls "Help! I've fallen and can't get up!" Because vitamin D helps keep bones strong, so those tanners will not be the seniors with broken hips, brittle bones or rickets. Rickets - which was on the verge of being phased out but is now on the rise- as a direct result of NOT ENOUGH SUN EXPOSURE. Check your facts- real facts.

dvw of FL 12:50AM March 27, 2010

I just hope that all those tanner addicts will realize how dangerous it is. I know a tanned body looks nice, but not in 50 or 60 years down the road when you have horrible skin, and possibly cancer

Torie of VA 5:12PM March 25, 2010