“Fake tans — are they a good idea?”
Jul 12th 2010adminBest practices for healthy skin & How skin works & Skin care products
Are fake tans a good idea? Now there’s a question just begging for the Attorney’s Ambiguous Answer: “It depends…..”
Here are just two questions to start with:
1. What are you thinking of using to produce this fake tan?
2. What existing skin conditions do you have that could be affected?
Basically, the types of fake tans can be divided into two categories:
External – creams/lotions/liquids that stain skin, or tanning beds (considered dangerous. – Do a Web search.)
Internal – pills (combinations of chemicals that produce a “tanned” look).
No pills have yet been tested and approved for tanning. The ones being touted as “tanning pills” were formulated for other purposes, not to produce tans.
Any time you swallow a pill, it gets into your system. Whether that causes problems or not depends on what else is in your system.
In other words, what are the possible interactions with medications you are already taking? Allergies and sensitivities? Weakened immune system? Etc.
Are there potentially serious consequences to this new chemical mixture you have created? (Are you a toxicologist or chemist who would know this?)
At what point could it result in damage to the cells of your internal organs?
A respected Canadian surgeon told me that every time another chemical is ingested, the threat of serious interaction is increased by at least ten times.
Why do you think you need a prescription for certain products? Because the ingredients can be hazardous to your health. They are drugs. They are chemical mixtures. Many of them extremely dangerous unless used exactly as prescribed.
And you were thinking of using potentially toxic chemicals for an untested purpose to achieve a purely cosmetic result?
There’s a safer way…
You can have a lovely fake tan without putting your vital organs at risk. Go for an external tanning cream and use it regularly.