a friend of mine was a tan-aholic. i kept telling her that she would end up looking like a gucci handbag by the time she was 30 if she kept it up :D

i am fair and over the years have learnt to accept it. it is difficult seeing as there are many girls so tanned from spending so much time at the beach and in the sun, as is the australian culture. i could not tell you how much i got teased at school for being fair. of course now with public figures such as Nicole Kidman and Marcia Cross for example, it is more accepted that you don't have to be tanned to be beautiful. I must say that some of my favorite idols were/are very fair.

anyway, a uv ray is a uv ray. so long as you understand that a tanning bed is not any less damaging to your skin than the sun. they are one in the same.

go the fake tan if you are really keen on tanning, but remember to wear sunscreen out and about too. being tanned does not make you any less susceptable to burning.

well we all have our weaknesses,mine used to be cigarrettes,now since i am here i also had a weakness with food.but my main over all weakness is tanning,and as i have said before i will continue to tan no matter what,i keep it safe.and i only live once,so might as well enjoy it.

not be a downer, but only living once doesn't make melanoma any gentler to your body. its a very sad yet preventable way to go... we recently lost a family friend to melanoma, and he suffered more than any one person should ever have to.

WEAR SUNBLOCK!

Daisy Boo is correct, an UV ray is an UV ray no matter where it comes from (of course we can get into the debate of %UVA & %UVB in tanning lights vs. the sun but that's splitting hairs).

I tan from time to time (1 a month.. little more in winter to help stave off SADS), but always ALWAYS cover my face and wear sunblock during my tanning session (SPF 15 on my body, SPF 30 on my face). I still manage to get a tan but then my sessions in a traditional lie down bed generally last 20-25 minutes.

That said, whenever I am at the beach, walking around or outside I put sunblock EVERYWHERE. And almost daily I wear it on my face. Yes I am not perfect and occasionally I slip up and forget or don't re apply after swimming. I am melanoma paranoid due to a family friend having terminal melanoma.. he's had 12 years so far of having 30-50% of his skin cut out every 3 months. I get my moles and freckles checked yearly and anything I am worried about I get checked at the doctor.

I suppose what I am saying, is that for me, I find tanning a convenient way to have a little colour and for me it is less damaging as I spend far less time sunbaking on a sunbed than I would if I was lying in the sun. Also for me.. I'm not fully convinced about the "safety" of fake tans, from a chemical perspective. (mind you same goes for sun block too.. but that one I'm happy to take the risk on).

Nothing that changes your skin colour is ever going to be completely safe. Make sure the place you go asks you about your skin tone, colour, tanning history, if you have had any bad burns/have any moles and will start you off on a very gradual programme. The idea with this is patience. BUT a tan doesnot mean you won't get burnt, nor does it mean you can skip the sunblock.

good luck
NBK

well evedentally we are never going to agree on this,i am headed to the tanning bed right now as a matter of fact,so i close my part on this discusion.its headed no where,and it just makes me mader reading stuff.so good luck on your journey of life and peace out.