Warning: Tanning Stretch Marks Might Be Dangerous

If you are a big fan of using public tanning booths for the purpose of diminishing your stretch marks, read on. The FDA warns that some tanning salons are not following FDA regulation regarding the safe use of UV light.

In a recent case in Manhattan, random tanning salon was visited by an FDA investigator who came incognito, and began to ask cursory questions regarding how the salon operates. The salon failed at question number 1: should customers wear goggles always?

The clerk of the tanning salon said no, and was still adamant about saying yes even when the FDA investigator identified who exactly he was and explained that it was already SOP or standard operating procedure to require goggles whenever UV light was involved.

The FDA ordered a seizure of the tanning equipment in that particular salon, and sent out a warning to all the other tanning salons that might have been doing it all wrong these past few years.

Real dangers

The FDA stated that inappropriate use of UV light in tanning booths might be the cause of so many skin maladies and might even lead to death. Premature skin aging and skin cancer are on opposite poles of the deadly spectrum- imagine what lies in between.

And we are not only talking about skin damage here. When UV light hits the surface of the human skin, it penetrates much more deeply than any ordinary person would have imagined.

You see, there is a misconception that UV light only damages the outer layer of the skin. This is a very dangerous misconception. Many people have already paid for dearly with their lives. UV light (UVA and UVB, it doesn’t matter which) actually penetrates the small blood vessels beneath the skin tissue. This in turn causes the veins to lose their general strength, eventually leading to vessel damage and internal hemorrhage

Discoloration and vessel damage can occur in many parts of the body. This may even lead to the formation of travelling blood clots. Travelling blood clots in turn, can cause stroke in individuals of any age.

Now let’s talk about stretch marks themselves. Tanning in the first place does not treat stretch marks. It simply darkens the areas where the stretch marks are present, thereby masking the true appearance of the skin. When this happens, an illusion is created, but unfortunately the stretch marks are still there.

In some case, tanning might be effective in erasing these stretch marks temporarily, but when the tan disappears, there is no telling how the stretch marks would look. Either they remain darkly discolored, or they go back to their original appearance. In some lucky instances, they pale and acquire a silvery white appearance.

Older stretch marks are harder to hide using the tanning solution- which should prompt anyone who would like to use the power of UV radiation to hide a portion of their body’s skin.

In any case, all precautions should be taken to make sure that the tanning will not do more harm than good. The formula in skin care should always be balanced, and the benefits should always outweigh the ill effects.