Ashley Colvin gets a base tan before summer arrives by using indoor tanning beds. According to experts, a base tan can help people avoid sunburns, which can put a person at more of a risk of developing skin cancer. (photo by Victoria Stahl)

Some Effects of Tanning Are Good For Your Health

Everyone has heard of the dangers of sun exposure and indoor tanning, but not as many know of the benefits of Ultra-Violet ray exposure. Students may be comforted this summer in knowing that sun exposure, if done safely, can be good for your health.

Over the past few years, numerous studies have been done on the effects of Vitamin D on, not only bone health, but immunity health as well. Vitamin D is a byproduct of sun exposure and can be found naturally and artificially in many foods. According to the Vitamin D Council's website, research has been done in order to prove a link between Vitamin D and improved immunity health and resistance to cold and flu viruses.

Mike Fisher, owner of South Beach Tans in Moore said that despite a supposed link to skin cancers, UV rays cause Vitamin D production which can protect the body against much more.

"People who are vitamin deficient are susceptible to a higher level of deadly cancers," said Fisher. "People who have a higher level of Vitamin D are less likely to get those diseases."

Fisher says that although sun exposure has its benefits through Vitamin D production, precautions should still be taken and sunburn should be avoided, because it increases risk of skin cancer.

According to the Skin Cancer Foundation website, a sunburn increases a person's risk for melanoma, the most serious form of skin cancer. The website says that after five sunburns, the risk of melanoma doubles.

At a recent international conference of the American Association for Cancer Research, cancer experts agreed that adequate levels of Vitamin D could help prevent at least 39% of all cancers including breast, colon, renal and prostate cancer. According to the Vitamin D Council, researchers also say that Vitamin D will help in treating diseases and disorders such as autism, chronic pain, heart disease, hypertension and osteoporosis.

The Food and Drug Association currently recommends that people get 200-600 International Units, or IU of Vitamin D per day, but more recent research suggests that the dosage should be changed to 1,000 IU of Vitamin D per day.

According to the Vitamin D Council, people should spend 15-30 minutes a day in the sun to get the requirements of Vitamin D that the body needs.

Aside from sun rays and tanning salons, there are many ways people can get Vitamin D. For people who are worried about the aging effects of the sun or skin cancer, Vitamin D can be found in fortified milk and oily fish as well as over the counter multi-vitamins.

Dr. Jeff Hirsch, General Physician, recommends that instead of getting Vitamin D from the sun that people should take it orally because over exposure to the sun can be very dangerous but in small amounts can be good for the body.

"Light to moderate exposure is fine," said Hirsch. "The worst thing a person to do which predisposes them to cancer is getting a sunburn. Moderate exposure to sun is healthy, but if you want a tan, go and get one sprayed on."

In addition to getting Vitamin D from the sun, Hirsch says that the sun can also have a psychological effect on the body. According to Hirsch, Seasonal Affective Disorder, or S.A.D, can affect people during the winter months and is a mild to severe depressive disorder.

"People [with S.A.D.] are told to go under fluorescent lights for 10-15 minutes to simulate sun to help the neurochemical balance in their brain," said Hirsch. "So exposure to the sun is healthy from the standpoint of neurological health."

Krista Irish, owner of Tan-N-Style in Norman said that the most important thing about indoor tanning is control. She says you will always know exactly what kind of ultraviolet light you are getting and exactly how long you'll be getting it.

"Being inside tanning is so much better for your skin than being outside because it is being controlled, you know exactly what you're getting," said Irish. "Being outside with the sun during different times of the day, you don't really know what you're getting."

Irish said factors that control the intensity of the sun include altitude, season, ozone and weather conditions among others. In cold weather, you may be getting more UV exposure than you expect.

Fisher also agreed with that, saying that from day to day, the condition of the sun changes and that it is difficult to tell what kind of exposure you are getting.

Everyone, doctors and tanners alike, seemed to agree on one thing. If you have a base tan, you are in much safer conditions outside. According to Irish, a base tan, even a spray tan, can help protect your skin from sunburn.

Ashley Colvin, a customer at South Beach Tans, says she only uses indoor tanning methods during the spring to prepare her skin for the summer sun.

"If I don't tan first and I get out in the sun for several hours I will burn," said Colvin. "So, I like to tan in the tanning bed first, but I only do it right before summer."

While sun exposure is important for emotional and physical health, it is important to do it safely. For more information on Vitamin D and skin care, visit these websites:

vitamindcouncil.org
skincancer.org

For more on my interview with Jeff Hirsch, M.D., click below: