Self-Tanners--a Safe Alternative to the Sun

When I was a teenager, I hated my skin. When everyone else was getting a summer tan, I was freckling and burning. And then peeling.

So one summer I went to the drugstore and bought a bottle of self-tanner. Coppertone, I think it was. I came home and applied it in the bathroom when no one was around.

You can probably guess the next part: Within an hour or two my skin was orange. The color was uneven and streaky. My knees were an especially lurid shade of orange, as were the palms of my hands, because I forgot to wash them with soap after applying the stuff.

My mother, never sensitive to the foibles of teenagers at the best of times, was livid. She sent me back to the bathroom with orders to SCRUB IT OFF, which meant scrubbing off the top layer of my skin, which I did with a scrub brush meant for the bathtub and some strong soap.

Not surprisingly, I have not been tempted to repeat the experiment until this summer. I've come to accept the limitations of my skin. I actually like my freckles now. But I like to get a bit of color at least, even if I'm not going to get the kind of tan my darker-skinned friends (and my older son) can achieve without much risk of skin cancer.

And since I've had melanoma, I'll be getting less sun exposure this summer than ever before.

Which brings me to the new breed of self-tanners. I bought one a few weeks ago, and I love it.

I bought a combination body lotion and self-tanner (Banana Boat's EveryDay Glow "Hint of Color" for medium skin) that you apply for several days before you see results. Then you reapply it either daily or every other day to keep the color going.

Two great things about it:

The color matches the color of my skin when I have a light tan.

Because you apply it every day and gradually build up the color, there are no sharp color lines or streaks.

One caution:

The color from a self-tanner is not protection against the sun, so you still need to wear sunscreen or cover up when you're in the sun.

I haven't heard of any problems with these products (as far as I know, none of the ingredients causes cancer), but if you know of any and want to rain on my parade, shoot me an e-mail and let me know.

@ Jeanne Sather 2007.

Comments

[Lisa]

The gradual self tanners are great for color. I started using them after having a basal cell skin cancer removed. Neutrogena makes one which has a 20 SPF with helioplex. That's the one I use as a daily moisturizer during the summer. Whichever one people decide to buy, sniff drive them in the store first. The potency of the odor varies from product to product. Personally I find Aveeno to be the best smell wise, and used that before Neutrogena introduced the one with SPF.