Tanning can cause skin damage such as sunspots and wrinkles. If you think you can beat the system by obtaining a tan while wearing sunscreen, you’re probably right. However, you must consider the bigger picture! Keep reading to learn more about how to get tanned while wearing sunscreen. Dermatologists recommend using sunscreen to protect your skin from the early signs of aging and sunburn. Mineral sunscreen coats the skin and reflects the sun rays off your skin to give you better protection, while chemical sunscreens ensure that only a limited amount of sun rays is absorbed by your skin.
So, can you prevent your skin from getting tanned while wearing sunscreen? Find out below!
Can You Prevent A Tan With Sunscreen?
No, sunscreen does not prevent your skin from tanning. While sunscreen does protect your skin from UV rays, it does not stop your skin from changing color. Sunscreen acts as a filter that either absorbs, blocks, or reflects incoming UV rays. But, it cannot prevent 100% exposure to your skin. Tanning occurs when the skin produces melanin to prevent any further damage from occurring when it is exposed to sun rays (or a tanning bed) (1). It is a normal body response that occurs in people of all ages, skin types, or gender. Learn how exactly your skin gets tanned in the next section.
How Does Your Skin Get Tanned?
Your skin contains cells that produce melanocytes when they are exposed to UV rays. These melanocytes produce melanin, which makes your skin darker on the surface. This pigment stops the UV rays from reaching your skin cells and deteriorating them. As the pigment piles up, your skin looks more tanned (1). The more threatened your skin is by UV rays, the more the pigment works to protect your skin. This is why the longer you stay in the sun, the tanner you look. Lighter skin tones don’t tan easily as their skin produces lesser amounts of melanin.
How Long Does It Take To Tan The Skin?
Some people can get tanned in under 30 minutes, while others take some hours. How quickly you tan depends on your skin type, weather conditions, and sun protection.
If you are dark-skinned, you tan quicker as compared to medium- or lighter-skinned people. If the sun is hotter in your area, your skin can get tanned faster. If you are not wearing SPF or wearing a low-SPF sunscreen, your skin can get tanned quicker.
In areas at higher altitudes, people can get tanner or sunburnt faster since the sun rays are stronger.
Areas with humid climatic conditions not only lead to a faster tan but also slow down the tan from fading. If you stay somewhere near the equator, you will tan faster due to the strength of the sun’s rays. Sitting under the sun without any shade will lead your skin to tan faster. People with darker skin tan faster due to the higher melanin content in their skin. Sun exposure causes the body to produce more melanin, making the skin even darker.
While a tan may give you that gorgeous sunkissed glow, it is not the best thing for your skin. Check out the damaging effects of tanning below.
Damaging Effects Of Sun Tanning
Dermatologists recommend using sunscreen with a higher SPF for better protection from sun damage. Sun damage can lead to DNA mutations which may cause skin cancer. It can also weaken the connective fibers in your skin, which leads to wrinkles, saggy skin, and sun spots. Here are all the damaging effects of sun tanning (1):
It can damage the skin cells. It speeds up the appearance of visible signs of aging like fine lines and wrinkles. It can lead to serious medical conditions like skin cancer, melanoma, and basal and squamous cell carcinoma. Every time you tan, your skin weathers with the damage building up. You can also incur actinic or solar keratoses, eye damage, and a weakened immune system from tanning your skin.
It is also a common myth that tanning your skin gives you the vitamin D dosage you need. But, that is not true! Wondering how to protect your skin from all this sun damage? Find out in the next section.
How Do You Protect Your Skin From Sun Damage?
Using broad-spectrum sunscreen is the best way to fight sun damage. Learn all about it in the next section.
What Is Broad Spectrum Protection?
Broad=spectrum sunscreens protect the skin from both UVA and UVB rays. The higher the SPF, the better the sun protection. SPF measures how well a sunscreen protects the skin from UVB rays. Its measure is acquired by comparing the time it takes to tan the skin with and without sunscreen. Experts recommend using sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30. Sunscreens with SPFs greater than 50 provide only a small increase in UV protection. It is important to note that sunscreen is often not applied thoroughly or thickly enough, and it can be washed off during swimming or sweating. As a result, it might be less effective than the SPF number suggests. Does sunscreen fade hyperpigmentation? Yes, sunscreen can help protect your skin from further pigmentation and help fade the existing ones. Does exfoliating remove tan? Yes, gentle exfoliation can help remove pigmentation in the outer layer of skin and reduce the appearance of a tan.
