Sunscreens and Tanning

Many people like to spend time in • Apply more sunscreen every the , but it can also cause harm. two hours and after swimming, The sun can cause , sweating, or towel drying. , wrinkles, and skin aging. • Use sunscreen even on a cloudy Too much sun can even harm the day. Glare from water and snow body’s immune system. You don’t can expose you to UV. need to get a sunburn to have skin damage. Skin damage builds up • Wear clothing that covers your over your lifetime. body and a hat with a wide brim to protect your head and face. What causes sunburn? • Wear that protect from The sun’s UV () rays cause UV. Not all tinted and dark glasses sunburn. The sun gives out two offer UV protection. Check the kinds of UV rays: UVA and UVB. label before you buy them. You need to protect your skin from both kinds. Look for sunscreens and Sunlamps and Tanning Beds sunglasses that protect from both Sunlamps and tanning beds UVA and UVB rays. give off UV rays just like the sun. A sunburn takes 6 to 48 hours to Tanning beds can be as dangerous develop. You may not know your as tanning outdoors. They may skin is burned until it is too late. be more dangerous than the sun because they can be used at any What does SPF mean? time . They can also be more dangerous because people can SPF stands for “sun protection expose their entire bodies at each factor.” Sunscreen labels have session, which would be difficult to an SPF number. The higher the do outdoors. number, the better the protection. FDA and the National Cancer What can I do to protect myself? Institute recommend avoiding • Don’t stay in the sun for a long tanning beds. time, especially in the middle • All tanning beds put you at higher of the day. The sun’s rays are risk of skin cancer. strongest from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in spring and summer. • NCI reports that women who use tanning beds more than once • Use sunscreen with SPF 15 or a month are 55 percent more more. likely to develop , the deadliest form of skin cancer.

OVER 2010 Sunscreens and Tanning

FDA has standards for sunlamp What are “sunless” tanning products. All sunlamp products products? must have: • products are • a warning label that make the skin look • an accurate timer tanned. • an emergency stop control • Most of these products do not have sunscreen, so you still need • an exposure schedule to use sunscreen. • protective goggles • If you go to a spray-on sunless Some people do things that tanning booth, ask for protection make tanning beds even more to keep from breathing in the dangerous, like: spray. Keep it out of your mouth, eyes, and lips. • Not wearing goggles or wearing goggles that are loose or cracked. • FDA has not approved any tanning pills. These pills can have bad • Staying in the bed for the side effects like include nausea, maximum time that is listed on the cramping, diarrhea, severe itching, label. and welts. Tanning pills also may • Staying in the bed longer than cause yellow patches inside your recommended for your skin type. eyes and affect your eyesight. Check the label for exposure • Some and pills claim to times. make you tan faster. There is no • Using medicines or cosmetics proof that these work. “Tanning that make you more sensitive to accelerators” are not approved by UV rays. Check with your doctor, the FDA. nurse or .

FDA Office of Women’s Health http://www.fda.gov/womens

To Learn More:

FDA Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition http://www.cfsan.fda.gov

TAKE TIME TO CARE... For yourself, for those who need you.