Frequently Asked Questions

1. Why isn't closing my eyes good enough?
-Eyelids are not made of UV blocking material. The result is that UV passes through, damaging the cornea, retina and lens. Cumulative long- term effects include cataracts and eyelid cancers.

2. How do I prevent "raccoon eyes?"
-Adjusting the protective eyewear occasionally during a tanning session will help to minimize this condition. The adjustment can be performed by gently sliding the eyewear to a new position. You should never lift the eyewear off of your eyes to adjust their position.

3. Why does a tan disappear?
-The tanning process takes place in the epidermis (top layer of the skin). The epidermis replaces itself approximately once a month. As the skin sheds, tans gradually begin to fade. In order for your customers to maintain that cosmetically pleasing tan, they need to return to rebuild and maintain what they have.

4. Why can't salon owners make any claims regarding established medical benefits of indoor tanning?
-Tanning beds are considered to be medical devices by the FDA, so only physicians are allowed to make medical claims. Tanning equipment operators may only make statements regarding the cosmetic benefits of tanning equipment.

5. What's causing the scent that I smell after tanning?
-In a word, melanin. Ultraviolet light in the UVA range causes melanin to enlarge and turn brown. During the process, dermatologists say a chemical reaction takes place. A natural side effect of the reaction is the aroma. This occurrence is normal whether you've been tanning inside or outside. Some tanning lotions have been designed to minimize or prevent the odor from occurring, but ultimately a shower will remove the odor.

6. Can I use UV light from the tanning equipment to sanitize the acrylic?
-UVA and UVB, which come from your tanning equipment, have never been effective at sanitizing. UVC, which lamps are not designed to emit, is used as an effective germicide by other commercial industries. Even if your tanning equipment were effective at killing germs on the acrylic, you would still have to disinfect the acrylic between customers.

7. Why does some of a person's tan wash away?
-The top skin layer is continuously renewing itself. The renewal cycle takes about 30 days to complete and skin cells that have finished their cycle lay on the skin's surface until shaved or washed off. Since these skin cells also tan, the skin sheds or loses some of its tan when it is cleansed.

8. I'm over 40 and I don't seem to tan as well as I used to, why?
-The reason is, after 40 your body begins to lose melanocytes. Through controlled, systematic exposures you can slowly replenish the melanocytes that have been lost.

9. Why did the FDA and other governmental agencies get involved in the tanning bed industry?
-UVB only booths were consistently inducing erythema. People were making inaccurate claims regarding the benefits of indoor tanning. Two direct results from prior history are:
a. UVB only booths are now allowed solely for medical use
b. Both FDA and many state regulations prohibit the usage of the words "safe" and "safer than the sun" in any advertisement. Your state may also prohibit making any therapeutic claims about your tanning equipment. If you use the words "unlimited" or "unlimited tanning," you may be required to define what that means.

10. Can I wear my contact lenses while tanning?
-Problems have developed in the past with contacts sticking to the eyes while tanning. The primary reason is due to de-moisturization. Your whole body naturally loses some moisture during the tanning process, including your eyes. If someone is going to tan with their contacts in, it is recommended they not only wear protective eyewear, they should also use moisturizing drops prior to or just after the tanning session to prevent any discomfort.

11. How does the tanning process work?
-There are three components that make the tanning process work. UVB starts the tanning process by stimulating the tanning cells (melanocytes) to produce melanosomes, which contain melanin (pigment). UVA darkens the melanin that has been produced, but before that can happen, melanin needs a certain amount of oxygen to facilitate UVA. The third component, oxygen, comes from blood vessels beneath the skin and outside the skin.

12. Does tanning indoors have the same effect as tanning outdoors?
-Yes, however the advantage of tanning indoors is, you can control the amount of UVA and UVB you receive.

13. Can indoor tanning salons use their equipment to treat medical conditions like psoriasis, acne, and S.A.D. (Seasonal Affective Disorder)?
-No! In many states not only are you not allowed to treat medical conditions through the use of tanning equipment, you are also not allowed to make therapeutic claims other than the cosmetic darkening of the skin. Exposure to ultraviolet light has been demonstrated to be helpful to these conditions; however, only medical doctors are allowed to use tanning devices for medical purposes. In some cases a dermatologist may advise a psoriasis or acne patient to visit a tanning facility to help treat their condition. If a customer lets you know that this is why he/she is tanning, it is recommended that you decline any further exposure for liability reasons.

14. What causes white spots?
-There are several reasons that a person will begin to develop white spots. One common reason is vitiligo, which is characterized by irregularly shaped white patches of skin, surrounded by dark borders. The white patches are sensitive to UV exposure. Doctors will often use a lotion based form of psoralen (an extremely photosensitizing agent) and induce up to second-degree bums on the specific areas. This in effect, reactivates dormant melanocyte cells into producing melanin again. In time the white areas will gradually begin to match the surrounding areas.

-Another cause for white spots is a skin fungus known as tinea versicolor. This fungus actually begins in the hair and falls down primarily onto the upper body like dandruff. The affected areas prevent the skin from tanning and as a result create white spots. Sometimes the spots can be a little scaly. The fungus in tinea versicolor produces an acid that inhibits the production of tyrosinase in your skin's melanocytes, which in turn prevents the production of melanin in the affected areas. Treating tinea versicolor is fairly easy, but recovery may take up to several months.

-A third cause for white spots is caused by how a person lays in the tanning bed. Three areas of the body are affected by how a person lays in the tanning bed: shoulder blades, tailbone area, and the backs of the calves. Pressure is created on those areas of the body, which restricts blood flow. A person needs UVA and UVB in order to tan; however, they also need oxygen (those who sleep in tanning beds often get these white spots). There is a simple way to minimize and eliminate this condition-have your customers take their right forearm and the bottom of their right foot and push up gently for a few seconds. This will relieve pressure on the right hand side of their body, allowing their skin to breathe for a few moments, then repeat with their left side.

-Properly cleaned tanning equipment will not spread tinea versicolor.

15. Is it okay for pregnant women to tan indoors?
-The main concern for pregnant women tanning is the heat. If a women, noticeably pregnant comes in your salon you should require a written release from their doctor before letting them tan.

16. Indoor tanning session is equivalent to how many hours in the sun?
-One study seems to indicate that based on very specific and controlled factors, a single tanning session is approximately equal to two hours of outdoor sun. Factors that influence the suns UV exposure are: clouds, pollution, dust, ozone levels, sea elevation, geography, the season of the year, and the time of the day.

17. Should people tan who have skin cancer in the past?
-No! They shouldn't tan indoors or outdoors even though their cancer may be gone. The skin cancers that people are experiencing today are due in large part to overexposure to ultraviolet rays 15-30 years prior.