Does The Tanning Bed With UV Light Damage Hair?
I have a hair transplant 6 months ago, can I use a tanning salon to improve my overall look?
Tanning beds give off significant amounts of UV light which can cause skin cancer, make you look older with frequent use and damage your hair (See: HERE)
I realize many people use the tanning salon for cosmetic reasons, but it is general medical advice to avoid such exposures to UV light not only for your hair but for many other reasons as UV light cause skin cancer. It is not something I generally recommend.
Tanning beds are considered a signifcant enough health hazard (skin cancer, including melanoma) that 41 states have statutes that prohibit minors under 18 from using a commercial tanning device unless prescribed by a physician.
Tanning beds are unhealthy when overused or in combinaison with a poor diet and high alcohol comsumption. Lots of melanoma cases are also linked to alcohol consumption.
Used moderately with a good lifestyle, it can even be healthy, providing some vitamin D and a healthy-look.
Alcohol doesn’t have much to do with melanoma risk, and certainly is insignificant compared with sun and tanning bed exposure. The British Journal of Dermatology study that found a slightly increased risk of melanoma in those who drink alcohol (compared with those who don’t) – and which was picked up by major newspapers – was a meta-analysis of many separate studies that has been interpreted with further analysis as a “correlation” that has no casual relationship (i.e., likely that people who drink alcohol have more sun exposure).
To be sure, tans look very good but I’m not sure I would argue that tanning provides any health benefit (you can get Vitamin D from supplements, if deficient, without increasing risk of skin cancer). The “healthy-look” of tans is because we have developed as a culture (for whatever reason)- and I also find it attractive- to view mildly burned skin (that is what a tan is) attractive.