Fragrantly Beautiful

Simple beauty vices can spell addiction

This kind of getting baked could really hurt you.

Though not illegal, indoor tanning might find its way onto a lesson-plan in the D.A.R.E. program.

A recent study at Wake Forest University has found evidence that indoor tanning may be an addictive activity - and those who frequent the nation's 50,000 indoor tanning salons may soon be looking for the nearest gathering of Tanner's Anonymous for their 12-step plan.

Move over heroin, the real scourge of America's youth may be waiting for us in the tanning bed.
We live in a culture where competition guides our daily behavior.

We fuel up on caffeine to get ready, inhale cigarettes to get by and fake-tan to get noticed during the day.

But just because these vices don't put us behind bars doesn't mean they won't put us in the prison of dependency, disease and addiction.

Consequences don't always come weighed out in grams.

Addictions can come in any shape size or light-bulb bed.

But it's easy to make a pariah out of the heroin addict and (too much) light out of the overly-bronzed, fake-tanned, living and breathing statues who down UV's like cigarettes.
Since there's no smoke, we assume there's no fire.

And we don't worry about the costs of Sunkisting our skin because they are so far down the road. But it's a street we'll eventually have to cross in the form of damaged skin and skin cancer.
Throughout history glowing skin has been looked at as a sign of beauty.

But as people roast themselves toward perfection they run the risk of being physically hooked to bronzing themselves, with an ultimate penalty of skin cancer. And they end up looking like Syracuse Orangemen on a campus of Nittany Lions.

The Indoor Tanning Association lowers these red flags by saying that moderation is the key.

But we're a society that calls our cell phones when we can't find them; we have multiple copies of our car keys, put them on a key-chain, and still manage to lose them. In other words, moderation may be the key, but there's a good chance we'll forget where it is.

Tanners, unlike smokers, won't get kicked out of bars for their addictions or shuffled into squad cars like substance abusers.

The only speed bump the $2 billion industry is putting up to slow the race toward tanning salons is posting a warning touting the risks of over-exposure to ultra violet rays.

But just like the literature cigarette smokers read on their packs while lighting up, that type of measure is as ineffective as it is ironic.

Because nobody is passing out pins saying "I support tan-free faces" indoor tanning is not looked at as a problem. So these easy bake ovens will continue to burn.

And the ultra-violet junkies will continue to pursue their fix. According to a study done by the University of Texas, UV rays absorbed by the skin during tanning produce endorphins which make us feel good. We become addicted to this "buzz" and chase the dragon - we're not relaxed until we get burnt.

But skin cancer is chasing us all the while. And we continue to tan despite this pronounced harm - think "this is your brain, this is your brain on drugs," but in this case the fried egg is your skin and we're still not paying attention.

Though scientists are fine-tuning their connection between indoor tanning and skin cancer, people seem to be tuning out the risks as they try to bring their white bread to a golden brown, not realizing they'll soon be burnt toast.

Even on a sunny day the number of people stuffed into the waiting room of the downtown tanning salons is staggering. And as the sun visits Happy Valley less and less as old man winter starts to arrive, the numbers will rise exponentially.

Maybe we can urge the Sunny-Delight enthusiasts that even if beauty is only skin deep, with our skin gone - there won't be any beauty left at all. And the only thing on their face that should be glowing is their smile.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FREE articles about self-help, self improvement, wellness, holistic health, and fitness. To see our full line of e-Books visit: www.ebooks4selfhelp.com
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

posted by Cheryl Levesque @ 3:22 PM