Electric Sun Tanning

FAQ's

Here are some of our most frequently asked questions. If your question isn't answered here, please contact us and we will answer any questions you have.

What is a spray on airbrush tan?

A spray on sunless airbrush is sunless solution that is sprayed evenly onto your skin for a flawless looking tan.   Unlike a spray booth, the sunless is applied by a certified airbrush consultant.    The whole process takes about 30 minutes and does require an appointment.    Prior to the application of sunless your skin is sprayed with a PH balancing spray to insure a even, uniform color that isn't orange.    Most (female) clients go nude, or topless or wear old undergarments during the application.    Make sure to bring loose fitting close to wear home after your sunless application.    Prior to arriving prepare your skin for your sunless application by exfoliating your skin, shaving legs and do not wear any makeup, deotrant, moisturizer or cologne.      Your skin needs to be as clean as possible.      You will need to wait at least 8 hours after the application before showering or getting wet.      You will simply be amazed at the results.   To schedule your airbrush session, contact Teresa at 913-856-8268  (Gardner location) .

What do I need to do to start tanning?

Simply stop in at any of our 3 convienient locations and a certified tanning consultant will be happy to assist you on choosing the right level for your particular needs.     A little paperwork is involved if you are a new customer.     After all your information is reviewed and entered into our system we will be more than happy to walk you through the tanning process and what to expect.     We have all been new tanners at one time and it is a little scary when you don't know what to expect.   So feel free to ask those questions, that is what were there for.     Some of the things the consultant will review with you is proper eyewear use (supplied) and the importance of quality tanning lotions and how vital they are to the tanning process.    Again if you have any questions about skin care of the tanning process, feel free to ask!

Why do I get a itchy rash when I begin tanning in the spring?

This is a very common condition called Poly Morphus Light Eruption or sun poisioning.  It developes most commonly when you are just starting back to tan.  It is your bodies way of telling you it has received to much light to quick.  It can come in the form of white or tiny red bumps that itch like crazy.  If this develops stop tanning for at least 5 days, or until the rash is gone.  Apply a good quality moisturizer free of mineral oil.  Do not use baby oil.  Take a Benadryl to releive the itch and if you have a rather bad case apply Benadryl cream to the affected area.  When your start back tanning again make sure you let the consultant know what has occured.  This way we  can note it in the system and monitor your progress.  Back your time down several minutes and take it slow.  So many times we want to rush the tanning process and it's hard to believe, but you do get a better tan when you take it slower. 

Do you have questions?

Do you have a question about tanning or skincare?   On your next  visit to the salon the sales consultants might be rather busy and you don't want to bother them with your quesitons. That's were I come in! E-mail me any time and I will respond as soon as possible to answer all your questions! Is the lotion I'm using good for my skin type? Do I need a tingle? Why do my legs have a hard time getting color? What can I do to protect my face? What is the difference between 100watt bulbs & High pressure? I'm getting older, what can I do to still have color and protect my skin? No matter what your question, ask! I'm here to help any way I can. We have recently had our web site remodeled and have introduced the Q & A page.   Do you know the differences in beds, lotions, skin types, skin conditions, skin care no matter what the questions, I will answer! If I can't give you an answer, I will find one for you. Simply call me your Tanning Advisor or Tanning Nanny! I'm here any time because I always had questions when I was the tanner! info@electricsuntanning.net Thanks for tanning with us and remember I'm here to help!

Why do people choose to tan indoors?

Many people choose to build a base tan indoors prior to spring or to a tropical vacation.   Tanning indoors prepares the skin for outside exposure to prevent sunburn.     Many people tan for vanity purposes while more and more are tanning for health reasons.    Many skin conditions are improved by tanning.    Plus, with new research about vitamin D emerging everyday many are choosing to tan to get vitamin D, especially in the fall and winter.   Believe it or not more and more doctors are perscribing tanning to their patients.   Here is just a small list of why people tan: 

Relaxation

Seasonal Disorder

Psorisis

Esama

Lowers blood pressure.

Increases vitamin D.   Vitamin D deficiency is now being assoiciated with all cancers, ms, type 1 diabeties, parkinsons disease and much, much more.

To clear up acne.

 

 

How does your body make Vitamin D from UV light?

Sun or UV light is the fuel that permits the body to manufacture vitamin D. But the amount of vitamin D formed in a given period of exposure depends on the color of your skin—that is, how rich your skin is in melanin. Melanin absorbs UV radiation. Therefore it diminishes the production of vitamin D.

The darker a person's skin, the longer he or she has to be in the sun or exposed to UVB radiation to form a significant amount of vitamin D (2). Like melanin, sunscreen also absorbs UV radiation and therefore greatly diminishes the skin’s vitamin D production. For example, sunscreen with a PDF of 8 diminishes a person’s ability to produce vitamin D by 95%. In addition, winter sunlight in the northern latitudes (New York City, Boston, and San Francisco) does not have enough UVB radiation to produce vitamin D in the skin. This is why many Americans are at risk for vitamin D deficiency, especially in the winter (3). A national study showed that 42% of African-American women ages 15 to 49 were deficient in vitamin D by the end of winter. In addition, a recent study of young Caucasian women in Maine (ages 9-11) found that 48% of them were vitamin D deficient by the end of winter.

How do the risks of moderate UV radiation exposure compare to the benefits?

The protective benefits of UV radiation are undeniable. Warnings about limited and sensible exposure to the sun or UV radiation are exaggerated.

Several researchers, most notably Dr. William Grant, have published peer-reviewed articles demonstrating that in America, for example, increased sun exposure would result in 185,000 fewer cases of internal cancer and 30,000 fewer deaths from cancer of the breast, ovaries, colon, prostate, bladder, uterus, esophagus, rectum and stomach (6). By comparison, about 7,500 people die each year from skin cancer. UV exposure also protects against the development of multiple sclerosis, a devastating autoimmune disease. During adolescence, higher sun exposure (average 2-3 hours or more per day in summer, during weekends and holidays) is associated with a 69% decreased risk of developing multiple sclerosis (7). Similar protective benefits of sun exposure and/or increase in the intake of vitamin D have been reported with other autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis and Type 1 diabetes, which is usually diagnosed in children and young adults. In addition, studies have shown that sun exposure and/or increase in the intake of vitamin D can delay the onset of prostate cancer three to five years.

What about increasing rates of skin cancer?

Skin cancer has a 20- to 30-year latency period. The rates of skin cancer we are seeing today are most likely the result of bad habits from the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s that were based on ignorance and misinformation about sun tanning. In those days, many people still considered sunburns an inconvenient right of spring, a precursor to developing a summer tan. People believed that sunburns would “fade” into tans, and so tanners hit the beaches and blacktops with baby oil and reflectors. Severe burns were commonplace. Today we know how reckless and uninformed that approach was.
What’s more, the photobiology research community has determined that most skin cancers are related to a strong pattern of intermittent exposure to ultraviolet light in people who are genetically predisposed to skin cancer. These skin cancers are not simply the result of cumulative exposure. Once again, this suggests that heredity and a pattern of repeated sun burning are the primary factors associated with skin cancer.

The indoor tanning industry is dedicated to teaching sunburn prevention to the public. In doing so, we believe that we will help to reverse the increased incidence of skin cancer, which is largely the result of misguided behavior that occurred years before the professional tanning industry existed and was organized to teach sunburn prevention.

What is melanoma?

 Melanoma is a cancer of the pigment-producing cells (melanocytes). An increased risk of melanoma has been associated with people who have moles or repeated sunburn experiences as a child or young adult. Most melanomas occur on non-sun-exposed parts of the body. For example, melanoma is infrequently found on the face. Although melanoma accounts for only 5% of all newly diagnosed skin cancer cases each year, it is responsible for the majority of skin cancer deaths (11).

Is moderate exposure to UVB radiation associated with decreased rates of cancer and other disease?

    Yes. In fact, the inaugural edition of The Journal of Cancer in 1941 reported that the increased risk of non-melanoma cancer was a trade-off for the decreased risk of internal cancer as result of moderate exposure to UVB light.

According to the nation’s leading expert in the field, Dr. Michael F. Holick, a professor of medicine, physiology and biophysics at the Boston University School of Medicine, relatively brief exposure to sunshine or its equivalent in tanning beds several times a week can help to ward off a host of debilitating and sometimes deadly diseases, including osteoporosis, hypertension, diabetes, depression (4), and cancer of the bladder, breast, colon, ovary, uterus, kidney, and prostate, as well as multiple myeloma and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (5).

Is melanoma associated with UV exposure from tanning beds?

 No. To date, no well-designed studies support the connection between melanoma and UV exposure from tanning beds (12).

The relationship between melanoma and UV light exposure is complex. For example, melanoma is more common in people who work indoors than in those who work outdoors, and those who work both indoors and outdoors develop the fewest melanomas (13). Further, melanoma most commonly appears on parts of the body that do not receive regular exposure to UV light (13).

How does your skin tan?

 Whether you tan outdoors under the sun or indoors in a professional tanning facility, the tanning process is the same. This natural process takes place when your skin is exposed to ultraviolet light. Here is an overview.

Light is composed of energy waves that travel from the sun to the Earth. Each energy wave can be identified by its length in nanometers, (nm), which is one-billionth of a meter. Light can be broken into three general categories: infrared, visible and invisible. Ultraviolet light is in the invisible light spectrum.

There are three kinds of ultraviolet light: UVA, UVB and UVC. Two of those categories, UVA and UVB, are used in indoor tanning equipment.

Tanning equipment is designed to replicate UVA and UVB produced by the sun, but tanning lamps emit the light in carefully controlled and government-regulated combinations. As a result, the user has control over their exposure. That’s why people face greater risk of overexposure tanning outdoors than they do by using tanning equipment indoors.

Tanning itself takes place in the skin’s outermost layer, the epidermis. There are three major types of skin cells in your epidermis: basal cells, keratinocytes and melanocytes. All play different roles in the tanning process.

Everyone has roughly the same number of melanocytes in their bodies—about 5 million. Your heredity determines how much pigment your melanocytes can produce. Melanocytes release extra melanosomes whenever ultraviolet light waves touch them. This produces a tan in your skin.

The tanning process is your skin’s natural way of protecting itself from sunburn and overexposure. Calling a tan “damage to the skin” isn’t telling the whole story. Your skin is designed to tan to protect itself

Should I wear eye protection while tanning indoors?

Yes! It is required that you use the eye wear while tanning indoors. Sunglasses, towels and other items do not protect your eyes like the eye wear designed for tanning beds. Be safe, always wear your eye wear.

What do I wear while tanning indoors?

 You may wear whatever makes you feel comfortable; shorts, underwear, bathing suit, or nothing at all! The one potential danger of tanning nude is ultraviolet overexposure - such as sunburn - of sensitive body parts that normally are not exposed to ultraviolet radiation. For example, skin on the armpits, back of legs, buttocks and genitalia can suffer severe sunburn using the same light intensity that only tans the rest of your body.

 

Is tanning lotion really necessary?

Yes, while tanning lotion is not mandatory, it is strongly recommended and will make a big difference in the quality of your tan and your skin. Your body makes use of many ingredients in addition to UV-light to produce a tan. Indoor tanning accelerators are designed to provide you with a balanced amount of these essential ingredients to achieve a better tan. Dry skin reflects tanning rays so for best results, drench your skin with an indoor tanning lotion just prior to tanning.

Can I use an outdoor tanning lotion when tanning indoors?

No, outdoor lotions contain ingredients that will harm the acrylic that you lye on while tanning.   Oils such as mineral oil will block the pores on the acrylic and cause the ray of UV light to bounce off and not penitrate the acrylic.   This will also increase damange to the acrylic and cause it to weaken and break.   Lotions that are sold for indoor use, such as NO-ADD, Bannana Boat, Express, Panama Jack, Coppertone or Hawaiian Tropic may also not be used due to recommendations set forth by our acrylic manufactors.   These lotions can still cause damange just like outdoor lotions.   A large variety of lotions can be found at any one of our locations.   Simply ask the sales consultant what they would recommend for you.

Is tanning just for young women?

No, more and more men are tanning as well as older individuals.    As we age our bodies produce less melanin outdoors that can be better achieved indoors.  Plus, many people are becoming more aware of the benifits of vitamin D.    As we get older our bodies produce less vitamin D and our bodies require more vitamin D as we age.   

What about the aging affects of tanning to ones skin?

UV light dehydrates the skin and causes the depleation of vitamins and nutrients that sustain the health of your skin.  Lotions combat the aging affects to the skin by replenishing the vitamins, nutrients and moisture that is lost from UV light.