My skin was much lighter when I was young. Why am I getting tanned now?
This is a common worry that plagues most brown skinned individuals. The biggest culprits are sun exposure and the fact that the face has the largest amount of the dark pigment producing cells- melanocytes, which become more active as we enter adulthood. Though, sunlight has an important role to play in the production of Vitamin D3 in the skin, it’s UV rays can also cause skin cancers. To protect itself, the skin produces more dark pigment which shields the skin from the harmful effects of sun exposure. Tanning therefore, allows us to enjoy bathing our skin with sunlight while protecting us from its harmful effects.If you’re wondering, what this dark pigment that I’m referring to is, then the answer to that is Melanin, produced by a special set of cells called melanocytes in the skin. The “colour” of your skin is a result of the amount of melanin in your skin. The melanin absorbs ultraviolet (UV) rays of the sun and protects the deeper layers of the skin from the harmful effects of UV rays and is therefore our biggest defense to prevent skin cancer. But the flip side to this is more melanin in the skin, the darker is its tone.
How do I prevent getting myself tanned?
Use a sunscreen with at least 25 SPF. Reapply it every 3 hours because most sunscreens lose their protective function in about 2-3 hours. Use it even when indoors since reflected sunlight is capable of causing the skin to tan as well. Keep in mind that sunscreens are seldom effective in protecting the skin from direct sunlight. So, you must adopt a shade seeking behaviour when outdoors to prevent tanning. Meaning, cover yourself as much as possible when you’re out in the sun.
What do I do if I get tanned?
If you get tanned after a brief sun exposure then you may expect it to normalise in about 3 days to 3-4 weeks, depending on the type of UV rays that you got exposed to, with sun avoidance. If you have been getting tanned multiple times a week over many months or years then depigmenting treatments administered by a dermatologist will be required, which include creams, chemical peels and laser toning.
Read about the types of tanning here.
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