Why do people sun tan?

[igualitarist]

The same reason people in Latin America and some of the pacific islands use special soap to make their skin not so dark and walk around with umbrellas in the sun, in their societies it's lighter skinned people who are considered the ideal, whereas in ours we tend to find people with a bit of color more attractive.

No, not really. I am a pale white skin brazilian, and people here completely worship tanned skin.
Some people use umbrellas during the summer and spring mostly to avoid skin cancer, due to the high solar radiation here in the tropics, and some use to avoid the discomfort caused by the tropical sun burning you alive. But i never seen people here using umbrellas because they wanted to get a lighter skin.

[Morogoth]

The light of the sun is essential for vitamin D synthesis, but I don't like being toasted. The best moments for me is when I wake up and let the sun pierce through my soul.

Other that that, I hate it. The sun is way too hot in summer, I'm a real nordic, I prefer winter.

I had a really bad sun burn once, for 3 months I think I lost 10 pounds worth of skin.

[Deleted]

Agreed.. I've always found that silly that most people actually seek out harmful radiation and stay in it. Sure a healthy tan can be pretty but most just severely overdo it.

I think tanning is just a lazy persons temporary solution to skin problems. It's much easier to just lay in the sun and leave worrying about looking like a wrinkled prune when you're 30-35+ than messing with all the antibacterial soaps, night creams and skin tightening cremes.

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The light of the sun is essential for vitamin D synthesis, but I don't like being toasted. The best moments for me is when I wake up and let the sun pierce through my soul.

Other that that, I hate it. The sun is way too hot in summer, I'm a real nordic, I prefer winter.

I had a really bad sun burn once, for 3 months I think I lost 10 pounds worth of skin.

Only you can get vitamin D from food and there are supplements too, much healthier than baking in front of a huge nuclear reactor:P

[Frozenbeef]

I think a tan looks very attractive 0o

[Smeeh]

"best side of the intarnetweb mofos...lets cybar"
44 and showing it bro, really.

[Djuntas]

And then there is thoes off us who gets so little sun, that the doctor said we lack vitamins due to lack of sun hehe.

I barely spend much time inn the sun myself, so when I do go out inn the cold Denmark, and the weather is great I coulden't care less about the dangers.

On hollydays Id use sunscream abit, but thats all.

[Morogoth]

Only you can get vitamin D from food and there are supplements too, much healthier than baking in front of a huge nuclear reactor:P

Exactly lol. But I swear, the sun give me some energy when I drive to work in the morning.

It's a kind of warm and fuzzy feeliing even if it's not that hot. BTW I live in north Canada. Too cold in winter and too hot in summer. I love it

[bals]

Only you can get vitamin D from food and there are supplements too, much healthier than baking in front of a huge nuclear reactor:P

There is nothing wrong with being in sunlight for the amount of time it takes to get sufficient vitamin D, it's something like 15 minutes.
you people are acting like if you go outside for 2 minutes you're going to get skin cancer and die in a month.

[Morogoth]

wow, I really need a break from the Snowden thread.

"Archangel, Dark Angel Lend me thy light Through death's veil Till we have Heaven in sight!"

for the people who ask where I got this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHAqT-8CIlE

[prwraith]

It may look normal at teenage years, but the fact of the matter is excessive exposure to the sun will hurt your skin irreparably in the long run.

[ovm33]

It all has to do with what people view as exotic or status implications.

I read a long time, no link, so don't ask:

That back in the middle ages when the vast majority were forced to work outside all day, thus highly tanned people were common. As such it was considered a status symbol to not be tan. As you could afford to stay inside and out of the sun and have other people do work for you. (look at the Mona Lisa or other period art depicting the wealthy people as white ass ghosts.)

Now, fast forward several centuries where the vast majority of people, in western society, are forced to work indoors - offices, warehouses etc... As such, tan people have become less common and as such it has become a quote / unquote a status symbol. The theory being, that being tan is supposedly linked to a healthy and active lifestyle. (I.E. not sitting on your ass all day in an office.)

Now, I rock the "farmers tan" does that count?

[Fojos]

Someone's making broad statements.

Still true. It's essentially always for vanity. Well, short-term vanity, definitely not long-term.

People who say it's for other reasons are kidding themselves (seriously, psoriasis? There are plenty of better options).

[Akylios]

Not my thing either. I like my skin to remain looking like it should, the oompa loompa look is just creepy. I'm 29 now, and have been told I look much younger. That can only be a good thing the closer you get to 30, I'm not going to risk it for a bit of color lol.

I'm a 38 year old male who always loves going to reunions just to see how much people have aged. It's always fun to see which guy now has a bald head, and just how wrinkly some of the women have become. Most of the girls who worried about their tan like crazy in high school look 10-20 (yeah, I'm being utterly serious about the 20 there) years older than the girls who didn't. I guess it's because most of them worried like crazy about their tan in their 20s and 30s as well.

So yeah, I think you're making a wise decision. Too much sun and you'll look incredibly bad for your age from thirty-something onwards. Just saying that from what I've seen, without having anything else to back it up. Personally I'm just happy my wife looks 15 years younger than her best friend, but her friend was one of those crazies who frequented tanning parlours, so she looks extra bad.