What happens when the summer sun is gone and tanning days are over?
Some turn to artificial tanning beds to keep their glow through out the winter months. However, many students choose to stay out of the ultraviolet rays.
Senior Addie Chomsky said she wears sunscreen every day to protect herself from the sun’s potential damage.
She also has never gone to a tanning bed. Chomsky said that having her grandfather die of skin cancer has influenced her decision not to go tanning.
“I just think [tanning] is sad because people are directly hurting themselves,” Chomsky said.
Sophomore Emily Hecker also said that she thinks that the risk of cancer is one reason she does not tan.
“I have really fair skin and my parents said I probably shouldn’t tan,” Hecker said.
Hecker added that there are other consequences of tanning besides disease.
“Some people will start wrinkling by the time they turn 30,” Hecker said.
Chomsky agrees that physical appearance plays a part in her decision not to tan.
“I don’t tan for vanity to a certain extent,” Chomsky said. “I don’t think being tan will always be fashionable, but looking young will always be something women are concerned about.”
Junior Elise Skaggs also cites appearance as a reason she does not go tanning.
“I burn instead of tan anyway, so I’d just look like a lobster all the time,” Skaggs said.
Sophomore Brian Yost also said his complexion affects his tanning decisions.
“I’m not pale, so I don’t really need to [tan],” Yost said. “If you’re really pale, it’s okay, I guess.”
Yost added that gender can influence the decision to go tanning. Yost said that men who tan can be viewed as less masculine.
Skaggs said that some people are critical of girls who tan as well. Skaggs explained that it is easy to recognize fake-looking tans.
Chomsky, however, understands students’ desire to tan.
“Skin is some people’s biggest insecurity,” Chomsky said. “I just wish there was something else that would make them content with the way they look.”
Hecker also is sensitive to tanning. She said that as long as people are educated, it is their personal decision whether or not they want to go to tanning beds.
Skaggs said she believes media plays a role in students’ tanning patterns. She added that students may not realize the consequences of their habits.
“I don’t think teens understand that they’re not invincible,” Skaggs said.
Published October 2007. Digitized 2025.
