Have you ever tanned and felt like you’re losing weight? Or as if you’re burning calories?
Sometimes, sitting under the sun for extended periods feels like it’s burning through your layers of fat.
This may have caused you to ask the question;
“Does Tanning Burn calories?”
If you want the answer to that question, then make sure to stick through and read this article until the end.
Here, first, we will answer whether or not tanning burns calories, and then after we have answered that question we will look to explain other benefits or dangers of tanning that might be useful to keep in mind for your future tanning endeavors!
Weight Loss Through Tanning
Table of Contents
The question asked in this article is, “does tanning burn calories?”
Well, the simplest answer to that question is, yes, yes it does.
But it does not burn them in the way that you may all necessarily think it does.
You can burn calories by walking, sitting, or doing anything.
Tanning does not carry any special weight Loss qualities, and it burns the same amount of calories as any other regular activity the body takes part in.
To give a more exact mathematical answer, let’s say hypothetically a man weighing 83 Kg or more is sitting down and tanning in the sun.
On average, he will lose 50 calories for every 30 minutes he stays there tanning. This is not substantial by any means.
So if weight loss is the reason you can, don’t expect too many results!
Health Benefits Of Tanning
We have established that tanning does not play a significant role in burning calories.
But what are the other health benefits of Tanning? There are many; we will list some of them here:-
1. Vitamin D:
The most obvious health benefit of tanning has to be the abundance of vitamin D.
As we are all told, the biggest source by far of vitamin D is the sun, which is why tanning is useful to get that important vitamin into your body.
2. Better Mood:
It has been observed in many studies that the sunlight absorbed by the body also helps with the elevation of a person’s mood.
This is why people who absorb more sunlight and spend time outside during the day are more likely to be happier.
3. More Attractive Appearance:
The vast majority of people will agree that tanning improves a person’s appearance.
It is considered a desirable trait in society to have tanned skin.
Tanning also forms a sort of baseline defense against sunburns.
Someone with a tan will be less likely to be sunburnt than someone without one.
These are only some of the benefits of Tanning that help improve your health. Of course, it will only stay healthy when it is done in moderation correctly.
We will discuss the risks of overtanning below.
Health Risks Of Tanning
While tanning is undoubtedly healthy, some risks come with overtanning.
As long as you only tan a healthy amount, it won’t be a problem.
Here are some risks of overtanning:-
1. Risk Of Cancer:
The risk of cancer is seriously exasperated by intermittent and repeated exposure to sunlight.
This is why it is very important to limit daily exposure to sunlight.
2. Accelerated Aging Of Skin:
Overexposure to sunlight is very dangerous to the health of your skin and causes an acceleration in the aging process.
3. Damage to the eyes:
When you can, you are sitting directly under the sunlight.
That is why is it important to wear sunglasses, otherwise, it may cause serious damage to your eyes that could be long-term.
4. Weakening of the Immune System:
Long-term exposure to UV radiations may cause a weakening of the skin’s natural defenses and cause an overall weakening of the immune system.
It is important to note that all of these risks are not due to tanning, they are due to overtanning.
As long as you tan in moderation and do not overdo it, you have nothing to worry about!
Does Tanning Increase Metabolism?
Some of you may ask the question, “Does tanning Increase Metabolism?”
The answer to that question is yes. It increases the metabolic rate substantially.
The way it increases metabolism is that when the UV rays fall on the body, they give a big push to the thyroid gland and make it much more active, and thus it significantly increases the metabolic rate.
This does not always correspond to very fast calorie burn, although it certainly affects it, just not that significant of one.
The increase in the rate of metabolism also causes faster weight loss, as the calories burn off faster and the fat leaves the body in the form of sweat.
Effects of tanning
Tanning may sometimes cause a decrease in hunger and an increase in thirst.
You may ask why that is, and the answer is simply because of the external heat involved.
When you can, it causes your body to use external heat to produce energy instead of using its external heat.
This helps you feel less hungry overall, but it also causes a substantial increase in thirst.
So next time you tan, make sure to stay hydrated!
How much tanning is too much?
If you utilize a tanning bed instead of tanning in the sun, you are at a much higher risk of developing different types of skin cancers.
15-30 minutes of tanning on a tanning bed are the equivalent of an entire day of tanning in the sun.
That is why we recommend tanning outside under natural sunlight, for a maximum time of 30 minutes per day to get a slow and healthy tan.
If you are white-skinned, it may also cause sunburn.
It is better to be safe than sorry, so make sure to time your tanning sessions very carefully before it causes you harm.
Overtanning also causes the harmful effects that were mentioned prior, such as loose skin and melatonin.
Risks Of Indoor Tanning
There are many risks to indoor tanning. Contrary to popular belief, indoor tanning is not safer than tanning in the sun.
In reality, it may be the opposite.
Here are some of the risks that you put yourself through by using a tanning bed:-
1. Risk Of Injury:
Indoor tanning increases the risk of Injury by a big amount.
Many people get damaged eyes and burnt skin, and sometimes even go unconscious while using a tanning bed.
2. Vitamin D Myth:
Unlike outdoor tanning, indoor tanning beds are not useful at all for getting vitamin D.
They are useless for vitamin D, as they emit mostly UVA rays.
For those who don’t know, UVA rays do not give vitamin D, it is UVB rays that are used for obtaining vitamin D.
3. Tanning addiction:
What a lot of people don’t realize is that tanning CAN be addictive.
People who are addicted to tanning can’t help but crave constant UV radiation on their skin.
It is a serious problem that should be avoided at all costs.
4. Tanning creates stretch marks:
Tanning can make the stretch marks over your skin much more noticeable than they already are.
Tanning beds do this much faster than a natural tan can.
Conclusion
In this article, not only have we answered whether or not tanning burns calories, but we have also answered many other questions that are very frequently asked, such as;
“What are the benefits of tanning?”
“What are the risks of tanning?”
Etc.
With all this in your mind, you will be able to find the safest and most moderate method to tan and make sure you only take all the benefits and none of the harm.
We have also told you the many things one must consider before using an indoor tanning bed. Nature is almost always better, and this is no exception. It is better to tan in the sun than on a tanning bed. Your health comes first. Never compromise your health just for your looks!
Now go out there and get that ideal, beautiful golden brown skin!
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