Sunless Tanning - is it safe?
Is there anything that makes you feel better than a little tan?
Sun-kissed skin can enhance your natural glow and boost your confidence. But is it worth it? Let’s chat.
I want to start with, if you're new to this low tox journey, you probably assume that if you have access to it, it's safe. I want to share a little stat that still blows my mind:
Of the more than 10,000 available chemicals used to formulate beauty products, here in the US, only 11 have been banned or restricted by the FDA. And not just this, but the way our current system works, even if an ingredient or product is found to be unsafe (think asbestos in baby powder), a company is not required to pull that product from the shelves. It's up to THEIR discretion.
Understanding the safety or risks of the ingredients we are using, is hands down one of the BEST things you can do for your immediate and future health. And if you have a uterus, the health of your future children too.
So, is sunless tanning safe?
Listen. Sunless tanning isn't without risk. It's just not. In my opinion as a toxin reduction educator, however, it's about the safest, long-term way, to get a tan there is. Sometimes reducing toxins is just that....about reducing. If there are perfect options available, we use them but most of the time, IMO, better is best.
So let's chat sunless tan!
Because sun damage and sunburns are the leading cause for skin cancer, I will always believe a periodic sunless tan is significantly better for your health than tanning beds or spending hours unprotected in the sun.
With that being said, sunless products do not come without risks. BUT, not all fake tan options are created equally. Let’s chat about the ingredients found in most sunless products. The first ingredient I want to discuss is the one that gives you that glow!
DHA.
The majority of sunless tan products on the market, that actually give you a glow worth the time and money, contain DHA (dihydroxyacetone).
Although there aren't any studies that show this ingredient penetrates the skin to enter the bloodstream, and the FDA has approved it for use for topical application, there are plenty of studies showing potential harm, especially when inhaled. Because of this, my safety analysis is given as a sunless spray tan being used on a periodic, not daily, special occasion basis.
With this being said, there is in my opinion, an even lower risk DHA. This is the naturally derived sugar beet or sugar cane option over synthetic DHA. It is very, very low risk and this is the option I recommend!
The second ingredient found on labels in most sunless tans I want to discuss is:
undisclosed fragrance.
The funny thing is, even though this is listed as one ingredient on the label, it’s actually just an umbrella term for companies to hide an undisclosed amount of ingredients. The International Fragrance Association (they regulate themselves BTW so....) lists 3,059 materials that can be under the term “fragrance” or "aroma" or "parfum". Over 1000 of these ingredients have evidence linking them to negative health effects including all cancers, reproductive toxicity, neurotoxicity, allergies and sensitivities. The chemical components in fragrance itself are protected as trade secrets and described on the label only as “fragrance.”
One of the major compounds found under the fragrance label, are:
phthalates.
Although rarely found on the label, phthalates were tested in 99% of human samples taken. Phthalates are not just directly linked to cancer and reducing efficacy of cancer treatments, but also one of the leading contributors to infertility in both men and women, hormone disruption, early puberty, testosterone and estrogen disruption, breast cancer cell growth, and more. It is at the top of my "avoid" list and is most often hidden under this "fragrance" label.
Next, most sunless tanners contain:
parabens.
This is also at the top of my "avoid" list. Just as with phthalates, parabens were found in almost every human sample tested. Additionally, there was a UK study done in 2004 that found parabens in almost every single breast cancer tumor tested. Parabens are dangerous because they mimic estrogen in our body and studies have shown it to increase the number of breast cancer cells. Parabens have also been shown to reduce testosterone production, sperm production and behavioral changes with in vitro exposures.
To illustrate how impactful phthalates and parabens are on our health, a recent study showed when reducing daily products with phthalates and parabens, breast cancer cells actually REVERSED….in under 30 days…..
The 4th ingredient in most sunless tans I want to discuss is:
mineral oil.
Although I know this doesn't sound scary, and honestly, sounds pretty natural, it’s an ingredient you want to avoid. Mineral oil is in most sunless tans on the market and comes with a large risk. Why is this an issue? Because mineral oil is petroleum derived.
Here in the US, no refinement requirements exist for petroleum derived products. In the EU, all petroleum products must be refined of toxic hydrocarbons.
The primary concern with petrolatum in the US is the potential contamination with PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon). The National Toxicology Program (NTP) considers PAHs as a “class to contain reasonably anticipated carcinogens”. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) lists 14 PAHs as probable or possible carcinogens and one PAH as a known carcinogen. A study on Long Island, NY, found that women with high levels of PAHs, had a 50 percent greater risk of breast cancer.
And lastly, I want to talk about:
synthetic dyes and pigments.
These are added in the majority of sunless tanners on the market and are also on my top avoid list.
These colorants come with high risks of cancer, allergies immunotoxicities, developmental and reproductive toxicity. They are either petroleum (all risks shared above) or coal tar derived and because of this, they are likely contaminated with heavy metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are carcinogenic (also shared above).
Heavy metal testing is not required, but we know from testing done by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, the majority of all cosmetics tested that contained FD&C or Lake Dyes, contained lead or other heavy metals.
So are any sunless tans safe???
As I shared above - there isn’t a completely “toxin free” sunless tan. It absolutely comes with risk BUT, I do feel very comfortable using a select few sunless tan products any time I need a little glow.
My personal fav option for light smell and great performance is Beauty by Earth. It’s about as safe as you can get, with none of the gross ingredients in the majority of sunless products AND it actually looks great, especially if you use the mitt!
You can grab that here!
Here’s a quick list of other very low risk “fake tan” products
What about a safe sunless SPRAY tan?
This is very…..very uncommon. It’s nearly impossible to find. And as touched on in the beginning of this article, adding the airborne element of spray tan adds additional risks. With that being said, if you are going to get a sunless spray tan and you want to reduce your risks as much as possible, I have found ONE local salon who reduces your risks as much as humanly possible!
Emberglow Tanning has one tan option that is Approved by me . The only ingredient that I asterisk is the naturally derived DHA for all the reasons listed above, but I still find this very low risk when using periodically. The rest of the ingredients are free of harmful chemicals of any kind! She also does a very good job ensuring there is as much air flow as possible and a fan is on to reduce risk of inhalation of the product.
If you’re in the Des Moines area, schedule with her here!
I hope this helps!!
If you want to find more brands Approved by me, go here.
If you’d like more catered advice for your home, values, budget and specific risk factors, I’d love to help! Review which of my services is your best fit!
Sources:
The Toxic Twelve Chemicals and Contaminants in Cosmetics | Environmental Working Group
https://www.fda.gov/cosmetics/productsingredients/proudicts/ucm134064.htm
https://www.safecosmetics.org/chemicals/fragrance/
https://www.safecosmetics.org/chemicals/phthalates/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36746253/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21970597/
https://www.safecosmetics.org/chemicals/petrolatum/
https://www.bcpp.org/resource/polycyclic-aromatic-hydrocarbons/
https://www.fda.gov/industry/color-additives/color-additives-history
Report_A-Poison-Kiss_October_2007.pdf
* The information offered by me is for general educational and informational purposes only. None of this information is a substitute or replacement for professional or medical advice
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