Nurture the skin- Fake Tan

Fortunately for those who have fair skin and want to tan (from a bottle, not the sun), can successfully do so safely and temporarily but unfortunately lightening the skin’s pigment is not yet deemed as a safe alternative.

Fake tanning the skin (to darken) and skin whitening (to lighten) practices are not new concepts.  Skin whitening has been around for centuries.

To understand between why tanning (fake tan) the skin is safe and skin lightening is not safe, you should first understand skin.

Our skin has 3 main layers: Dermis (meaning hidden skin), the Epidermis (meaning above) and the Hypodermis (fatty tissue). There are 5 layers for the Epidermis and each layer (stratum) has their own function and purpose. Starting from the outermost layer:

• Stratum Corneum- Horny,
• Stratum Lucidum,
• Stratum Granulosum- Granular,
• Stratum Spinosum- Spiny and
• Stratum and Stratum Basale which is the deepest layer before the dermis.

When we naturally tan from sunlight, our Epidermis absorbs this light and penetrates to the deepest layer, Stratum Basale or Basal layer. The melatonin (pigment) held within this epidermis Basal layer produce melanocytes, which in turn create darker pigments. Whereas, when we apply fake tan on the skin, the tan only adheres to the Corneum Horny layer, giving temporary 7- 10 days results. This method of fake tanning has been endorsed worldwide as a safe and effective temporary tanning result.

Although skin lightning has been around for centuries, the concept of ‘Lasering’ to lighten the skin is relatively new and has been suggested to damage the melatonin in skin cells (Basal layer). Furthermore, there is much advice regarding topical applications of citrus particularly lemon juice (PH 2 Acidic) and pineapple (PH 3 Acidic) to assist in lightening the skin. Research shows that the application of high PH levels of acid based products on the skin has detrimental results and can also transform melatonin pigments within the skin cells.

Because we aim to nurture the skin, Sundance does not formulate or manufacture any products that attempt to lighten the natural pigment.

I have all the compassion in the world for those who desire to change the appearance of their skin. I genuinely hope that technology finds answers towards safe scientific practices, for those who desire to achieve fairer skin appearances.