A Safer Shade of Pale

Beautiful weather finally made its way to Wisconsin, and, like many people, I spent the weekend taking advantage of the warm weather. I walked downtown on Saturday and went for a run on Sunday. Little did I know I had apparently committed a crime against humanity.

You see, I had the nerve to put my pasty white legs on display. According to one local radio DJ, such a thing is tantamount to a deadly sin. God forbid any woman show a bit of skin before her legs are properly tanned.

Except…I don’t tan. And I don’t want to.

I’m the palest kind of white person. Clinique doesn’t even make a foundation light enough for me.  I’m the type who will get a sunburn, peel, then turn back to white. I can go on a week’s vacation to Miami in July and come back without a tan. When I was in high school and spent the majority of the summer outside for cross country and marching band practice, I’d end up with a gradual tan by the end of the summer. Even then, I wasn’t particularly “tan” – just enough to show if I forgot to put on my watch in the morning. But now that I work in an office? Yeah, not happening.

And while I do confess to owning a bottle of Jergen’s Natural Glow lotion, I’ve never tried to get a fake tan. I’ve certainly never gone to a tanning salon, even though most of my high school friends did before Prom. I didn’t go before my vacation to Florida, despite several people insisting I needed a “base tan.” (For the record, this idea is a complete myth according to every dermatologist I've talked to).

I thought it was well established that tanning can lead to skin cancer. Why, then, do we continue to be obsessed with tanning? Why is it okay to poke fun at people who are pale? Why do I continue to get looks from strangers when I go on vacation and lather up with sunscreen every few hours and wear a big hat and sunglasses? I didn’t know taking care of my skin was worthy of judgment.

Interestingly, tanning has been linked to premature aging. One of the biggest things you’ll see on every beauty blog and website is that wearing SPF every day is the best way to prevent wrinkles. But…if I wear sunscreen I won’t tan, and if I don’t tan I’m not beautiful…but if I tan I’ll get more wrinkles, and if I get wrinkles I won’t be beautiful…

I suddenly understand the marketing behind pretty much every beauty product out there. Call this a Mad Men moment.

Aside from the outward appearance angle, of course, there is a more serious problem. According to the Centers for Disease Control (http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/skin/), skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. While some types are fairly easily cured, melanoma is a serious disease and can be very deadly. Avoiding excess UV radiation is one way to lower your risk of skin cancer. While it seems to be generally understood that sunburns are bad, there isn’t the same fear about tanning. 

Of course, people continue to ignore sound scientific evidence and medical advice because the media tells us that being tan is healthy, youthful, sexy, etc. Teens are especially vulnerable to these messages. This article in the Journal of Adolescent Health provides some great insights. Very few celebrities rock naturally pale skin (Anne Hathaway is one who comes to mind). The California girl image of tanned skin and beach blonde hair has pervaded our culture as the dominant ideal of the “American woman.” This is problematic for several reasons, but there is something fundamentally wrong with a culture that glorifies artificially tanned white girls while erasing and ignoring darker skinned women of color. Thanks, Hollywood.

There's a broader message, here, really. Ladies (and gentlemen), you don't have to change yourself just because some advertisement tells you to do so. It's easier said than done, but maybe we just need to stop buying into the hype.

Does being out in the sunshine make people feel happy? Of course it does. I personally believe spending time outside is one of the best things to do. But there are ways to be smart about it, and increased sun time does not have to equal skin damage.

So, sorry local radio DJ, whoever you are. I’ll continue to wear shorts and skirts when the weather’s nice. I’ll continue to load up on the SPF before enjoying the sunshine. If my pale skin offends you, that’s your problem. I’d prefer you didn’t stare at my legs, anyway.