A home tanning bed is a great alternative to being out in the sun for those times you want to work on your tan and the weather outside has other ideas. Depending upon where you live, you could have more cloudy or cold days than warm and sunny ones, in which case if you're mind is set on getting a great all over tan, a home tanning bed is the answer to your wishes.

But are these artificial tanning appliances all they're cracked up to be? What about the dangers of using home tanners and should you be worried? Well, these are some of the points of interest relating to these devices that I want to cover in this article and what you should expect to get from them with regards that glowing all over tan like the movie stars seem to have as a permanent appearance!

What are the Dangers of Using Home Tanning Beds?

First of all you need to be aware of what getting exposed to too much of the harmful ultra violet (UV) rays that are naturally produced by the sun and are artificially produced by a home tanning bed. All the experts agree that too long exposure to UV rays can result in the formation of melonoma, or skin cancer cells which can become malignant over time and with further exposure to UV. Just because you're using an artificial method of generating those UV rays doesn't make them any safer and long exposure to the same rays under a sun bed can have similar results.

So the best rule to follow is to read carefully the bed's manufacturer's advice and instructions on how long to stay under the lamps at each session. The time may vary from manufacturer to manufacturer, so it simportant to know exacxtly how your own bed works and don't take any examples from friends who may have slightly different models.

The rest is pretty much common sense when using a home tanning bed to get a tan and to keep the one you already have. Moderation is the key word here and you should always have an alarm clock close by to make sure you don't stay under there for too long.

Another serious warning that you should heed is to never use a home tanning bed if your are particularly tired, taking certain medications or under the influence of drugs or alcohol. People have been known to fall asleep under these conditions only to wake up far too late and with first or second degree burns or worse for their trouble. So don't do it!

The Benefits of Using a Home Tanning Bed

The obvious benefits of using a home tanning bed are the cosmetic appearances that a nice looking, even and all over tan gives. You look healthier and more radiant with a nice tan and as long as its not too over the top dark, you will get admiring looks from others who will want to know where you just went on vacation!

The other benefits that are pretty obvious are the fact that you can schedule your own tanning sessions when you want to and not when the sun says or when a tanning clinic cab fit you in. You can take your time and start when you are ready and as long as you stick to the safe time limits imposed by the manufacturer, you'll be fine.

You can speed up the tanning process by making use of the available tanning accelerators and bronzing lotions that can be purchased at tanning stores or online. You can also retard the tanning process by using regular sun lotions, although you may want to use the types that are non greasy as you don't want to get messy sun oil all over your tanning bed!

The bottom line with home tanning beds is that as long as you are sensible about how long you use them for and observe all the safety instructional material that will come with them from the manufacturer, you'll be fine to enjoy a superb home spun tan like the kind you would only normally get on vacation in a really nice, hot and sunny place!