# Are there ANY health benefits to a tanning bed? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 24, 2023, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-health-benefits-to-a-tanning-bed/995079 "2023-12-24T14:12:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-health-benefits-to-a-tanning-bed/995079/41 "2024-08-26T19:41:24Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > _It means that mineral sunscreens are often [held up](https://goop.com/beauty/skin/mineral-versus-chemical-sunscreen/) as the “cleaner” option, when there’s no good evidence that either is harmful._ (There is little also evidence of harm to coral reefs or vitamin D synthesis, as is sometimes argued.) > **[Sunscreen Chemicals and Coral Reefs](https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/news/sunscreen-corals.html)** > > Healthy coral reefs are one of the most valuable ecosystems on Earth. They provide billions of dollars in economic and environmental services, such as food, coastal protection, and tourism. However, coral ecosystems around the world face serious... ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-health-benefits-to-a-tanning-bed/995079/42 "2024-08-26T19:56:16Z")
I’ve read some opposing views. I am summarizing an article. In fairness, it says: _And whether sunscreen actually harms coral reefs is contentious. While reef-safe sunscreen has become a thing, and places like Hawaii have banned certain sunscreens, what the world’s coral is really threatened by is [warming oceans](https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2020/jan/20/slip-slop-what-why-putting-on-sunscreen-suddenly-seems-complicated). “Based on the current evidence, I don’t think oxybenzone is much of a concern for our health or for coral,” says Wong. “For most of us, it’s just not that much of a concern.” (One caveat is that Wong agrees it’s probably best not to put sunscreen on babies under six months, due to the permeability of their skin.)_ _The other common worry is whether sunscreen inhibits vitamin D absorption—a contention popularized by a polarizing [article](https://www.outsideonline.com/health/wellness/sunscreen-sun-exposure-skin-cancer-science/#:~:text=Sunscreen%20also%20blocks%20our%20skin,it%20advises%20on%20its%20website.) in Outside magazine in 2018 (the publication’s most popular piece to date). This is not something to worry about. Even if we put enough on, which most people don’t, sunscreen will never block all sun exposure, which means a little UV will always get through. Even in a gloomy country like the UK, people only need to sit in the sun for 10 minutes in the middle of the day between April and September to stave off vitamin D deficiency for the rest of the year, says Neale._ ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2024, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-health-benefits-to-a-tanning-bed/995079/43 "2024-08-26T20:26:59Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > Even in a gloomy country like the UK, people only need to sit in the sun for 10 minutes in the middle of the day between April and September to stave off vitamin D deficiency for the rest of the year, says Neale. Maybe. Altho indeed, avoiding too much sun is a Good idea, please note that like 35% of Americans have a Vitamin D deficiency. > **[Prevalence, trend, and predictor analyses of vitamin D deficiency in the US...](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9573946/)** > > The National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) collect and release data to the public every 2 years. The latest NHANES study on the vitamin D status of Americans was based on data from 2001 to 2014, and the latest data (2015–2016 ... ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2024, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-health-benefits-to-a-tanning-bed/995079/44 "2024-08-27T02:44:20Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > Here are brief excerpts from the long Wired article: Thank you for posting those. Interesting reading. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2024, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-health-benefits-to-a-tanning-bed/995079/45 "2024-08-27T14:11:47Z")
Let’s see: should we get vitamin D from food and/or supplementation, or go to a tanning salon? Decisions, decisions… ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2024, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-health-benefits-to-a-tanning-bed/995079/46 "2024-08-28T20:07:37Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > Let’s see: should we get vitamin D from food… Fatty Fish, liver and egg yolks- but you’d have to eat more than a dozen per day.of that last . This is why Vit D is the most common deficiency in America. Mind you- some foods are _fortified_ with Vit D, but you know how nutso people are- “raw milk” etc. So I- **NOT A REAL DOCTOR** - (nor do I play on on TV, but I do play one in a RPG… 🤪 ) suggest the second part of your post- > [@Jackmannii](#): > > and/or supplementation, I don’t suggest tanning beds for Vit D, since many dont even have that benefit. Mind you a few minutes in the sun each day is a good idea for many reasons. Dont overdo it, of course. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-there-any-health-benefits-to-a-tanning-bed/995079.md?page=2)