Going for a Natural
Sunless Tan?

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Remember getting a really nice orange glow with a sunless tan product. Or maybe you went for a more yellow look. I'm happy to say those days are over. Today it is possible to achieve a nice golden tan without ever having to go out in the sun at all.

The biggest question for many of us who are interested in using a sunless tan product is the safety of those ingredients. Many products have a long list of ingredients with chemical sounding names.

I tend to stay away from such products even though I know that not all those ingredients are harmful and some of them may even be the technical name for a natural ingredient. I just prefer a simpler ingredient list, so far this has worked for me.

With this in mind I went searching for a natural sunless tan product. Starting with Skin Deep, the Environmental Working Groups (EWG) database of cosmetics I looked for safe self tanners.

Staying Away From Parabens

There were quite a few self tanners on their list, only one I would consider was Sircuit Skin soliel Firming Mineral Self Tanner. Now you may be wondering why this was the only one I would consider among the products with a relatively safe rating. It all comes down to the parabens for me.

I have decided that I will keep my use of any products with parabens to a minimum. Not an easy task since parabens are used as a preservative in all kinds of skin care products and are even found in products such as mouthwash and deodorants.

While the EWG gives most parabens and there are quite a few different kinds, a moderately safe rating I have decided based on the findings of parabens in breast tissue and their ability to mimic estrogen to avoid them.

Once again I find my being particular about the ingredients in my products (see non toxic skincare) to be helpful in knocking down that list of products to a reasonable size. Both of the self tanners below meet my requirements of offering safe, natural and even organic ingredients and are cruelty free.

Two Good Options For A Natural Sunless Tan

Sircuit Skin soliel Firming Self Tanner

Before you click through I feel like a heads up is in order. This site has some great products and provides plenty of good information but I don't find it easy to find products. Maybe this will help. Click through to the Sircuit Skin, click on products scan all the way to the bottom of the page. When I lasted checked the tanner was 3rd from the bottom.

This self tanner has received good reviews for it's ease of application, it's mineral based so it is easy to see where you are applying it, pleasant smelling, some self tanners are smelly things, and it's nice golden look. At $48 dollars for 4oz. it's one of the higher priced natural self tanners but it offers the added benefit of firming and toning the skin, not something offered by most self tanners.

Lavera offers organic ingredients in a safe, natural sunless tan product. They make both a self tanner for the body and one for the face. Easy application and a natural looking tan although a few reviewers felt the results were a little light for them. The price was reasonable, at the time of this writing $27.00 for 5 oz.

Unfortunately sunless tanning does not last very long if you are lucky the results may last up to 5 days. Self tanners use DHA (dihydroxyacetone) a sugar derived from plants to tan the skin. Basically the DHA reacts with the skin cells on the surface giving a temporary tan but as these cells slough off your tan fades away.

Keep in mind using a self tanner does not provide your skin with any sun protection so keep using that sunscreen.

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