Tanning

[phil h]

I have discussed this with several low carb dieters.Consensus is we tan faster and deeper.I have laid out a few times on my deck this spring and am bronze already.Traditionly I have been slow tanner.A nice benifit.

[emmie30]

Re: Tanning

Its so funny you should say that. I was out in the garden last week (we had a rare day of sunshine). I was only out there about an hour and when i came in i noticed i had caught the sun on my chest and arms. By the next morning it was a golden brown.
My sister and I spent a fortnight in Egypt last August and I came home paler than I am now.
This WOE just keeps getting better lol.

[Chelsey20]

Re: Tanning

Sweet! I just started tanning again indoors and I'm about maxed out and was going to buy a new lotion but now I probably won't need to!

[kibskix]

Re: Tanning

I don't tan at all (pale and proud!) but I did notice when I go outside i suddenly keep color. it normally would take an awful lot for me to tan, i just burn, but just going out in the sun is starting to give me tan lines and they don't go away as fast as they usually do.

[MrsChesterDogg]

Re: Tanning

I noticed last weekend that when I was out in the sun doing yard work I hardly even turned pink. I'm a redhead with VERY fair skin. I normally burn after 15 minutes in the sun. This is indeed a great benefit from this WOE.

[momtomany1]

Re: Tanning

I am a deep tanner naturally who now avoids the sun. I tanned so much as a teen that at 45 I think I need to minimize my risk, but this sure is interesting!

[Mrs. A]

Re: Tanning

This is very interesting as I'm thinking about going to a tanning bed to tan for my daughters wedding in August. Why would this WOE make you tan better?

[kibskix]

Re: Tanning

i haven't the foggiest! someone should research this.
I absolutely hate self tanners (no matter what they always streak on me) and once I get to the point where I actually -want- to wear shorts or skirts I need to have some kind of color on my legs, right now they're transluscent lol! It'd be nice to be able to just sit outside and get some color. when i was 14 my dad bought me 1 month of tanning for my birthday, and it literally took me almost the entire month to get a noticable tan. i don't tan as a rule anymore (i already have 1 cancer causing habit i dont need two) but if i could get some kind of color before my moms wedding next fall without having to toast myself for a month that'd be nice.

[phil h]

Re: Tanning

Consensus is that the increase in amino acids stimulate melanin production.Whether this is true is debatable.But you do tan faster if you eat meat fat and ditch the vegatables.I am fairly dark bronze with moderate exposure on my deck.It used to take me all summer to get this dark.

[Georgiana]

Re: Tanning

Why would this WOE make you tan better?

Tanning happens when your melanocytes are stimulated by a certain hormone (MSH) to produce melanin (a skin pigment) in reaction to UV exposure. This hormone is made when leptin activates its receptor in the leptin-proopiomelanocortin pathway. The leptin receptor is like a bad light switch -- sometimes it will turn on the light, sometimes it won't. When your body is producing too many pro-inflammatory cytokines, they will attack the leptin receptor, making it react slower/less often to leptin.

Studies have shown that a diet low in carbohydrate, like Atkins, decreases the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and some other inflammatory markers we really don't care about here. This will protect the leptin receptor, allowing it to be activated easier by leptin. Thus, the MSH production is enhanced, and what you get is more MSH reaching the melanocytes and telling them to release melanin.

[Georgiana]

Re: Tanning

But you do tan faster if you eat meat fat and ditch the vegatables.

I don't know about that... But by not eating vegetables you are cheating yourself of a lot of fiber, vitamins and minerals (and taste and variety, imo), not to mention you would not be following Atkins. I for one would not trade my health for a better tan.

[kibskix]

Re: Tanning

G knows everything!

[planetclaire]

Re: Tanning

Huh, something new to learn everyday! I don't tan by choice, I wear sunscreen everyday because I am a vain, vain woman and don't want wrinkles! I use a self tanner occasionally and have been spray tanned once.

[kibskix]

Re: Tanning

lol i spray tanned once and i looked weiiiiirrrd!
i'm just the spittin image of my heritage. a dark haired dark eyed pale skinned czech lol

[mitzimarie]

Re: Tanning

But you do tan faster if you eat meat fat and ditch the vegatables.

Hmm... I sure have seen a lot of posts, lately, implying that veggies are optional on Atkins. I don't usually make the same post twice, but I feel a responsibility to make something clear with a point I just made in the Spotlight Forum. I am going to copy and paste that post here, as I'm pretty sure that most people don't spend a lot of time in the Spotlight Forum.

Here we go:

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Upon reading through this thread, I've noticed that a few of the posts give the impression that Atkins is supposed to be a mainly meat, eggs, and cheese diet... nothing could be further from the truth.

Sure, you may be able to lose faster by eliminating veggies, but that is only if you aren't looking further than the tip of your nose. What I mean by that, is, that it is more important to look at the bigger picture. Vegetables are a mandatory part of Atkins, and of good health, in general.

So many people attack the Atkins WOE as unhealthy, and that notion springs from the experience of those who shun veggies and get sick, constipated, and can't maintain their weight loss for a lifetime. The Atkins eating plan emphasizes the benefits of protein and natural fats - AND nutrient-rich carbohydrates. There is a difference in the quality of carbs. The crux of the matter is in limiting carbohydrates and in selecting the right carbohydrates, those most full of nutrients and fiber and those with the lowest impact on your blood sugar. So, not only is it important to choose foods with low carb counts, it is also crucial to select the most nutrient-dense carbohydrate foods.

The goal is to eat as many "good" carbohydrates as your body can tolerate without interfering with weight loss or getting your blood sugar out of whack. And you will choose healthy, satisfying whole foods, ones that provide nutrients and fiber.

Vegetables, in general, contain "good" carbohydrates, although some are very high in carbs and not as high in nutrient value, and some are the reverse. Most vegetables provide fiber and many healthy phytonutrients (phyto means "plant"), those magical substances found in plants that help us ward off disease. Fortunately, the vegetables that are most dense in nutrients happen also to be those lowest in carbs.

About veggies - Before Atkins, I wouldn't touch a veggie with a 10 foot pole. And on that 1st attempt at Atkins, I did not put forth the effort to break out of my box and make myself try new veggies. I got to where I was eating a lot of nuts and dairy, but not eating many veggies. I think that is the #1 reason why I fizzled out on that attempt. Atkins really is a change of lifestyle... it's not trying to eat as closely as you can to how you used to eat. So on this attempt, I tried tons of new veggies. I can't believe how much better the plan works when you eat veggies! Unbelievable!!

OK, I'll step off of my soapbox now. I just had to get that off my chest. People PM me all of the time, asking for my best advice on losing the weight and keeping it off. VEGGIES is my answer.

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Ok, we can carry on with the tanning discussion. I just didn't want newbies to get the impression that veggies are optional.