HISTORY OF TANNING

HISTORY OF TANNING

Tanning is more than a fashion statement.  It's one of many body functions that has helped the human race survive and thrive on Earth for thousands of years.

Like adrenaline tat has given us energy to escape from dangerous situations and body fat that has insulated us from cold weather, tan skin has helped protect the human body from the damaging effects of excessive sun exposure since the beginning of our existence.

But the cosmetic effects of sunshine did not impress us at first.  Instead, primitive humans worshipped the sun as a god who made their crops grow and gave them warmth.  They created legends about its power and built monuments and temples to its glory.

In time, many early cultures throughout the world developed a therapeutic practice of sunbathing for health called "Heliotherapy."   Even Hippocrates, the famous Greek physician, believed the sun was a viable medical remedy for certain illnesses.

However, public favor of sunshine declined rapidly when civilizations began dividing people into ruling and working classes. Skin color became a symbol of class, differentiating servants from their masters. White skin symbolized youth,purity,wealth and social status, tan skin symbolized dirt,work and poverty.

So it remained for hundreds of years, as the wealthy classes strove to maintain the whitest skin possible, free of any impurity of color that could link them to the land or to work outdoors.  Their efforts often proved deadly.

The Beach Tanning Studios is loacated at 225 Montauk Hwy Ste 177, Moriches, NY.

Our phone number is 631.878.3981.

For More information visit The Beach Tanning Studios website  www.thebeachtanningstudios.com

Women of ancient Rome and Greece actually used lead paint or chalk to make their faces white, despite reactions from the use of these materials, which wrinkled the skin prematurely and led to death through slow poisoning.  By the mid 17th century, arsenic became the referred choice of skin whitener among women resulting in thousands of deaths.

Of course, there were less deadly ways to make the skin appear white. Women wore fake black beauty marks called patches to offset their white skin.   They painted thin blue lines across their foreheads--as Queen Elizabeth I was said to have done-- to give their skin a translucent look, and they used parasols when they ventured outdoors.

It was not until the 1900s that tans again earned public favor.  Fashion mogul Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel, creator of Chanel perfumes, allegedly developed a tan during a trip to Paris on the Duke of Westminster's yacht--an accidental fashion statement which took hold thereafter. The role of women in the early 20th century was changing, as Chanel epitomized. They led more active lives in society and in work and wore less restrictive clothing to enjoy more outdoor activities.

Tan skin in both women and men now began to symbolize health, wealth youth and social status.

Tanning received still more public favor in the United States following World War II for two reasons. First, many soldiers returned from combat in the hot climates of southeast Asia, the Mediterranean and the South Pacific with tans that gave them a healthy rugged look that many people admired and indirectly associated with the struggle for democracy. Second, many Americans never had considered taking vacations to warm and exotic climates before the war.  People with tan skin could suggest to others that they were wealthy and well traveled, even when neither was the case.

Today, millions of Americans enjoy tanning and we're learning to pursue our tans in moderation without sunburn.

The Beach Tanning Studios is loacated at 225 Montauk Hwy Ste 177, Moriches, NY.

Our phone number is 631.878.3981.

For More information visit The Beach Tanning Studios website  www.thebeachtanningstudios.com