The Tanning Process

Skin is designed to accommodate ultraviolet light. Tanning is the body’s natural response to ultraviolet light. The tanning process begins when melanocyte cells are stimulated by light rays from the sun or tanning equipment that contain a combination of both UVA and UVB rays. Exposure to UVB causes the melanocyte to produce melanin granules that are pinkish in color and travel upward toward the skin’s horny layer. As the granules migrate upward they are oxidized or darkened through exposure to UVA.