Why does tan skin look so much better to us? (coloring, girls)

[red4ce]

Originally Posted by waviking24

Is it brainwashing by the media? Is it natural instinct? What is it about tan skin that makes humans so much more attracted to it than pale, when it may not even be healthy??

The promotion of tan skin as attractive is a very recent phenomenon, only taking place in the past century or so.

[jtab4994]

Originally Posted by waviking24

Is it brainwashing by the media? Is it natural instinct? What is it about tan skin that makes humans so much more attracted to it than pale, when it may not even be healthy??

It's brainwashing. And I don't mean that in a negative way.

A century ago pale skin and a plump physique were considered attractive in women because it meant your husband or father was wealthy so you didn't have to work in the fields and you got enough to eat.

Nowadays if you're skinny it means you're both intelligent and can afford nutritious food and you can afford a gym membership, and if you're tan it means you get outdoors (or can afford artificial tanning).

[gypsychic]

There sure are a lot of threads on "tans" here! LOL!

As I have mentioned in other threads, the problem is people go overboard with everything. The sun is GOOD for you, in small amounts. Think about it, for thousands of years we have thrived in the sun - plants need sun to grow and bear fruit - What we are NOT supposed to do is go to the beach and slather on baby oil and fry for 8 hours!!! I too do not like the look of a very dark, unnatural tan. Being of European Spanish descent myself, my skin color is naturally very fair, but I do have dark eyes and can take a bit more sun. I live in Florida and get about an hour of sun each day as I ride my bike. I don't use suncscreen, only coconut oil which contains a small amount of natural sunscreen. I also consume a lot of seafood and vegetables that contain astaxanthin, which is an antioxidant and natural sunscreen from the INSIDE. I drink lots and lots of water for hydration. I always have a nice medium "base tan" which pretty much stays the same color.

I am 64, no real "wrinkles" and only a few fine lines. Very few "spots", mostly what I have had most of my life (hereditary). Again, the sun itself is NOT what ages you, it's a bad lifestyle, heredity all coupled with getting too much of a good thing. I personally like the look of a light tan on most people,depending on what their natural coloring is. I know I definitely look far, far better with a little sun.

[LS Jaun]

Originally Posted by lucknow

I much prefer the untanned look myself.

It's making a comeback these days.

I like healty skin, and it comes in all different colors. There are certain shades of fair skin that don't look healthy even if it is, but there are also also people with dark skin that don't have it so easy either.

[hvl]

Originally Posted by waviking24

Is it brainwashing by the media? Is it natural instinct? What is it about tan skin that makes humans so much more attracted to it than pale, when it may not even be healthy??

From what I've read, in almost every human population, the natural skin tone preference is that men should be darker than women (and women should be lighter than men). That pattern is seen in art from many, many parts of the world and from many time periods. I think it's likely that this is the "natural" preference among humans.

With that said, it's not a very strong preference and we see that it's very easy for fashion to override it.

I for one have no problem at all with pale skin and I wish white women would be more ok with it instead of always complaining about it I find people like Kim Kardashian or Victoria Beckham much better looking when untanned.

[hvl]

Originally Posted by LS Jaun

It's making a comeback these days.

I like healty skin, and it comes in all different colors. There are certain shades of fair skin that don't look healthy even if it is, but there are also also people with dark skin that don't have it so easy either.

Totally right. Not all fair skin is equally attractive. Even very pale skin comes in several varieties.
Dark skin can be very gorgeous too but once again there are various types of it.

[hvl]

Pale people :
Know your skin.
There are pale people for whom exposure to the sun is like a poison.
There are other pale people whose skin can deal easily with moderate sun exposure.

[klara.odinsdottir]

I think pale skin is very soft and ladylike. I don't understand why women purposely burn themselves orange. Walking around with an open flesh wound wouldn't be considered attractive; why is it attractive to walk around with burnt skin? Yuck. Not to mention it's prematurely aging and drying.

A man with tan skin could go either way. It could mean he's a vain girly-man who tans himself on purpose. Or it could mean he works outdoors with his hands and is therefore very strong and muscly

[Hedgehog_Mom]

I am very pale with freckles. When I go out in the sun, I burn. If I'm in the sun longer than two hours, I burn, blister and peel. I used to be able to go outside with a nice coating of 110 spf, but now I've developed a sunscreen allergy and sunscreen makes me turn red and blow up like a puffer fish. My husband likes me with a little bit of a tan, so in the summer I sometimes use the lotions with sunless tanner in them, but I never think they look very nice.

One of my daughters burns in the sun like I do. The other one just turns a very nice golden color. I'm sure she will be able to tan if she wants to, when she's older.

I don't think there's anything wrong with tanning if you've got a skin type that can handle it. But if you're like me and it only takes a couple of hours to get a really bad burn, you have to listen to what your body is telling you and avoid the sun.

[The Postman]

Natural is best. While tans can be nice, if you have naturally pale skin i prefer natural to leathery over-tanned/fake tan. I do love naturally olive/brown skin on women though.