A Just A Little Bit Orange Feature
By Clara Pettitt. Copyright © 11/26/2000. All Rights Reserved.

Sunless.com in Chicago — Page Eleven

Starr joined us later, but seemed preoccupied. She confessed that she couldn't get the tingle factor products out of her mind. The concept of selling products that were irritating to the skin was too much for her. We made a few jokes ["It's a tanning lotion! No, it's a personal defense system!"], but failed to cheer her up.

I wasn't cheery, either. The consequences of putting irritants on the skin can be greater than simply red, irritated skin. As Paula Begoun warns in her book The Beauty Bible:

"It also appears that irritation can destroy the skin's integrity by breaking down its protective barrier, which, over time, damages the skin's structure and impairs the skin's natural immune/healing ability. Additionally, breaking down the protective barrier can allow the introduction of bacteria, therefore risking breakouts. Even more startling is the histological evidence that even if your skin doesn't feel irritated when you apply a cosmetic or skin-care product containing irritants, it is still being irritated and the skin breakdown is nonetheless taking place."

How does the tanning lotion industry pitch these products, you might ask. Generally, they argue that the irritants increase the circulation in the skin, which does something mysteriously wonderful to your ability to tan. Sadly, the pitch is swallowed hook, line, and sinker by some. The redder and more irritated the skin, the more impressed the poor consumer is.

And if you think the tanning lotion companies aren't perpetuating this, what do you make of products such as Scream by Australian Gold and InfraRed by John Abaté International?

Some of the irritants in the tingle factor products, aside from the pepper mentioned earlier: cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, ginger, and benzyl nicotinate [niacin].

How about just beating yourself with a stick?

By far, the most common ingredient appears to be methyl nicotinate, used in over the counter creams to treat muscle aches by giving a feeling of warmth. For an example of a product that contains methyl nicotinate, see Mentholatum's Deep Heating Pain Relieving Rub.

There you have it: The tanning lotion industry is charging up to $75 a bottle for something your grandpappy buys in the drugstore for a few dollars.

New sunless tanning product summary

• Australian Gold
• French Vanilla version of Espresso Dark Tanning Milk
• Jan Tana
• New packaging for all products
• Kava Kava
• Dusk Polynesian Sunless Tanning
• Most
• Indian Summer Self Tanner
• Indian Summer Bronzer
• Sun Laboratories
• Strictly Faces Extra Dark
• Luxurious Self Tanning Mousse
• Tan Overnight Mousse
• Ultra Dark Mousse
• Dark Sunsation Mousse
• Supre
• Cafe Bronzer