It just isn't worth the damage. I use tons of sunscreen when I go to the beach. You can use self tanner if you don't want to look pale.

My dermatologist said sunscreen can give people a false sense of security so I also try not to stay in the direct sun for many hours at a time.

You also need to keep reapplying about a shot glass full every couple of hours. Most people don't use enough. We have a canopy over the fly bridge on our boat and that's where I hang out or either in the cabin where it's air conditioned. No more baking for me.

come to Scotland..all you'll need is a raincoat and umbrella!!

some people who don't spend a lot of time in the sun need to be educated. I bartend outside at Tybee Beach in GA. Even though I am not directly exposed to the sun, I still get heat rashes and I come home and look like I've been sunning for an hour. People from out of town spend days in the heat wearing sunscreen. Then on overcast days they don't wear any sunscreen and stay out longer because it is cooler and they think if the sun is covered by clouds they won't get burned...WRONG!

I don't believe the use of sunscreen will save me from ALL forms of cancer. So I stay in the sun if I feel so, or go in the shade if I feel so. Sunscreen is just another way for a pharmacy and/or manufacturer to get into my wallet.

Thanks for your comments. I have an 8 inch scar/depression on my calf from removing muscle tissue and skin because of melanoma. A painful proceedure done without general anethisia. I thought it was the end of my life, but I have been very lucky. It has cost me tens of thousands of dollars and even the lose of a job because of medical insurance liability. I so regret my younger days of painful sunburns, trying to get a sun tan which lead to all of this.

To the post who is getting a tan while using sun screen. You are only fooling yourself. You need a higher SPF.

Jor - I have a similar scar on the back of my calf. Couldn't believe i got cancer there since I used to only get the 1/2 tan (laying on my back only). Apparently, the sun reflected off the sand and onto the back of my unprotected legs. Why put lotion on the back of my legs, they aren't facing the sun? Stupid me. Learned a lesson though. Besides that scar I have also developed sciatica from nerve damage caused by the surgery. But hey, it is the same as smoking. Plenty of people don't take that seriously either.

Now, it was completely unscientific, but I conducted an opinion survey at Surf City, and it was their shared opinion that sun block fanatics tend to be folks who never did tan well. The Farmer Tanners, if you will.

I love love love the sun but always wear sunscreen. Also a straw hat and sunglasses. Even though I know it's wrong, I still love the way I look with just a LITTLE "glow." I KNOW! I KNOW! It's wrong. I should REVEL in my pale skin. But I can't. I don't try to get a deep tan, but I love vacationing in the sun, so after a week of swimming, walking, etc. etc. (even with 30 SPF on), I'm going to get a little color.

At least I'm much better than I used to be. I lived in Hawaii as a teenager and BAKED in the sun. Tried for 4 years to get as dark as my friends (impossible), and got some terrible sunburns as a result. The damage has been done, to a large extent.

You can get a "tan" out of a bottle or go get "fake-bake sprayed" and not take any risk for malonoma. Clarins makes a pretty good fake tan gel for $24... a lot cheaper than chemotherapy or carved out skin damage scars.

My dermatologist, and the literature he has given me, states that the skin cancers showing up on our bodies now from sun damage, was done 20 yrs ago. And not all skin cancers are caused from the sun. My mom had a skin cancer caused from an abrasion from a to tight cast on her leg. My brother died from melonoma mets and he was not a sun lover at all. Granted, we need to excercise caution when it comes to the sun, but some people get skin cancer in places that never see sun.

about 6 years ago, i got together with some long lost friends from college for lunch. these are women who used to sit by the pool for hours at our dorm just baking with baby oil in hand. i noticed how much older they looked and how much damage the sun had done to their skin, esp. around the eyes.

frightened of what i had seen, i immediately drove to the dept. store that day and bought the strongest sunscreen i could find and a slew of moisturizers to boot. now i put spf 60 on daily, even if i'm just going to be under flourescent lights at work. i use an over the counter sunscreen recommended by my dermatologist. it's primary ingredient is Mexoryl which is supposed to block both long wave uva and uvb. i find it works much better than the coppertone sport 30 and high end brands i used to use.

my mother used to nag me constantly to wear sunscreen and to put a hat on when i was young. but it's hard to imagine the results when you're young and your skin looks fantastic. now i know why.

I asked the question about why I can get a tan when I use a high-SPF.

First, to 'justalittlebit': I'm not isure why you say, 'Of course you get a tan w/sunscreen.' Not everyone does.

To 'GoTravel': So, you're saying that the only real protection is to stay out of the sun entirely?

To 'jor': You missed the point. I'm not fooling myself or anyone myself or anyone else. My question was: Does anyone else out there use a high-SPF sunscreen and still get a dark tan? Lighten up, willya!

Hee, hee. Doesn't every one remember the neighbor of Cameron Diaz in Something About Mary?

Wear sunscreen. I never leave home without it, everyday, all year round. My "tan" is courtesy of Estee Lauder, and it's fabulous.

LOL Nina, i VIVIDLY remember mary's neighbor! Eeeeeks, she should be the 'poster child' for sunscreen!

BTW i use estee lauder tanner too, or clarins, depending on who has best 'gift with purchase' ;)

Surfer, I don't understand what your point is. Yes, "sun screen fanatics" use more sun screen. Sun burns are painful. But a sun burn (except for the pain) is the same as a sun tan. Both are your skin's reaction to damage from the sun. There is not difference in the eyes of the melamoma cancer.

CNMiranda -- My dr. just reminded me that staying under the umbrella will NOT protect me from sun damage. She quoted some large amount of damaging rays (maybe 60% -- but don't quote me) as coming from "reflection" -- off the water, off the sand, off metal, whatever. So, even if you're under the umbrella, it is wise to wear sunscreen to protect yourself.

How about some recommendations for sunscreens? I try to use one everyday - no problem on my body, but I hate the feel of most of them on my face. Which ones do you like?

What a bunch of us use at our club pool after golf we find works pretty alright, but might come on too strong for people with that lily ponds skins. We call ourselves the turtle moms, so you can imagine the rest. We mix up a quart of babyoil and iodine, and thrown in some #45 sunbock, and it gets our outer crust toasty but leaves what we call our inner new skin zone soft and splotch free. Hairline cracks but nothing too dramatic.

buttercup-I use Cetaphil on my face. It was recommended by my dermatologist. On the rest of me, I use Water Babies 45 or Banana Boat Kids. It doesn't seem as greasy as the regular stuff.