Can you use a tanning bed during pregnancy?
In short – No, not safe for pregnant women to use a tanning bed. In this article we will see why.
Tanning beds emit harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays that can cause skin cancer, DNA mutations, decrease the strength of your immune system, causes wrinkles, lead to premature aging and other health problems.
Seriously, is it really worth the risk of harming your unborn baby just to get a "good" tan? What's wrong with natural looking anyway without a tan?
Warming during pregnancy can also cause neural tube defects such as spina bifida in the fetus, which is why tanning should be avoided during pregnancy.
The UV rays in tanning beds consist of a 95% UVA and UVB 5%. 5% contributes to the synthesis of vitamin D in the body and is frequently cited as a benefit to using a tanning bed. However, one can easily go outside and synthesize vitamin D from sunlight without UV high intensity tanning beds.
Note that you get vitamin D from the sun is very important during pregnancy. Vitamin D helps calcium absorption and improves development, boosts your immune system, help regulate blood pressure and reduces risk of cancer. 10 minutes a day in the sun is all that for vitamin D.
Please avoid tanning beds during pregnancy for the health and welfare of you and your baby. The health and welfare of her unborn child should be your most important concern at this time, not how good you look. You can get a tan if you want after your pregnancy. Although these beds should not be used if you are pregnant because of the many health risks that are associated.