Sunbathing is an extremely pleasant and socially desirable pastime.It offers tremendous health benefits as the skin produces vitamin D in response to sun exposure.It is estimated that about 50,000 deaths occur every year in the US alone due to insufficient vitamin D.Sunbathing also strengthens the bones and is beneficial in some skin conditions.It also reduces the risk of some types of cancer.Although excessive exposure to sunlight can cause skin cancer the balance is clearly in favor of reasonable exposure to sunlight.
The modern craze for the perfect suntan can be traced to two French celebrities, designer Coco Chanel and singer Josephine Baker who turned it into a fashion statement in the 1920's.This doesn't mean that you go out and fry yourself on the beach but being exposed to the sun for some time a few times a week has positive benefits.A two week vacation in the Mediterranean gives you as much sunlight as an entire year in the UK.Doctors are increasingly excited by the new evidence in the sun's favor.
So how does one go about getting a great tan. Its easy. A beach holiday is no longer that expensive. There are a large number of time share options available which make a beach house very affordable.If you live in the suburbs you can lounge around in your lawn or your backyard.If you live in the city it is slightly more difficult to get a natural tan, although there are a large number of artificial methods available.If you have a good roof make full use of it.This last option seems to be losing popularity after 9/11 and because high real estate prices have made free access to the roof in high rise buildings difficult due to objections from unsporting landlords.
Anyway it is now well established that being out in the sun makes you both look as well as feel great.If you take a bit of care you can just go out and have fun in the sun.