Who doesn`t want a golden glow like Britney Spears or Jessica Simpson? It is important to be safe while achieving a bronzed look so that you don`t develop skin cancer later in life, and new tanning methods are making it easier to look tan while keeping your skin safe. Jessica Mikell, a University of Florida student and Gainesville native, has tried many different tanning methods, such as lying outside, going to tanning salons, lotion sunless tanners and spray-on sunless tanners. "You look better and healthier with a tan," Mikell said. Going to a tanning bed is sometimes perceived to be safer since many of the tanning bed bulbs give off Ultraviolet A rays, which cause deeper damage that isn't noticeable till later in life, not Ultraviolet B rays. Mikell, 18, has seen dermatologists who have warned her about the dangers of tanning outside and in a tanning bed. "I`m young and you don`t worry about it when you are young," Mikell said. But you should. Jenna Widness, a 19-year-old University of Florida student, is careful when trying to get a tan because her father and grandfather have both had skin cancer. "It makes me question whether or not I should tan because I know I`m susceptible to skin cancer." Recently Widness` mother has also been diagnosed with skin cancer on her face.
"I`m never going in the sun again," Widness said. Luckily, for the people who are determined to look tan year round there is a new, safe alternative to lying outside or tanning in a tanning bed. Sprays on tans containing the colorless chemical dihydroxyacetone, also known as DHA, are now offered at select tanning salons nationwide and are becoming increasingly popular. DHA is derived from glycerin and changes your skin to a brown color when it interacts with amino acids that are found in the top dead layer of your skin. "You step into the booth, and you`re standing the whole time, and when you`re ready you press a button and a fine mist sprays you with the tanning spray," Mikell said. "The whole process takes about 20 minutes because you have to stand in different positions to get your whole body." The Food and Drug Administration has approved DHA for external use because studies have shown that the chemical is not absorbed through the skin. A spray on tan will lasts for about two weeks and it can cost up to $35 for one spray tan, Mikell said. There are cheaper alternatives to the DHA spray tan. Drug stores, grocery stores, and even department stores carry lines of sunless tanners that work along the same lines as the DHA spray. Skin cancer is the most common of all cancers and counts for about half of all cancer cases in the United States. In 2002 about 54,200 new cases of melanoma were diagnosed, according to the American Cancer Society web page. So go for the golden sun goddess look... but be safe about achieving it so that you won`t regret it later. Ways to prevent skin cancer
-Avoid the sun between the hours of 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
-Stay in the shade when you are outdoors
-Cover up with clothes
-Keep your face, ears, and neck covered with a hat
-Use sunglasses with a 99 to 100% UV absorption rate
-Use about a palm-full of sunscreen with an SPF of 15 or higher For more information about skin cancer and precautions about the sun visit the American Cancer Society's page http://www.cancer.org or call 1-800-ACS-2345
For more information about sunless tanning, and sunless tanning products visit http://www.sunless.com | 
