Tanning Spots

[shelley]

I posted a question last week about white spots possibly from tanning in a tanning bed but some of my questions were not answered.  I will try again.  After tanning for about a month, I noticed small round white spots on my stomach, back, parts of my upper arms and inner thighs and on my rear end.  I was told it might be either (a) a skin fungus or (b) that is just the way my skin develops after tanning and possibly a lack of skin pigment.
I tried Selsun Blue, I researched it and that is what everyone is saying to use.  I have tanned in the past either by tanning bed or by laying out in the direct sun light and have never experienced such "Spots".  But, I have been tanning in a tanning bed more often than in the past.  About three times a week for 20 minutes with tanning excelerator with nutmeg as in ingredient.

1. Can I still tan in a tanning bed; will it make the spots worse  and spread and more noticible?
2. Will Selsun Blue really make my skin turn back to normal.
3. What else can I try?

I am a somewhat dark complected white female.  Please help! Shelley

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

Shelley:

Tanning will probably highlight the spots, because the skin around them will get darker.  I don't know if Selsun will help, because I'm not sure it's a fungus.  Even if it is, and you kill all the fungus, the color may take months to return, so you won't be able to tell till then whether it worked or not.  No, there isn't anything else I can think of you can try.  Perhaps you should see a doctor for more definitive diagnosis.

Best.

Dr. Rockoff

[M]

my mother, sister and I get those little white spots all over mostly our legs that show up more when we tan. I think it is in your pigment that shows up when you get darker because those are spots that have no pigment and won't tan with the rest of your body

[diane williams]

I believe that the parts you are refering to being white are the pressure points that you are laying on in the tanning bed.  They won't tan unless you turn over in the bed.   Right now I am fighting the fungus problem of the tanning beds and I know that's not what you have.  100%.  I have been going for over 10 years never had any problems.  One day I started breaking out on my face and now a year later, tons of doctors visits and months of not leaving my house I have found out it is the tanning salon and no one at the tanning salon bothered to tell me til yesterday.  I was told the shampoo too.

[Shelley, to Diane Williams]

Thank you for your comment.  However, they are also on my stomach, I lay on my back in the tanning bed.  If they are pressure points, why would the spots be on my stomach.  I have only laid on my stomach maybe once or twice.  Please let me know, your information is helpful.  Thanks Shelley

[jennifer]

I agree with diane- I get those little spots on my legs every time I tan.  I used to get them constantly when I lived in Hawaii.  I like to refer to them as 'reverse freckles'!

[Renee]

I have the white spots all over my back & they have spread since April when they began. A friend told me it could be a reaction to birth control. Some forms leave the skin unevenly colored when tanning. I have also had problems with a "tan mustache", so I believe she could be right. Anyone else with the same problems or comments to this? Thanks, Renee

[jeannie]

I don't think those spots have anything to do with a tanning bed.  I get them too and I have always said they "come" from the sun.   Your describing exactly what I have which sounds more like a fungus irritated by the sun.  I will know for sure in just a few days when I actually go to the doctor.  I will keep you posted.

[Sherrie]

I have the same spots they have gotten worse through the years.
Before this year I had not gotten in a tanning bed. Or did I lay out in sun the much. The Spot are the same now as they were before I had gotten in the tanning bed. I Have the white spot on my arms,kneck and belly. Dark spots on my face and kneck.  
Any suggestion on what it could be?

[Cheryl]

I, too used to be an avid tanner and would get tan patches.  Once on my chest and another time aound my mouth or tan moustache as someone else put it.  It turns out that birth control can cause white patches and darker patches.  I didn't want to give up my pills so I gave up the sun.

[Cheryl]

I, too used to be an avid tanner and would get tan patches.  Once on my chest and another time aound my mouth or tan moustache as someone else put it.  It turns out that birth control can cause white patches and darker patches.  I didn't want to give up my pills so I gave up the sun.

[Cheryl]

I, too used to be an avid tanner and would get tan patches.  Once on my chest and another time aound my mouth or tan moustache as someone else put it.  It turns out that birth control can cause white patches and darker patches.  I didn't want to give up my pills so I gave up the sun.

[Shelley, to Diane Williams]

Hello all that replied.  Thank you for your comments.  However, I have not received these "white round spots" since I started tanning in a tanning bed.  After about a month and a half of tanning did I get these spots.  I have not been back since.  The spots have begun to fad and I only notice them now on my inner thighs and shoulder blades and not on my stomach any more.  So, it seems as though my skin is getting back to normal.  I tanned outside all the time and never got these little round white spots until after a month of tanning in a tanning bed.  I don't think it might be skin pigment because I have always tanned evenly when tanning outside in the natural sun.  It might be a fungus, but like I said, the spots are almost gone after about two months. I have heard it is a skin fungus, pressure points, skin pigment, and the tanning salon owner said he used to get them all the time because he was tanning so much but used Head and Shoulders and it went away and he slowed down on tanning.  If any one hears anything else...please let me know and thanks again for all the comments, its been helpful!

Symptoms:  white round spots on upper arms and inner thighs, back, bottom and stomach area.  When sweaty, the spots are very itchy.  Noticed them about a month and a half after tanning for 3 days a week for 20 minutes a session.

[Amy]

I'm not an expert but I do own a salon with tanning
services.  From what I have learned in the industry is that
this is a sanitation problem.  Some salons may not have the
recomended sanitizer.  I use professional strength Lucasol diluted as recomended on the container.  Some clients
do not sanitize the surface well before and after use
I recomend to my clients to do this.

Periodicly I go in and spray everything down and leave the
entire surface wet with the solution for 10 min. Then I wipe
it down well. This is also recomended on the bottle.  I have
not heard any complaints of white spots on my customers.

[H]

I have been to a couple Dr's regarding small round white spots on my arms and legs.  I started getting them about 6 years ago and they keep getting worse over the years.  I was diagnosed with Idiopathic Guttate Hypomelanosis.  It is a loss of pigment in the skin.  There is not a cure for this.  It is mainly seen in women who have tanned alot during their lives.  Most of the info I read said that it is generally seen in middle aged women.  My doctor even thinks that it might be hereditary.  You can check with a doctor to see if a cream might work or else light burning of the area with liquid nitrogen.  Thought I would share what I found out. :)

[Renee]

Gone to the doctor & here is my diagnosis:
TINEA VERSICOLOR. It is in fact a skin disorder not caused from any kind of tanning bed or sun DIRECTLY.
Apparently, its a non-contagious yeast/fungus that grows on the skin when it gets moist. This can happen from coming right out of the water, & then laying out in the sun. It can also come from sweating in a tanning bed. So either way, you mix water/sweat with heat from either a bed or sun & you get a moist place for the yeast/fungus to grow. Its just your own chemical make-up of your skin.
Every summer, the spots will always show up if I get any kind of tan. There is no cure, so if I want to be tan, I have to live with them. In the winter however, when my skin goes back to its natural color, the spots will not show up at all. In the meantime, my doc said to use SELSUN BLUE shampoo for 7 nights for ten minutes, & wash off. If that dosen't work, she'll prescribe another cream that is stronger to use basically the rest of my life!
To the people like me out there- we are just S.O.L!!!!!
Hope I helped,  Renee

[Tara]

I also have the spots! Got them from the tanning bed. My sister also got the spot for the same place.Body Drench makes a gel for this problem it is called SUN SPOTS. NOT always easy to find!I would like to know if you can use LYSOL wipes on the beds or will it hurt the bed?

[SHAWN FARMER]

I HAVE WHITE SPOTS THAT COME FROM THE TANNING BED.
WHAT CAN I DO TO GET RID OF THEM. THEY ARE ALL OVER MY STOMACH,
BACK, BOTTOM, ARMS, AND THIGHS. WHAT DO YOU SUGGEST?

[SHAWN FARMER]

I have tanning bed spots. They are all over my stomach, back,upper arms, inner thighs. They are getting worst to me.
I heard about this Selsun Blue Shampoo that I could use. Does it work and how long does it take to see a result? Also, if I tan again are they going to keep coming back?

[tegan]

I am a tanning bed junky, and like you people I have those little white spots. At first I thought they were from mixing tanning bed sun with real sun, I was wrong.
I found that if you don't exfoliate your skin properly(use one of those body wash scrubbers) dead skin doesn't get removed ,and when you go to tan in the sun or inthe bed , the skin blisster up and forms a pocket, and then when you touch that spot oe have a shower the skin, then falls of because it's so dry and that's why most people have those little white spots or nasty discolouration.

[kc]

You all have different diagnosis', the tiny white spots on your arms & legs are waaay diff, forget what it's called, but, it has to do w/ circulation, much diff. from the ones you think you are getting from a tanning bed.  The large white spots that are mainly on your upper arms shoulders back & abdomen is a fungus...it is Tinea Versicolor (sp.??), It is not caused from sun or the tanning bed.  There is no known cause.  There is also a pill that you can take for like a week...nizoral or something in the line of that....and it should go away.  Annnnd, you are supposed to go in the sun after taking the antifungal medication to make the white spots repigment...just remember to wear sunscreen!!!  (See a doctor)!!  kc

[Shelley, to Diane Williams]

Hey everybody, I am the one that started this whole forum of "white spots" Well, good news I DON'T HAVE ANY WHITE SPOTS ANYMORE! I don't think I had what all you guys have or had.  I did not use any medication, it just went away in time by itself. I haven't had them for about three months now. I have not been back to the tanning salon since I noticed these which was back in May.  I have never gotten these spots from tanning in the sun at the lake or anything like that, only when I started tanning in a tanning bed.  My best suggestion to everyone is to just stay away from the tanning beds.  I have done alot of research on this whole white spot thing and have found so many different reasons, I have come the conclusion that no body really knows how safe the tanning beds are and why these spots appear. It may very well be from tanning beds that are not properly cleaned on a regular basis and it could just be skin pigment or a skin fungus.  But, I know how annoying these dang things are.  But, anyway, its gone now and I don't have any spots anywhere....back to normal, thank goodness. So, a word to the wise, stay away from the tanning salons.  If your spots don't go away on their own like mine did, see a doctor.  Good luck everyone!  And thanks again for all the comments!

[hvw]

The white "sun spots" are called tinea versicolor. It is a fungus and is not directly caused by tanning beds. I played beach volleyball for years with no tanning beds and I have had the sunspots ever since. Selsen Blue did not work for me or the prescription I got from the doctor.  The only thing that works is something called Sun Drench Sun Spot Solution Gel or Wipe Out. Type it in Google on the internet and order it--it's less than $8 per bottle. Take a shower and exfoliate your skin with a brush. Put it on every day for a week and the spots will be gone. Put it on once a week to keep it at bay. After a week of applications, tan again and the spots will truly be gone. I mix the sun spot gel in with my tanning stuff--now if I decide to go to a tanning bed I don't worry!  This stuff works. Good Luck!

[Ginger]

hey you all, i too have the white spots on my back, upper thighs, stomach and buttocks... however i have had it for a year and havent doen anything about it. it think i first got them when i first went to a tanning booth, but i can't remember exactly. my spots are more blooches than anything else. my skin looks VERY bloochy and if you look really close, kind of scalely. i have gone to two doctors who perscribed some cream for me (which DID NOT WORK) and so now i have an appointment with a dermontologist in like 3 months. i have a cruise that im going on this christmas, and i REALLY want to get rid of this stuff before the cruise so it's not so embarrasing. does anybody have any advice for me or are experienceing the same symptoms?
i am an 18 year old, white female who has a dark complexion.

[Ginger]

hey you all, i too have the white spots on my back, upper thighs, stomach and buttocks... however i have had it for a year and havent doen anything about it. it think i first got them when i first went to a tanning booth, but i can't remember exactly. my spots are more blooches than anything else. my skin looks VERY bloochy and if you look really close, kind of scalely. i have gone to two doctors who perscribed some cream for me (which DID NOT WORK) and so now i have an appointment with a dermontologist in like 3 months. i have a cruise that im going on this christmas, and i REALLY want to get rid of this stuff before the cruise so it's not so embarrasing. does anybody have any advice for me or are experienceing the same symptoms?
i am an 18 year old, white female who has a dark complexion.