Exact Answer: 3 to 4 hours
Uv tanning or a tanning bed is a device that produces ultraviolet radiation that gives people a tan (a darker skin shade) The sun and the tanning bed are kinds of the same. Both give tan and gives a sunburn if overheated. Tanning beds are famous in western countries. Tanning and sunburn are explained in one of the episodes of the famous sitcom “Friends” However, it is still not prevalent in India. Tanning produces vitamin D to your skin but getting too much tanning or sunburns might cause skin cancer. Anything is fine as long as you stick to the limit.
How Long After UV Tanning Can I Shower?
Showering is not going to drastically remove your tan like some suggest it would but it is going to lessen the impact or is going to dull the tan.
| Type of Tanning | After How Long Can You Shower |
| Indoor Tanning | At least 3 hours |
| Spray Tanning | At least 4 hours to get the best tan. If you take bath too quickly, the tan might just wash off. |
| Sunbathing | 3 to 4 hours |
The right answer to when to shower after you get a tan depends on whether you have used bronzers or tanning oils. If a bronzer is not used, then taking bath after a short while will be fine but otherwise, you will have to wait for at least 3 to 4 hours. Your first shower after you get your tan is very important. Tanning might dehydrate your skin and showering will help your skin get the moisture back. It is important to know the kind of tanning treatment that has been given to you because the duration you have to wait before you get a shower depends on it. The time varies from 4 to 8 hours after the session.
Tans might take up to 2 to 48 hours to appear in the case of natural tanning but UV Tannings use bronzers to darken the color and showering within 4 hours is going to wash it off and thus showing no result or a very vague, uneven result.
Why Does it Take So Long to Shower After UV Tanning?
In most of the tanning centers, they apply a type of moisturizer called “bronzer” according to your preference. Bronzers are added to enhance or darken the tan and cover the uneven places. It results in the increase of melanin production that gives darker tans. Bronzers give you, what people today like to call a “Healthy Glow” So, showering immediately after getting bronzers along your tanning process, is going to either wash it off or give a very lightened dark shade. It will leave you with your skin color. When bronzers are not used, it is okay to take a shower even as soon as the session gets over, because then it is not going to make much of a difference.
There are also some people who that suggest, UV Tanning increases the production of melanin naturally, and taking bath after an hour or two is not going to do you any harm. But this is just for UV Tans because other tanning procedures involve the use of lotions and moisturizers which do not have a long life.
We need to understand that tans are just artificial and it is very easy to get them removed or washed away. Immediate showers can also result in uneven tanning and making it ever again is going to be hard. After applying the lotion, it needs a few hours to generate the perfect tan. Exposing it to water is going to make that process impossible. Therefore, the longer you let the tan stay and spread on your body without exposing it to water, the better the results are going to be. Though people suggest it is okay to take bath after 4 hours, I would say, give it 6 hours at least.
Conclusion
In the “do not” after UV Tanning, the first in the list is, showering. Taking a shower immediately is equal to not getting a tan done. It is going to remove all the tan and leave you with your original color. You should not shower after a tan but you should get a shower before it because it makes your skin clean and prepares you for the best results. Other precautions after UV tanning is, do not to shave at least for another 12 hours, do not over-exert yourself, and never stay dehydrated (drink plenty of liquid) These steps will help the enhancement of your tan and make it stay longer.