 |
|
|
 Health & Beauty | February 2005 
To Tan or Not To Tan in PV? part 3
Bob Cohen - PVNN
With all the health concerns versus personal vanity, what is one to do when visiting Puerto Vallarta and spending time in our sunny paradise?
 The most successful of the four is Ron Rice, who owns Hawaiian Tropic, which was once the product that had the least quality and was produced cheaper than the others. But Ron did not get involved in the heated competition and went the glamour route. Now the Hawaiian Tropic girls and pageants are known worldwide, in fact there is even huge a Hawaiian Tropic sponsored annual event here in Puerto Vallarta. They sponsor sports events, musical concerts and their product continues to sell.
Next is Jack Katz, the founder of Panama Jack. It’s funny, but he made more money from the clothing line that evolved than he did with his tanning products. The best product in my opinion was extremely popular in the 1970’s and then began to disappear off the shelves. Native Tan apparently didn’t have the marketing plan to promote a quality product. I’ll leave you guessing as to which product I represented, as well as not mention the name of its founder. We had a good run while it lasted, made some money, had a lot of fun and I own a lifetime of experiences that I wouldn’t trade. If one of our readers “can name that product” in two words, coffee is on me.
I remember so many humorous situations I encountered through the years, such as the salesman at a large Miami Beach resort that sold at least 200 people on the pool deck. He would blow a whistle telling them when to turn over and another when to put on more sunscreen. Imagine 200 tourists listening to a salesman like he was a doctor and turning at his command.
When I was working out of Las Vegas, I knew that in the 115 degree hot, dry sun, it was virtually impossible to tan. You need humidity or else you just color the top layer pink or red and it peels right off. One can use a bottle of moisturizer a night but to no avail. I felt bad for the people who spent eight hour shifts at the pool.
We had salesmen that used the burn’em and heal’em method. He had everyone buy oils with no sunscreens and then sold them Aloe to be used at least four times a night. Not that it worked, but the prices of our best oils were high, so were his commissions.
To this day whenever people inquire at hotel gift shops or pharmacies about which product is best, it makes me cringe. I want to step in and tell them exactly what they need as old habits die hard. A person working at a shop has no clue whatsoever; please don’t heed their advice.
And coming into work the drunkest. We actually had contests to see who could accomplish the feat and finish out the day. Usually the person that won that also had more sales than anyone that day as well. I could write a book about the characters I’ve encountered through the years.
As for the realistic side of tanning, I am at a loss to advise anyone. There are most definitely medical and health hazards, but also benefits. At one time an alcohol based sunscreen was considered horrible, when PABA made its debut, coming from the vitamin B family. Then PABA was found to be bad. The cheapest and least effective oil is mineral oil, which is what all products once contained fully. It is a thick oil that sits on top of your skin and it makes you dark, but since it doesn’t allow your skin to breathe and penetrate, it washes right off in the shower (with your tan.) The industry then used animal oils, which were more expensive and closer to human body oils and allowed a tan to last longer. And the Aloe lotions, always read what the ingredients are in order on the bottle. Water is almost always listed first in any lotion, yet the packaging states 98% Aloe Vera.
Lately it has been proven that a SPF of 30 does not mean that you can stay out twice as long as if you used a SPF 15. In fact, there is very little difference. For the safest advice, consult with your doctor; of course they will recommend limited exposure to the sun and a sunscreen with a high protection factor. Or live on the edge, just do not overdo it the first couple of days especially. Let your skin heal and use a good Aloe Vera product after sun exposure. One more bit of advice is although the sun might not feel that strong, March – May’s sun is very strong and will provide you with more color than you might expect.
As for me, I still love to bake in the sun and use natures very own product, sea salt water. Never do I put a drop of sunscreen or oil on my body until after I shower and then use a decent moisturizer. I’m not recommending this to anyone, but sometimes you can’ teach an old dog new tricks. I come from the era that tanning was so hip that the Doonesbury comic strip ran a month long segment on the “World Championship of Tanning.”
It was won of course by Zonker, who attributed the victory to putting Q tips between his toes, giving him maximum exposure to the sun. Happy tanning everyone!
|
| |
|
Vallarta Weddings
Tell a Friend
Site Map
Print this Page
Email Us