I am not being sour grapes here but I GENUINELY do think that being pale is more beautiful (note I am not being racist or anything, as I am referring to those who are not naturally dark skinned) Sure a tan can make us look slimmer and of course we have been brainwashed into believing that a "healthy" glow is the be all and end all but this is not necessarily true. I would rather be pale (and wrinkle free!) as I think this is more attractive.

What is interesting is how the trends in what defines "beauty" (on a superficial level at least) change with time. There was a time when women were deemd beautiful if they had curves and were pale (as is depicted in art from years ago). These women could afford to eat proper food and were not required to work outdoors toiling at manual labour like the poor were (hence weight and pale skin were "status" symbols). Now, it has been almost reversed. It's funny really, the tanned stick insects that we worship now would in fact, have been seen as the most lowly and poverty stricken in a different time! x

Many friends who have spent their lives sun bathing look years older than I do ! I was taught by my mother the importance of using moisturisers to keep my skin wrinkle free and to stay clear of sunbeds and it's paid off !

Buzz, you are spot on!!!  How times have changed.  I have to agree, sure it 's nice to have a bit of a glow but it's certainly not worth dying for.

Health is beauty and thin people look sickly therefore ugly. Note how attractive female tennis players look. Or swimmers!

Normal tanning obtained from outdoor activities is nature's way of preparing us from being sunburned by sudden exposure.

A pale woman physically fit wearing no lipstick looks beautiful.

I am in my mid 40's now and was reared within five minutes of the beach. My mother was an absolute sun worshipper and would use baby oil to tan herself. We, the kids, were on the beach from 9am till 6pm practically everyday of our summer hoildays (even if it rained, we had a tent we would sit into).  Of course each summer we got scorched, burnt red raw, and the only 'sympathy' you got was 'you won't burn again for the rest of the summer'! My mother died at the age of 70, her skin was like leather, with deep grooves and lines. Right up to the end of her life she sun worshipped, even using tin foil to reflect the sun so under her chin would not lose out! Unfortuantely, my husband, who has reared on a farm, and always been a 'fine, strong young lad', helped on the farm saving hay and doing other outdoor farm work as a child and has recently been diagnosed with malignant melanoma stage 3C, no effective treatment available for his stage of the cancer.  He had a mole removed six years ago but the histology report, which was correct, was 'skim read' by the GP and the need for further surgery was missed! The words 'skim read' was the way the GP described his reading of the histology report, the GP is, of course, deeply regretful of his actions, but one can't turn back the clock, and we just move on from here.  It isn't till you have to deal with malignant melanoma that you realise how deadly it is and how it can be prevented, and even if caught in time, how it can be treated.  We have three kids, the eldest is 22 years old, and thankfully they have never been sun burnt, we have always used sun factors, not just when on sun holidays, and now that we know theirs Dads genes have been alterered due to sun damage as a child, they would be more pre-desposed to skin cancer too, it gives us some comfort that we have used sun screens. Maybe it way my own childhood burns that put me off the sun but I never feltl the need to have the 'healthy' tan so may people yearn for, so my kids were never made to 'get out and get a colour' as soom parents may do with their kids. 

Hey Zoe,

Just want to send you and your family blessings.  I'm sure that your good sense in using suncreams will pay off for your kids and theirs too in the future.