A generation that grew up with dire warnings about skin cancer, tanning beds, and the gospel of sunscreen is now flipping the script. Welcome to the summer of tanmaxxing, where young people are pushing sun exposure to extreme limits, chasing a bronzed glow with UV trackers, tanning pills, and hours of unprotected sunbathing.
TikTok is flooded with tanfluencers who document their UV-index windows, share tanning bed prep routines, and even use nostalgic Y2K-era tanning stickers. One creator captioned a video with the text sunmaxxing, declaring, A little burn goes a long way. Another posted a clip with the audio Tanning bed hallelujah, a nod to Justin Bieber’s hit. The hashtag TanTok has become a hub for showcasing tan lines and promoting the risky behavior.
This isn’t just a fleeting trend. It’s a cultural shift that experts find deeply troubling. Dr. Shereen Teymour, a board-certified dermatologist in New York, calls it terrifying. She explains, It’s essentially tanning culture that’s getting a new Gen Z rebrand. The message is clear: despite years of education, some young people are ignoring sun safety in favor of a tan.
For 25-year-old Arielle Sinicin from New Jersey, tanning is a staple of summer at the Jersey Shore. She admits the trend could perpetuate younger girls not wearing sunscreen, but says it’s already happening anyway. It’s just a cultural phenomenon that being tan is equal to feeling pretty, she says.
Indoor tanning saw a decline in the mid-2010s, hailed as a public health victory. But now, tanning beds are making a comeback among some young people. Even as safer spray-tan options expand, many find the affordability and authenticity of sun or bed tans worth the risk. Self-tanner can look orange or streaky, while UV rays from beds mimic natural sun exposure to stimulate melanin.
Kamren Fisher, a 21-year-old in southern Utah, uses self-tanner in winter but prefers outdoor tanning in summer. She notes, We’re almost to the point where everyone is educated enough to say maybe we shouldn’t go to tanning beds, but in replacement, they sit outside in a UV 10 for hours with no protection.
The World Health Organization classifies indoor tanning devices as carcinogenic, on par with cigarette smoking and asbestos. The American Academy of Dermatology reports that 1 in 5 Americans will develop skin cancer. Despite this, a recent survey found that 64% of Gen Z respondents encountered sunscreen misinformation online. Twenty percent said getting a tan was more important than preventing skin cancer.
The trend, also known as UV maxxing or carrotmaxxing, stems from the controversial looksmaxxing community, which promotes extreme measures for physical attractiveness. Dermatologists warn that while people with more melanin have lower sunburn risk, everyone is susceptible to UV damage. Skin cancer in darker skin tones is often detected later, complicating treatment.
Teymour is alarmed by how tanning is packaged as a beauty routine or wellness habit. She says, It’s literally your skin saying, I’m being damaged, let me produce more pigment to try to protect myself. She notes that Gen Z is arguably the most educated generation on skincare, yet misinformation spreads rampantly, including myths about base tans preventing damage.
Some tanfluencers are buying non-FDA-approved products like Melanotan II pills and nasal sprays, known as Barbie peptides. Teymour warns, People see these products online and assume they’re harmless. It’s really concerning and scary.
