Epistemic status: talking with Claude, and some guy’s thread on Twitter.¹

The sun gives you cancer, but also nitric oxide and vitamin D². The benefits of these two probably outweigh the all-cause mortality risks of cancer³, so it’s worth getting regular sun exposure⁴. But in the winter, in most places including where I live, there’s not enough sun.

My claim: we should be able to fix this with Technology, approximately today. Probably with small tweaks on existing tanning beds. Someone please make this business so I can pay you money.

more background

(Remember my epistemic status here)

The sun produces UVA and UVB light. UVA hitting your skin produces nitric oxide, which lowers your blood pressure. But too much UVA causes skin cancer (melanoma, the bad kind) and skin aging. UVB produces vitamin D, but too much causes sunburn and skin cancer (carcinoma and melanoma). UVA is what I care about here, because vitamin D also comes in a pill.⁵

UVA is what’s in many tanning beds. People thought it was safe because it doesn’t burn you much without the UVB, but it turns out it still causes cancer and skin aging. So, still don’t go to a tanning salon.

but why not a better tanning bed?

If some amount of UVA is good, it can’t be the case that tanning beds are unilaterally bad! Claude’s explanation is:

• you can’t tell how much UVA you’re getting
• the beds are set to produce a tan fast, so you’re probably getting way too much
• who knows they might be cheap and give you UVB too

To which I say, skill issue. Make a bed that gives you 20 J/cm^2 of UVA at whatever speed is safe! Include a UV sensor that shuts off when you’re done! Hell, include a SAD lamp with more lux while you’re at it. Franchise in every city in Europe and the top half of the US. I would like to be less sad and have lower blood pressure in the winter.