Between the sun and us, it is a love story, often sparkling, sometimes too intense, sometimes extinguished. Over time, we have learned to protect ourselves from its outbursts and cultivate our shadow side. Has the flame finally died out in a balanced idyll? Enlightening report.
“Bronzing. the act of covering an object with a layer resembling the appearance of bronze’. This definition from the Littré dictionary indicates that there was no question of taking the pill during the Second Empire. For twenty centuries, we have been called pale. “Since at least the beginning of Christianity, about two thousand years ago, Westerners have maintained a relationship with the sun of protection, not pleasure or exposure,” says historian Pascal Ory. , member of the French Academy and author The invention of the solarium (Editions Champs/Flammarion). The reasons are both philosophical and social. on the one hand, the elite separated from the popular classes working in the fields, particularly from women; on the other hand, in Christian culture, the image of female purity, whose absolute model is the Virgin Mary, was associated with whiteness.
At the end of the 19the century, hats, umbrellas, and bleach preparations were in order. From cultural works to beauty tutorials, the conversation about facial skin is the same. skin freshness and radiance are synonymous with flawless radiance. So there can be no question of jumping into the arms of the god Ra.
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First Engagement Sunday
The first lightning strikes in Europe occur at the beginning of XXe century, beginning a fiery relationship between the French and the solarium that would last more than forty years. “In the 1920s and 1930s, doctors claimed that the sun, water and air were good for health and cured diseases, especially tuberculosis. This is when airships, preventatives and spas come in,” explains Pascal Ory. The legitimization of the benefits of the sun by the hygienist discourse of health professionals marks the advent of heliotherapy in particular. This is where the expression “to get sunburnt” came from, in the literal sense. Added to this medical argument is an aesthetic argument that Gabriel Chanel and Jean Patou, icons of the avant-garde, would make trendy during trips to Deauville, Biarritz or the Côte d’Azur.
During this period, the women of the Western elites had their sights set on the French Riviera. Tanning is becoming a new feature of beauty and, above all, a luxurious sign of social superiority. In the process, bikinis arrived in 1937 at the same time as outdoor sporting events. This gave the idea to one Eugene Schuller, the creator of L’Oréal (angry about getting sunburned while sailing) to launch the first mass-produced sun product. In 1935, the famous Ambre Solaire was born. Next summer, paid vacations reach their peak. And we don’t care about the danger of rays… We will expose freely under the sun. “The first sunscreens only contained an anti-UVB filter to address the visible problem that everyone knew: sunburn,” says Michel Sayag, MD, Allergist and Director of Medical Strategy at Bioderma Laboratories. The perverse effect of these cosmetics is that they only protect against direct burns, but not UVA rays, which are responsible for long-term skin aging and cancer. This idea that tanning is beneficial would continue into the 1960s.
Golden wedding
After World War II, tanning was established as a new aesthetic standard. Homemade tips and recipes to prolong color when you return from vacation abound in the women’s press. “During the 1950s and 1960s, beach tourism was at its zenith, and with it the whole mythology of the beach, which was no longer reserved for the bourgeois elite,” recalls Bernard Andrié, professor at Paris Cite University and author; A little history of the sun and the skin (CNRS publications). Since the 1970s, especially with sexual liberation, we have become more and more naked. Solarium is becoming a standard, almost mandatory social norm. Moreover, the term tan is mostly found in people wearing swimsuits. For example, among naturalists, this is not the case, while the whole point of a tan is to show that you are tanned by this demarcation on the skin. It is a sign of good health and well-being, but also a social vector of communication.”
I love you, neither me
At the end of the seventies, the flame begins to waver. Harvard Medical School dermatologist Thomas B. Fitzpatrick classifies the danger of sunburn according to each skin phototype. Little by little, the harmful effects of the sun’s rays are becoming known, and scientific studies show that prolonged exposure and without UV protection can be fatal. But the cosmetics industry is coming to our rescue to save our skin. First, by spreading the overall screen and removing some of the tan accelerators that are known to be harmful. Then, with the progress of science, he tries to reconcile us little by little with our passion for tanning. With less oily mixtures such as sprays, mists, milks and dry oils that facilitate the protective gesture. “Until then, these fabrics are not suitable for applying cream every two hours,” admits allergist Michel Sayag. We also start talking about UVA and infrared, which do not burn, but set the cells on fire. And Estederm is already standing out by talking about the solar ecosystem.
In 1989, the “pill” arrived. Dietitian Marie Bayo, tired of seeing her patients’ skin damage after the summer, launched Oenobiol capsules based on carotenoids and antioxidants that minimize sun intolerance and signs of skin aging. The beginning of the real market. Then, in the early 2000s, the first organic sunscreens appeared, offering an alternative to mineral filters. Little by little, the carefree flame of the beginning gives way to a more balanced idyll. This does not prevent betrayals and biases. It is not so easy to live with a two-faced Janus or to part with the one we adored…
The pleasures of free association
What remains of our relationship with tanning, one hundred years after its invention? “Since the 1970s, there has been no hegemonic trend, but the division of tribes. those who want to sunbathe at all costs, those who protect themselves from the sun,” says historian Pascal Ory. Between the two, all shades of summer vacationers. “Individualism prevails, unlike in the 1940s, 1950s or 1960s, when everyone followed suit.”
With the Covid epidemic, the desire has awakened. After their first seizure, 41% of French people said they wanted more exposure to the sun (1). An even greater need among women and youth. “For two years we have missed the sun a lot, and artificial light does not replace the experience of tanning: the place, swimming, bathing suit… It is a real ritual, there is a whole socialization that is put in place and which: is of vital importance,” says Professor Bernard Andrieu. Better informed consumers prefer a more “rational” tan. Even looking too tanned becomes distasteful. Either a sign that we are taking it a little too lightly, or that we are neglecting our health. Too pale? Also suspicious. Sunburn. Masochism or absolute negligence. In 2022, the ideal is to have a little tan “with a beautiful healthy complexion,” adds Michel Sayag. The new challenge, according to experts. Get an “eco” tan that respects both your skin and the environment. A responsible couple is always more stable.
(1) OpinionWay survey conducted for the Federation of Beauty Companies (Febea), July 2020.
(2) 2021: Ipsos for the National Society of Dermatologists and Venereologists.
(3) Safe Study for Avène.
Source: Le Figaro
