Are Tanning Peptides the Secret to Beautiful Skin and Radiant Confidence? Maybe….There is a Lot to Uncover.

In Western cultures, tanned skin is associated with health, wealth, and leisure.

So for the last decade men and women have been roasting themselves in the sun in hopes of achieving the perfect golden glow.

But it has come at a cost-blistered skin, wrinkled faces, basal cell carcinoma….you get it.

Now we have tanning peptides which help the body produce more melanin and in turn naturally darken the skin.

But….Is it safe?? how do I use it?? What results can I expect?? I aim to answer that all here…but if you cant find it here feel free to shoot me a message.

I will get back to you with the best possible answer I can. Just don’t expect it anytime soon….I have 2 kids….enough said.

Tanning peptides are synthetic short chain amino acids that stimulate the bodies production of melanin:

Melanin is the pigment that gives our skin its color. If you increase the melanin you increase the tan….simple right?

Tanning peptides are composed of chains of amino acids and are injected. There are a few companies that make topical (you rub it on your skin) peptides but they suck. Yes they do suck-just read the reviews on them or take my word for it…..I tried them.

Tanning peptides work by replicating α- melanocyte stimulating hormone in the body. This hormone binds to melanocortin receptors and stimulates the production of melanin in skin cells. This means that with a small amount of ultraviolet radiation, the release of α-MSH will stimulate the natural increase of melanin production by melanocytes in the skin. The more melanin produced by skin cells, the darker your skin will be.

Tanning peptides give you a way to achieve a natural-looking tan without exposing your skin to potentially harmful UV radiation. When used correctly, these peptides can provide you with a beautiful and long-lasting tan with minimal effort.

Early studies are showing that tanning peptides are safe but research so far is minimal.

So far there have been three phase 1 clinical trials investigating the safety of combining the super potent melanotropic peptide, melanotan-1 (MT-1), with UV-B light or sunlight to stimulate tanning.

What the hell does that mean you may be asking?

That means that there have been three trials testing tanning peptides with only minimal side effects. The trials involved administering MT-1 (MT-1 is the fancy way of saying tanning peptide) at two dose levels and irradiating various skin sites. The results showed that MT-1 can be safely combined with UV-B light or sunlight and appears to act synergistically in the tanning response to light.

There were a few side effects. The two side effects that were most often felt were nausea and facial flushing. Mostly said to not be a big deal 🤷‍♀️

The actual report can be found here: Effects of a superpotent melanotropic peptide in combination with solar UV radiation on tanning of the skin in human

There are also links in the article to all three of the trials.

Perfect I’m ready to go-a new me is gonna be here in no time!

Well not so fast- While the study results showed that the use of tanning peptides in combination with sunlight was safe and effective in inducing tanning, the study did not provide information on the long-term effects of MT-1 use, such as the potential for skin cancer, the effects of prolonged MT-1 use, or the safety of higher doses over longer periods. Therefore, further research is needed to investigate the long-term safety and efficacy of MT-1 use in the context of tanning.

WTF kind of answer is that!

I realize this is kind of a cop-out answer, but it’s the reality. All three of these tests only assessed short term side effects. We just don’t know what the long term effects may be.

In general tanning peptides give users an increased tan with a better overall appearance.

The results of using tanning peptides vary from person to person, but in general, you can expect to see an improvement in your skin’s overall appearance and texture. Most people report that their skin looks and feels smoother, more even-toned, and more youthful. It can also reduce the appearance of age spots, acne scars, and other discolorations. Additionally, many people who use tanning peptides notice a decrease in wrinkles, improved skin hydration and firmness, and even a darker, sun-kissed color on their skin. These results can typically be seen within several weeks of starting to use tanning peptides, with continued improvements over the next few months.

Where do we go from here?

Tanning peptides sound pretty awesome huh? I will say this…tanning peptides are great-the question is are they safe? After reading through hundreds of reviews (some were probably fake) almost everyone had a positive experience in regards to their appearance and skin color. Unfortunately many did experience side effects-most mentioned nausea and dizziness as the primary complaint.

Here is where things get dicey.

A few people had cancer diagnosis shortly after taking tanning peptides. Most of the users who had the cancer diagnosis had taken melanotan 2. In every instance I read the cancer was caught early and was curable. It is impossible for us to say if the melanotan-2 had anything to do with the cancer diagnosis. It is entirely possible the cancer was there long before taking the peptide. For this reason I personally wont take it-but that’s just my decision.

As said earlier I have used topical tanning peptides-they did nothing.

I have also used Melanotan-1. I liked it. As many people have said they don’t like the idea of having to inject it-I agree with this. I did not like injecting it either, but I must say it worked very well. My skin was at least a few shades darker-basically just where I wanted it. It looked very natural. I didn’t get comments saying WOW you look so tan and it didn’t look fake. It looked like I had spent a few hours working on a nice tan in the middle of summer. The only difference was this was November (I think-maybe it was December. Whatever.) I was very happy with it and come next winter I will probably use it again.

This is not entirely in line with what other users have experienced with tanning peptides. For instance many users state they did not see a change in skin color unless they were in the sun. I had very minimal sun exposure and wore jeans and t-shirts they entire time but still had a nice color change. Why? I have no F*****G clue…..it’s just what happened. 🤷‍♀️.

Lets wrap this up:

If you’ve been looking for a safe and effective way to tan your skin without having to lay in the sun, then tanning peptides could be the perfect solution. While there’s still some research that needs to be done to understand the full effects of using these peptides, the current studies look pretty good. With proper application and usage, these peptides can help you achieve beautiful results without worrying about harmful UV rays. Hopefully you find success with them!

Written by Alex Parton