tanTALK - Tanning Salon Business Owners Community - View Single Post - Are 308 nm and 311 nm better for vitamin D production?

HealthRaySeeker · 06-15-2012, 03:08 PM

Several sources state that vitamin D production peaks at 297 nm, and disappears by 315 nm. However, burning also greatly increases from 315 nm towards 297 nm. Some researchers claim from their measurements that the ratio of vitamin D production to burn speed is highest around 308 nm, since VD production is still half what it is at 297 nm, whereas the burn rate at 308 is less than 1/5 what it is at 297 nm. I read that the strongest burning occurs around 290 nm and shorter. The atmosphere blocks rays below 290 nm, though many lizard lights have rays down to 270 nm.

I can't find any place that sells a 308 nm light, which uses xenon chloride. However, the 311 nanometer lights are much more common, sold many places, but require prescriptions. They can be found by googling "narrowspectrum uvb", or maybe it was "narrow band uvb".

So, my question:

Should we try to incorporate more energy in the 306-312 nm range into our tanning beds and try to filter out more of the rays that are under 300 nm? Or is it better to just stick to copying the sun's spectrum?

I also read that as vitamin D builds up in the skin, shorter wavelength uvb starts to break it down, preventing too much build up, and that this is in addition to the skin somehow switching from making vitamin D to making pink melanin once enough vitamin D has been made.

06-15-2012, 03:08 PM	#1 (permalink)
HealthRaySeeker Join Date: Jun 15 2012 Posts: 3 Rep Power: 0	Are 308 nm and 311 nm better for vitamin D production? Several sources state that vitamin D production peaks at 297 nm, and disappears by 315 nm. However, burning also greatly increases from 315 nm towards 297 nm. Some researchers claim from their measurements that the ratio of vitamin D production to burn speed is highest around 308 nm, since VD production is still half what it is at 297 nm, whereas the burn rate at 308 is less than 1/5 what it is at 297 nm. I read that the strongest burning occurs around 290 nm and shorter. The atmosphere blocks rays below 290 nm, though many lizard lights have rays down to 270 nm. I can't find any place that sells a 308 nm light, which uses xenon chloride. However, the 311 nanometer lights are much more common, sold many places, but require prescriptions. They can be found by googling "narrowspectrum uvb", or maybe it was "narrow band uvb". So, my question: Should we try to incorporate more energy in the 306-312 nm range into our tanning beds and try to filter out more of the rays that are under 300 nm? Or is it better to just stick to copying the sun's spectrum? I also read that as vitamin D builds up in the skin, shorter wavelength uvb starts to break it down, preventing too much build up, and that this is in addition to the skin somehow switching from making vitamin D to making pink melanin once enough vitamin D has been made.