I know this is an older post, but this is a question almost everyone asks!
DHA is powerful: it tans skin very easily. Because of this, the level of DHA needs to be perfectly balanced by the rest of the ingredients in the mixture so that your skin doesn’t become super-saturated and turn orange. It’s like Goldilocks and the Three Bears: too little and you don’t get tanned, too much and you’re turned into an orange monster. It’s finding that “just right” balance that is a struggle.
Easily burnt, easily tanned.
There is a set of guidelines that Estheticians use for determining how easily skin burns in sunlight, this is called the Fitzpatrick Scale. The Fitzpatrick Scale contains a checklist that you can follow to easily determine which skin type your client has. Some questions include:
--Does your client have light hair or freckles?
--Is your client able to achieve a tan, or simply burn and then instantly begin peeling?
--If your client can tan, how easily do they burn?
Because DHA reacts with the skin in much the same way that the sun does, this scale can be used when determining how much, and what type, of
tanning solution to use. The easier a person burns, the easier that person will tan (which also means the easier they will turn orange if you aren’t careful!).
Important: Even if you are using the best
solution on the market, you can still turn someone orange if you are using the wrong product for their skin type.
Generally speaking, people whose skin is fairer will require a formula that contains less DHA (and oppositely those with darker skin will usually require a more highly concentrated formula). Everyone’s skin is different and it’s important to note that there are exceptions to this rule.