If ever water had a competitor for the most multi-faceted, multi-use beverage, Coca-Cola would be it. By now, many of us have seen the frightening yet eerily useful YouTube videos of people using the thirst-quenching soda to execute a number of tasks on your Sunday cleaning list. It’s been used to scrub toilet bowls, remove rust from surfaces, and even makes a tasty BBQ sauce. Though as reported by Allure, the soda gods have blessed cursed us with another use: self-tanner.
That’s right: Apparently, people are pouring on the high-acid beverage to get the perfect tan. "While some feel that Coca-Cola can speed up your tan, it actually can be dangerous, and I recommend staying away from it," said skin expert Joshua Zeichner to Allure. Zeichner is the director of cosmetic and clinical research in dermatology at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City.
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Considering the dangers of too much sun, that mixed with the fact that Coke and other sodas are high in acid leads to a number of health risks.
"Applying [Coca-Cola] to the skin may lead to a temporary darkening or staining of the skin, but because sodas are acidic, it may exfoliate dead cells, enhancing the ability of UV light [to] penetrate into the skin. Ultimately, this may increase your risk of a sunburn," explained Zeichner.
And we know that sunburn can lead to melanoma and other types of skin cancers. So while, yes, we’re a sucker for a good beauty hack, this is one trick that we do not recommend.
However, with so many safe skin-illuminating products on the shelves, who needs a Coke?