EXCLUSIVE I paid £25 for a quick fix to get a better tan - but I've been left with irreversible damage on my face
Jen Atkins, 32, from Grimsby, won Miss Great Britain in 2020. But after using a £25 nasal spray that arrived with little more than a leaflet for instructions, she was left with dark, patchy marks on her skin that no treatment has been able to reverse.
'I just wanted to look good - no matter what the consequences were,' she told FEMAIL. 'Now I regret it so much.'
Nasal tanning sprays, which are currently illegal in the UK and carry several health warnings, contain an artificial substance called Melanotan II, which stimulates the body's production of melanin and makes the skin look darker.
Jen had tried tanning injections in the past but disliked needles. So when a nasal tanning spray landed in her Instagram inbox, it seemed like an ideal solution - and she had no idea that the spray would have lasting consequences for her body.
'It made me feel important,' she said. 'Especially back then - I didn't used to get offers from companies. Tanning was right up my street.'
The spray came with vague instructions and no real warning. 'I wish I'd looked into it. I never asked anyone, I just accepted it,' she admitted.
'I remember taking it one morning just before work. It said it would work even without sunbeds. But I felt so ill - I could barely drive. I felt like I was going to be sick, my face felt sunburnt.'
Despite the reaction, she tried it again the next day. 'It was even worse,' she said. 'I had to stop using it. It made me feel so funny.'
Soon after, Jen went on holiday to Mexico - and that's when the pigmentation started to appear. 'It developed so quickly. It was such a shock. I tried to do everything to stop it - I wore suncream, a hat. It's never gone since.'
The marks - darkened, uneven patches across Jen's forehead - have now been present for over four years.
'I've tried creams, facials, exfoliants. It's horrific. Even with concealer you can still see it,' she said. 'When I started playing football, this girl said, "You've got some muck on your forehead." That was really hurtful. I had to explain it wasn't muck.'
Jen says she didn't go to a doctor initially - she simply hoped the marks would fade, but they didn't.
'Someone pointed it out to me in a restaurant and said, "Don't worry, it happens." I thought - what happens?' she said. 'I knew straight away it was because of the nasal spray.'
Although she's since made the permanent switch to fake tan, Jen says the damage has been lasting, both physically and emotionally.
However, she's overcoming her embarrassment to share her story with the world in the hope of deterring others from using such sprays to enhance their bronzed hue, and has made television appearances in recent months.
'It took so much for me to go on This Morning and talk about it,' she said of her recent TV appearance. 'It's embarrassing, but I want to spread awareness. I don't even go on sunbeds anymore.'
Jen had built a life in the public eye - as a model, a pageant winner and a country singer. Now, she says, all of that has been put on hold.
'Since I won Miss Great Britain, I've barely done anything,' she said. 'It really affected my confidence. There are points now where I'm just so self-conscious. When something makes you feel that way, it makes you question everything else.'
'Because it's right on my face, I can see people staring. It makes me feel so awkward - I'm not confrontational enough to ask what they're looking at. I used to model all the time. Now I do absolutely none of it, out of fear.'
The impact on her career has been profound. 'I work an admin job now, and I'll probably do that until I die,' she said.
'I used to be a country singer - I released music, I did gigs - but I've just not had the confidence to do that again. I still write songs, but they don't leave my house.'
'I feel like what I achieved in life was because of how I used to look,' Jen continued. 'I do think I've got a good personality, but I think my looks helped me. Meeting people, modelling, travelling for work. Even with singing - it helps.'
Despite her success, Jen says she never thought of herself as particularly gifted. 'I've got little bits of talent that are not great. I'm an okay singer, but I've never been really good at anything. It was just a mixture of stuff that got me places.'
Now, she wants young women to understand the risks of these quick-fix beauty products. Nasal tanning sprays, many of which are illegally sold online and contain Melanotan II, are not approved for use in the UK.
Melanotan II stimulates melanin production and, while it can darken the skin, it's not properly regulated. Users are often unaware of the correct dosage, the long-term side effects or how the chemical might interact with their body.
These sprays can cause nausea, vomiting, increased blood pressure and, as in Jen's case, changes to skin pigmentation.
Because they are largely untested and unregulated, the risk factors remain unknown - particularly when taken without medical supervision.
In May, the Chartered Trading Standards Institute issued an urgent warning against the use of tanning sprays, or any other tanning product that is 'inhaled or ingested'.
The Melanoma Fund has also warned that use of the products 'may also encourage abnormal skin cell changes in response to UV exposure'.
The CTSI also raised the alarm on the growing trend of people using flavoured nasal tanning sprays, drops and gummies.
They warned that 'unscrupulous' sellers on Facebook and TikTok were posting pictures of the products available in child-friendly flavours such as peach, bubblegum, grape, strawberry and lime.
The regulator said it feared they could become the latest 'must have' products among young people 'leading to a youth epidemic as we saw with disposable vapes'.
Susanna Daniels, chief executive of the skin-cancer charity Melanoma Focus, said: 'We're becoming increasingly concerned about the use of both nasal tanning sprays and tanning injections and their potential links with melanoma skin cancer.
'These unregulated and illegal products not only pose serious health risks but also encourage harmful behaviours, particularly among young consumers.
'We urge the public to consider the long-term impacts on their health and avoid using these substances altogether.'
'Don't rush into it,' Jen warned. 'Do your research. We only have one body, and a lot of these products can affect you in irreversible ways. Make sure you know what you're putting into your body.'
Jen also believes social media and influencer culture have played a huge part in fuelling demand for unsafe beauty products.
'One hundred per cent,' she said. 'I used to be a massive fan of Love Island, but I haven't watched it the last three years because it annoys me. I think we've lost the meaning of the word influencer.'
'I always wanted to be an influencer. But people want it now for the wrong reasons. We're supposed to use our following to promote good things.
'These days, people will promote anything if they're paid or get free stuff. They don't care what they're promoting, it's about self-importance, money and fame, and it's a shame.
'I could have promoted that nasal tan,' she added. 'There are so many who will post anything, no matter how damaging it could be to their followers.'
While she's no longer in the spotlight, Jen says the experience has changed her relationship with beauty and how she treats her body.
'I look after myself more now,' she said. 'I haven't used sunbeds in about three years. It's made me realise that things can happen to you - even if you think they won't.'
'More than anything,' she added, 'it's just made me really self-conscious.'
Jen's story, while concerning, is not the only frightening consequence of using tanning nasal sprays.
Last year, Edith Eagle, from King's Lynn, Norfolk, revealed how the £25 spray she bought to enhance her bronze glow almost killed her.
The mother-of-four, who works as a chef, was left unable to breathe when her face ballooned as the tanning spray she bought online 'poisoned' her on holiday.
Ms Egale woke up on the second day of her family holiday last April with a swollen face and struggling to breathe. Hospital staff acted quickly and treated her with a high dose of steroids and discharged later that day. But she said it took more than a week for her symptoms to subside
Edith woke up on the second day of her holiday with a swollen face, which left her unrecognisable to family, and struggling to breathe. The 'frightening' incident saw her rushed to hospital.
She was treated with a high dose of steroids after being rushed to the nearest hospital on the Canary island.
Shocking pictures of the incident show her lying in a hospital bed.
Edith, who also owns a wedding venue with husband Carl Fox, 54, believes she suffered an allergic reaction to something in the spray, and is urging others to avoid using similar products.
She said the ingredients weren't listed on the label of the product, meaning she doesn't know what she was allergic to.
She used the tan after step-daughter Kayla Fox, 33, suggested getting nasal spray as a way of getting a quicker tan.
'I googled it and saw it pop up online and ordered it,' Edith said. 'I think I paid £25 for the bottle. I like being tanned because I prefer not using makeup. I always liked looking fresh-looking with a tan.
'On the first day, we were so brown, I've never experienced anything like it. I was very tanned after one day.
'But the next morning, I woke up and realised I couldn't breathe properly. I then noticed I was completely swollen. I was so out of breath and had to concentrate so much on breathing. It was really difficult to breathe.
'My neck was so swollen that my necklace was tight. I was just swollen everywhere. I realised it must be an allergic reaction.'
She added: 'There's no ingredients on the bottle — you don't know what you're putting in the body.'
Edith contacted the hotel reception who called a taxi to drive her to the nearest hospital, where she was fast-tracked through the emergency department.
Hospital staff have her a high dose of steroids and discharged her later that day.
But she said it took more than a week for her symptoms to fully subside.
'I said to the consultant the only thing I've done differently this week is take this nasal spray,' she said.
'I've never had an allergic reaction in my whole life to any foods or anything. I think it was definitely the spray.
'I wouldn't be standing here if the hospital staff hadn't acted so quickly. I was rushed straight through. It was so frightening.'
Since the incident she has seen other people post about similar reactions to tanning nasal sprays on social media.
Ms Eagle said she could have 'died that day'.
'If they hadn't been so hands-on that day in the hospital, I wouldn't be here to tell the tale,' she said.
'I will never again buy anything like this again - especially from the internet. How they can sell sprays with no ingredients listed is so worrying. I'd rather not have a tan.
'It was frightening for my family to see me like that. I feel grateful to be alive.
'Please don't make the same mistake as me. If this can save someone's life then I would rather suffer for anyone else before they make a stupid decision like me! I blame myself,' she added.
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