SCOTS are bucking the UK trend by increasing their appetite for using products to look bronzed and beautiful as concerns are raised by soaring numbers of skin cancer cases.

Fake tan may be a must on BBC TV's Strictly Come Dancing but new research reveals that usage of self-tan products is declining, except north of the Border.

And some say it could be helping to save lives as it is considered the safest and most convenient way to get a golden glow.

The latest figures from consumer market research specialists Mintel show that the number of Scots dying of skin cancer has doubled in the past 25 years, from 85 cases in 1990 to 176 in 2014.

Natalie McMullan, owner of Breagh Beauty in Cambuslang said: "All in all Scottish people hate to be pasty - a tan is seen as healthy and necessary, especially so for the younger generation still at school where beauty whether it be in salon but more likely at home is big business. More people are doing their own tan now so that they can afford a 'big blow dry' and make-up.

"There seems to be a rise in the number of clients doing at-home self tanning - probably because at-home products are less orangey, cheaper and becoming easier to apply.

Scots make-up artist Gillian Galbraith said :"I think people in Scotland still love a fake tan due to the fact we don't get so much actual sun. Having a fake tan on makes you feel better and look healthier with none of the skin damage.

"That said the dark/ orange fake tans are a thing of the past and a healthy glow is the desired look."

The Mintel research shows that as Brits forego the bottle for a more natural glow, usage of self-tanning products have witnessed a sharp decline in the past year with just over one in ten (13per cent) Brits having used self-tan products, compared to 17 per cent in the previous year.

And it is not just self-tan usage that is declining in Britain. Over the same time period, usage of gradual tanners has fallen from 15 per cent to 13 per cent in 2015.

Meanwhile, in-salon services have taken a tumble too, with usage of a sunbed or tanning salon dropping from 11 per cent to eight per cent, and the proportion of consumers having a salon spray with tan dipping two percentage-points over the past year to just seven per cent.

But in Scotland it is a different story where,the desire to be safe and the appetite for copying the perma-tanned physiques of the cast of The Only Way Is Essex (TOWIE) has meant that 15 per cent of Scottish consumers have used self-tan products compared to 12 per cent in the previous year.

Over the same time period, usage of gradual tanners has risen from 10 per cent to 15 per cent in 2015.

Even the proportion of Scots consumers having a salon spray with tan has risen, from six per cent to ten per cent.

Scottish actress Sheila Reid is one of the more high-profile users of fake tan, albeit in her role as Madge, Britain’s most glamorous granny in the TV series Benidorm.

The research showed women (17per cent) are almost twice as likely as men (9per cent) to be users of self- tan, while usage falls dramatically with age, declining from over a fifth (21per cent) of 16-34 year olds to just one in ten (11per cent) 35-44 year olds.

And we appear to be more cautious about exposure to the sun, with 15per cent of Scots saying they wear sun protection all year round, including in winter, compared to 13per cent of all Brits.

Of Scots who do not wear sun protection all year round, 18per cent say this is because they like to be tanned, compared to the UK average of 22per cent.

And 61per cent of Scots who’ve used sun protection in the last 12 months only wear it when it is sunny outside, whilst around one quarter 22per cent only wear it when on holiday.