Sunburn Remedies

When was the last time you got a sunburn? It was painful, wasn't it? Maybe embarrassing, too, because sunburns don't look pretty, especially when they start to peel.

Sunburned skin is burned skin and must be treated gently. Sunburns should be seen by a doctor if they cause you severe pain, you're covered with blisters, or you have a fever with exhaustion.

Most sunburns are not so extreme as to need medical care, and can be treated at home with some common sense.

First, don't shower or bathe right after coming in from a sunburning session. This strips away natural oils and leaves your skin without any protection from the drying effect of the burn. If you're really dirty, use a cloth saturated with mineral or olive oil and gently dab or wipe at the dirt. Don't scrub; be as gentle as possible.

The only time you need to bathe after sun exposure is when your skin has been exposed to chlorine in a swimming pool. Then rinse, don't scrub and don't use soap, which will strip away natural oils. Plain water will remove the chlorine and keep it from drying your skin. Again, if there is real dirt involved, use mineral or olive oil to remove it. Blot yourself dry gently.

Do put water inside yourself, though. If you're sunburned, you need hydration. Your body can lose over a quart of water an hour when you're out in the hot sun. It can be critical to replace that, especially if you drank caffeine loaded beverages such as some soft drinks or iced tea or coffee.

Ok, now you're clean, but the sunburn burns!

Remember that burned skin is hot, and removing the heat is the key to start the healing process. There are several ways to cool it and help speed recovery.

1. Vinegar is cooling and soothing and it's even been claimed that red vinegar will help you tan. Fill a spray bottle with apple cider vinegar and spray it on the sunburn as often as necessary. For large areas, soak a cloth in vinegar and put it over the burned area, turning it often to keep the coolest place next to the skin.

2. Cool, sugarless tea is good for sensitive areas, such as around the eyes. If your eyes feel hot and tired, place used and cooled tea bags over them as well. Tannin in the tea helps the skin recover.

3. Peppermint tea is cooling, but don't use too much of it, as you can get a chill from it if you're overheated from the sunburn.

4. Aloe vera is a well known remedy - so well known that many commercial sunburn soothers include it in their formulas. (You don't need to buy bottles of the stuff, though, if you have your own aloe vera plant). It does cool and help heal burned skin, but if you buy it by the bottle, don't keep it more than about three months. The aloe loses its effectiveness over that period of time and that means if you have some left from last year, throw it out. It won't do you much good, if any.

5. If you've got an area that's really burned, separate the white from the yolk of an egg and apply the white over the burning area as soon as you can. The egg white will draw the burn - and yes, you can sometimes see egg white start to "cook" when placed on burned skin. It really does draw the heat.

Once the heat and pain is dealt with, slather on lotion or oils, but don't use lotion that has alcohol in it (you'd be surprised how many do; check the label). Olive oil is very good for damaged skin because it's close to natural skin oils. You won't have to worry about it staining clothing, either, and it's pure, without other ingredients that may irritate your already sensitive skin.

Time will heal sunburns, of course, but these remedies can help speed the healing and keep you more comfortable meanwhile.