Sunburn occurs when you have exposed yourself to the sun for extended period of time without wearing clothing or sunblock to shield your body from the sun’s harmful ultra violent rays. In fact, the full extent of your sunburn might not become evident until 12 to 24 hours after your initial exposure to the sun. Once you have sunburn, it can take several days to clear up. How to get rid of sunburn? Unfortunately, there is nothing you can do to reverse the condition, although several simple treatments can help ease the pain and aid the healing process.
One of the simplest things you can do to help relieve your sunburn symptoms is simply to take a cold bath or shower. The cold water will help decrease the temperature of the skin that has been burned. However, depending on the temperature of the water, you should not stay in the shower or bath for more than about 10 minutes to keep from excessively lowering your overall body temperature.
You can accomplish a similar goal in between showers by applying cool, damp cloths to your burned skin. Simply dampen a towel with cool water and lay it on the impacted part of your body. Repeat when the moistened towel starts to warm or dry. Additionally, if you place several cubes of ice inside a plastic bag and place that inside a dampened towel, the fabric will stay continuously cool as the ice melts.
Keeping your skin moist will help it heal faster. You can help ensure sufficient moisture levels by liberally apply moisturizing lotion to the affected area. Lotions that contain aloe vera can be particularly soothing. However, you should make sure that the lotion does not contain alcohol, as that can dry out and irritate sunburned skin. Additionally, stay away from creams that contain benzocaine. While some people tout the effectiveness of this product in treating sunburn, many doctors caution that benzocaine-containing creams can actually irritate the skin, and in rare cases restrict the amount of oxygen blood can carry, potentially even causing death. If you are in any doubt about the proper lotion to use, consult with your physician.
A more severe sunburn may blister; this is known as a second degree sunburn. Although it may be tempting to pop the sunburn blisters to relieve their pressure, you should leave them alone. If you pop the blisters, they could become infected. To protect them, you can cover the blisters with clean gauze. That way if they pop on their own, the gauze will absorb the pus and prevent dirt from entering them.
Over-the-counter pain relievers can help reduce the inflammation caused by the sunburn. The most popular pain relievers are aspirin or ibuprofen; children and teenagers, however, should not take aspirin. Again, rely on your doctor’s advice if you have any confusion on which medication is appropriate.
As the sunburn starts to heal, the damaged skin may peel. Do not pull this peeling skin off; let it fall off naturally to avoid damaging the skin underneath. Additionally, peeling skin is often very dry, so continue applying moisturizing lotion to keep it as hydrated as possible. Visit your doctor if a fever develops along with the sunburn, if the sunburn covers a large portion of your body and develops severe blisters or if the sunburn does not improve within a few days.
To avoid becoming sunburned again, limit the time you spend in direct sunlight, especially during the middle part of the day. Also, always use sunscreen while you are performing outdoor activities. Your sunscreen should have a minimum SPF of 15 and should be reapplied several times throughout the day if you are still outside. The possibility of becoming sunburned does not mean you cannot enjoy being outdoors; it simply means you must take proper precautions beforehand.
Post contributed by Emma Lamb, on behalf of HairFree
REFERENCES
Mayo Clinic; Sunburn Treatment: What Works?
National Health Service; Sunburn – Treatment
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