You know the drill: Apply sunscreen 30 minutes before stepping out and reapply it every two hours. That’s the best you can do to avoid skin damage from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays. If by any chance, you stepped out without the protective layer or forgot to reapply and ended up with redness and rashes, we’re here to tell you how to treat sunburn. But before we get into sunburn skin treatment, here’s a small disclaimer: If your skin is severely burnt and you have blisters and are in pain, please visit a doc. However, if it’s a minor burn or rash, read on for some useful tips for treatment of sunburnt skin.
How To Treat Sunburn At Home
- Take A Cold Shower
- Draw An Oatmeal Bath
- Reach For Ice
- Apply Cool, Freshly-Brewed Tea
- Slap On A Cucumber Pack
- Slather On Some Aloe Vera
- Apply Toothpaste
- Moisturise With Coconut Oil
- Try Vitamin E Oil For Quick Healing
- Good-Old Potato To The Rescue
Prolonged and unprotected exposure to sun’s rays can lead to pigmentation and early signs of ageing like wrinkles and fine lines. It can also lead to skin cancer and what you’re possibly currently dealing with–sunburns. Once you get a sunburn, the damage is already done. While you can’t do anything to reverse it, you must immediately focus on treatment of sunburnt skin. If you’re wondering how to soothe and relieve your skin instantly, we’re here to tell you all about how to treat sunburn at home. Check out these ten easy and effective home remedies for sunburn skin treatment:
Take A Cold Shower
This should be your immediate sunburn skin treatment if your skin feels burnt and irritated post sun exposure. All you need to do is stand under a cold shower and steer clear of using any soap or product on your skin. The idea is to soothe the skin and not toy with the already-irritated skin by using soaps that can leave it dry.
Draw An Oatmeal Bath
Oatmeal has moisturising and skin-calming properties. Just grind the oats in your food processor at home and add the powder to your bath. Take a dip and soak in the goodness of oatmeal for the treatment of sunburnt skin. You will feel relieved instantly. In fact, you can combine this with a cold shower for additional comfort.
Reach For Ice
If the cold shower doesn’t cut it, the next step for treatment of sunburnt skin is to use ice packs on the affected areas. You can even pour water into a bowl and throw in some ice cubes. Dip a clean, soft cloth into it and wipe your body gently to calm your skin.
Apply Cool, Freshly-Brewed Tea
Teas like chamomile tea have skin-soothing properties. They’re also rich in antioxidants. When it comes to treatment of sunburnt skin, they can help fasten the healing process and relieve inflammation and burning sensation. You can cool down some freshly brewed tea, dip a cloth and apply it on the affected areas. You can even dip a chamomile tea bag in cold water and use it as a face pack.
Slap On A Cucumber Pack
Cucumbers are one of the coolest vegetables–quite literally. If you’re wondering how to treat sunburn on face fast, this veggie is your answer. You can grate it, squeeze out the juice, put it in the freezer, and apply the cold liquid evenly on the affected area. Its cooling properties can give you some much-needed respite from the burning sensation.
Slather On Some Aloe Vera
Just break the leaf and scoop out the gel. Or keep organic aloe vera gel handy and apply it on for quick sunburn skin treatment. Trust us, it’s worth every penny because aloe vera is the next big thing in the skincare market. It has a host of proven benefits like damage repair, healing, soothing, and moisturising.
Apply Toothpaste
How to treat sunburn with toothpaste, you wonder? Well, just apply one that contains menthol on the burnt area. The cooling properties of this ingredient will instantly tone down the burning sensation. Leave it on for 30 minutes and rinse it off with water. Reapply after some time if you feel the burning again.
Moisturise With Coconut Oil
Coconut oil can help in the treatment of sunburnt skin. It is rich in lipids, a type of fat, which speeds up the healing process of the skin. Coconut oil is also extremely hydrating and can prevent the burnt skin from getting excessively dry. It can also soothe itching and irritation when the burnt skin peels off.
Try Vitamin E Oil For Quick Healing
Vitamin E oils are easily available at drugstores. They too can help a lot with the treatment of sunburnt skin. The vitamin is an antioxidant itself. It can speed up the healing process and reduce inflammation caused by the sun’s heat. Pat it gently into the affected area for visible results.
Good-Old Potato To The Rescue
Mash a boiled potato and add a table spoon of ice-cold water. Apply the thick mixture on the burt areas. It can contribute hugely to your sunburn skin treatment. The starch in potatoes can draw out heat and relieve the burning sensation instantly.
POPxo Recommends Best Sunscreens
While focussing on the treatment of sunburnt skin, it is important to eliminate sun exposure completely to let your skin heal. However, if stepping out is unavoidable, you must apply sunscreen before doing so. This is because your irritated skin is already in a vulnerable state. Direct sun exposure is just going to damage it further. In fact, sunburn or not, you must always step out with a sunscreen on. Here are the 5 best sunscreens that are safe, effective, and provide lasting protection:
Kiwi & Coconut Sunscreen
This SPF30 sunscreen is packed with the goodness of coconut and kiwi. It is a broad-spectrum sunscreen and offers protection from UVA and UVB rays of the sun. It has a light-weight, non-greasy formula and is suitable for all skin types.
Manish Malhotra Sandalwood SPF 25 Gel
It is made from pure, concentrated aloe vera juice and enriched with Ayurvedic ingredients like sandalwood. It is lightweight, quick absorbing and deeply nourishes dull, dehydrated skin. It also helps keep bacterial infections at bay.
St. Botanica’s Vitamin C SPF 50 Sun Block
This water-resistant sunscreen shields the skin from UVA and UVB rays for a long time. It comes in the form of a face and body mist and can be sprayed easily while on the go.
Organic Harvest SPF 60 Sunscreen
Made with blue light technology, it provides broad-spectrum protection to the skin from sun’s UVA and UVB rays as well as blue light of electronic devices. It has a non-greasy and quick-absorbing formula and is made with certified organic ingredients.
With these sunscreens in your kitty, you can step out without worrying about skin damage from the sun. Just remember to reapply every 2-3 hours.
Also Read
How to treat sunburned lips: The sun can damage your lips too as the skin on your lips is sensitive to heat and sun exposure. Here’s how to protect your lips while stepping out.
Difference between mineral and chemical sunscreen: While picking out your sunblock, it’s important to know about the ingredients and their effect on your skin.
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