Eight Natural Home Remedies for Sunburned Skin

Summer is here and can be really difficult to resist the temptation of the great outdoors. And sunburn is definitely a real threat to the skin, for sometimes our sun protection may be or become inadequate — remember that not all sun block lotions are waterproof and have to be reapplied after each trip to the water.

At some time or the other we all have experienced the painful effects of sunburn – light or heavy — but we do not always remember the pain and/or discomfort it causes afterward. While we promise to remember to protect our skin from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays better next time, we tend to forget all that in the excitement of going to the beach, snorkeling or diving, climbing a mountain, or even just playing in the park.

In case you find yourself spending too much time under the sun, here’s a little help in soothing the painful sting accompanying sunburn, by using simple home remedies to assist the body’s healing process.

Natural Home Remedies For Sunburn:

1. Cool Milk Remedy: Soak a soft cloth or cotton gauze in chilled or cool whole milk or buttermilk and dab this compress onto the burned portions of your skin. Use whole milk or buttermilk because their high fat content properties are important to the treatment, as fat and lactic acids in milk are known to have soothing qualities. Do this for around 20 minutes, and follow by rinsing off with cool water.

2. Cool Tea Remedy: The tannin in tea is the active ingredient that helps soothe and relieve some of the pain and discomfort of sunburned skin. Brew a big pot of tea (do not add sugar or anything else to the tea), then allow it to cool completely, and again soak a soft cloth with the tea and apply the liquid to the affected skin area.  While you could also use a sponge or a soft washcloth for this purpose, it is also possible to fill up a spray bottle and spray the tea directly to the skin.While any kind of tea will do, mint teas, such as peppermint or spearmint tea, will be particularly relieving.

As for the used teabags, cool them and place them around your eyes if they feel hot and tired. The tanning contains cooling properties that can help tone down some of the heat in your skin and soothe nerve endings damaged by sunburn.

3. Aloe Vera Remedy: Aloe Vera is the most common sunburn treatment used, providing soothing relief and assisting in the healing process. In case you have an aloe vera plant in your garden, extract some juice from the plant and apply to the sunburned areas as often as you wish. Aloe vera cream can be used for this purpose too, preferably the kind that has a higher concentration of Aloe Vera than water, other solvents or solutions. There’s usually an Aloe Vera cream or gel in the dresser or bathroom used by female members of your household and if there’s none to be found, know that they can be easily purchased over the counter in drug stores.

4. Apple Cider Vinegar Remedy: Apply apple cider vinegar to the burn with a cotton ball or make a cooling compress to relieve the pain over a large area. To keep the skin moistened, it may be better to use a spray bottle instead. This remedy will prevent blistering and peeling.

5. Cooking Oil Remedy: Cover the painful skin area with cooking oil and sprinkle powdered ginger on the oil. Believe it or not, this  will promote healing and relieve the discomfort.

6. Baking Soda Remedy: Dissolve some baking soda in water and use a soft cloth to make a compress. Another remedy is to add about hald a cup of baking soda to a tepid bath and soak in it for a while. Instead of toweling off, air dry the affected area because baking soda has cooling properties and will help the skin retain moisture.

7. Lemon Water Remedy: Squeeze three lemons and add the juice to two cups of cold water and apply the liquid mixture using a sponge on the sunburned areas of your skin. The lemon will cool the sunburn, act as a disinfectant, and will promote the healing of the skin.

8. Warm Shower Remedy: There is nothing more tempting than to take a cold shower after an whole day under the sun, but relief from pain only comes while under the shower. The minute you turn it off, your body heats right back up again. But what many folks do not realize is that a warm shower helps draw out the body heat caused by a lengthy exposure to the sun, so that it is better to shower with warm water than with cold shower.

Lastly, we cannot over stress that drinking lots of water to replenish your lost fluids is important to help heal your body. Through prolonged exposure, your body loses the water and body salts that are essential to keeping your body hydrated. Dehydration occurs when your body loses too much fluid and begins to reabsorb fluid from the blood and other body tissues. Thus increasing your fluid intake ensures that you rehydrate your body adequately for optimum recovery and health.

Sunburn, of course, should be avoided at all times because its effects include damage to the skin such as blistering and painful peeling, skin discoloration such as freckles, premature wrinkling and the increased risk of skin cancer.

This article contains only immediate relief remedies but prevention and protection should always be a priority when engaging in outdoor activities. Please note that these are just natural home remedes and treatments only and should you be in doubt at any time as far as the extent of your sunburn is concerned, please seek the appropriate advice from medical and health care professionals.

Have a great summer!