The Quick Sunburn Guide

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By: May Rostom

We all love the beach, the white hot sand, the cinnamon tans, and our
new bathing suits, but no one wants to go through bad sunburn.

Sunburns result from excessive sun exposure whether at the beach,
fishing, doing some yard work, or jumping into a tanning bed. It is a
burn on the skin caused by ultraviolet radiation therefore causing skin
inflammation/ redness. It takes around 2-6 hours for the skin to show
inflammation and 12-24 hours to peak after sun exposure, if not treated
immediately; sunburn may cause skin damage.

Dizziness, nausea and vomiting, fever, chills, headache, blisters, and
peeling are other symptoms of sunburn; depending on the degree of the
burn one should consult a doctor.

Sunburn can be prevented by using sun block of a SPF of at least 30,
half an hour before sun exposure and re-applied every other hour. To
treat your current mild inflammation/ sunburn, start by avoiding sun
exposure until the redness disappears.

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Pain medication like aspirin or ibuprofen can be useful in decreasing the pain but that should be used as a last resort.

To calm down the itching, apply aloe vera gel on the inflamed area three
times daily for its known soothing properties. Cool compresses of milk
and water may also be helpful in relieving the itch. Calamine lotion
containing an anti-histaminic can be very effective as well. Apply any
of these using a soft cotton ball and rub gently in circular motion,
repeat every 8 hours, taking a cold bath before every application for a
temporary cooling down effect.

When getting out of the shower, pat dry skin, do not scrub or exfoliate
your skin to avoid peeling and make sure you wear loose-fitting clothes.

Staying hydrated can also help your skin on the inside, so drink plenty
of fluids. Cosmetics containing alcohol/ fragrance are to be avoided
(perfume, scented moisturizers, makeup) to avoid further inflammation of
the skin.

Don’t peel nor scratch the skin under any circumstance to avoid peeling
and scarring. Just remember, next time you hit the beach, don’t forget
your sun block, you don’t want to have to go through all of this again.