Most sunburns heal on their own and shouldn’t be a serious problem. But if you have made a mistake using too low a sunscreen or forgot to put cream on any area of the body and the burns are painful, annoying and even worrying, they cannot be ignored. So take note of how to cure sunburn at home and start taking care of your skin now.
How to cure sunburn
Basic tips
The first thing to do is lower the temperature of the skin with a cold shower or applying wet compresses. If you opt for the shower, the water has to be a little cold but not icy because that would aggravate the burns.
The second step is to hydrate the skin with creams or gels that contain aloe vera or a calamine lotion. What to avoid are -caine-finished products, such as benzocaine or lidocaine. These creams can be very irritating to burned skin and even cause allergic reactions. Its use is strongly discouraged.
And not only do you have to hydrate the skin, because of a burn the body loses a lot of fluids, so you have to drink a lot of water or natural juices to avoid dehydration .
Calm the pain
If the burns are very serious, we are likely to feel pain and a lot of discomfort. The best for these cases is to take an analgesic such as paracetamol or an anti-inflammatory such as ibuprofen , both available over the counter in Spain.
It is also very important not to scratch the skin because it could become irritated and even suffer from a bacterial superinfection.
What products can be used?
There are products that are normally at home and can go very well to soothe the pain of burns, and not just sunburns. Milk is one of these products. The fatty acids and lactic acids in milk have soothing properties that can go a long way in relieving pain in the affected area. It can be applied carefully with a cloth or cotton gauze. Another very useful dairy is yogurt, which keeps the skin moist with its proteins .
A solution of baking soda , mixed with water to form a kind of paste, can also go very well to relieve pain . Or vinegar , although in this case it is very important to dilute it in water or it could irritate the area even more . For each tablespoon of vinegar, one liter of water should be used.
And finally, aloe vera , which has become one of the star products in recent years due to its anti-inflammatory and emollient properties . It can be applied directly on the burn.
What products cannot be used?
There are a number of products that have been commonly associated with healing burns and relieving their pain in the wrong way:
- Ice : like very cold water can make the burn worse.
- Potato skin : can cause infections.
- Honey : tends to dehydrate the wound.
- Iodine : it is very drying and abrasive on recent burns.
- Oil and toothpaste : These products could infect the area when burns have made wounds or blisters. They can only be used with minor first degree burns.
When to go to the doctor?
When a sunburn has wounded or caused the appearance of blisters, and especially if it causes fever , it is best to go to the doctor to make an assessment of the damage and send the appropriate treatment. In addition to medication, your doctor will probably recommend staying out of the sun for a season to avoid complications.
To avoid this unpleasant situation, it is best to use a high sunscreen, avoid exposure to the sun between 10 am and 4 pm, especially in summer, and wear a hat and sunglasses. In babies under 6 months it is best to avoid the sun completely.
