any advice on soothing sunburn?

Answer 1

aloe vera is definitely the best thing if you can get hold of a plant.easy to buy in any decent garden centre.
cut the hard outer skin from the leaf leaving a green sticky substance,looks like green turkish delight,and then gently dab onto skin and rub gently in with your fingers.

if you can't get a fresh plant then any good after sun containing aloe vera will help.best are hawaiian tropic or boots soltan products.

if the skin isn't broken lemon juice is also very good

natural yoghurt is also very good.

please ignore the idiots who recommended chilli or toothpaste,they're just trying to wind you up.

Answer 2

Once I got really heavy sunburn and went to a first aid post. The nurses applied a wound gauze called Biogaze. It is used for second and third degree burning wounds. It had a miraculous effect. I still use it sometimes and when I travel I always carry a pack with me. In Nepal I treated a very young baby who got a whole pot cooking water over it. After a few days there was no trace of the burning.
Most important components are:niaouli essence and thym essence reconstituée. Sorry, french. You will find the whole formula on the net in Google. There are other gauze dressings but I try to avoid the ones that contain an antibiotic.
I have also found out that applying applying cold water and after that any moisturing cream helps a lot. Recently in Thailand I rode 4 hours on a motorbike without sleeves in the burning sun. At a stop, I realised something was wrong and went into a little shop. A man who saw what was wrong poured a bucket of water over me. Later he helped me to apply ordinary Nivea cream on my face, arms and upper legs. I had to stay in bed for a whole day. I took cold showers and used Nivea milk several times every day for a week. For the first time in my life, I am not peeling like a snake after a trip.

Answer 3

Treat it like any other burn and apply cold running water to the area for at least 10 minutes, longer if you can. It will feel uncomfortable but the water will remove the heat from the burn and prevent deep damage.

Don't put any moisturisers, creams, lotions or potions on until the burn is well cooled. All you will do if you put creams straight on the burn is keep the heat in and baste the skin just like a Christmas turkey.

Once you have cooled the skin and dried it gently, give the skin 20 minutes or so, if it feels cool to the touch you can use any aftersun or Vitamin E cream to help repair the skin. Apply it regularly and drink plenty of fluids, water is best but sports drinks will be good, avoid caffeinated drinks and sugary drinks.

Avoid the sun for the next couple of days and drink fresh fruit juices (particulary citrus juices) and continue to use the aftersun/moisturiser. The Vit C in the fruit juices will help mop up the free radicals released by the UV damage and help reduce the risk of longer term skin damage (according to research).

Best to avoid burning in the first place but this should quickly sooth and help repair the damage

Answer 4

Pure Aloe will be most helpful. Often you can find 100% Pure Aloe Gel, but if this is not available a lotion containing aloe will also be soothing. Try rubbing this on the burned area several times a day. It will help sooth the burn and may also prevent peeling.

Avoid tight clothing and if possible avoid further sun exposure. Also over-the-counter pain medication (such as Tylenol) may help decrease the discomfort.

Answer 5

Wet a towel, put it in the freezer for an hour or so, then drape it over burnt area. Also, keep some Aloe Vera cream or gel in the fridge and slap it on whenever you feel sore. (Banana Boat does a fab gel, that gets really cold and is very soothing) Stay out of the sun until your skin has cooled down.

Answer 6

Aloe Vera is the best thing for sunburn but it needs to have a good percentage of aloe vera in it check the ingredients some of them only have about 3% which is no good, if it is really bad sundurn like blisters etc put some natural yogurt on it and for future reference always wear a good sunblock when you are in the sun cause it really isn't worth it + it really is painful
hope it clears up soon

Answer 7

Proven fact for any burn patients of any degree, you must drink litres of water, your skin is very dehydrated and needs help to heal itself from within, you've probably got a dry mouth.

And either plaster yourself in natural yogart (and make yourself smell like a lactating woman - nice) or good old fasioned from the chemist aftersun. It has been specially put together to sooth sunburn. Pure aloe can actually be a bit harsh.

Answer 8

Try Aloe Vera.

We stayed at Couples in Jamaica and they had it in the room with shampoo etc.

My wife had a spell of heat stroke nothing major and the hotel doctor recommended it for any sunburn.

Now we take it where ever we go.

If you can't get it use any after sun lotion and try to keep out of the sun or covered up.

Aloe Vera is a natural sustance which has been used by locals for centuries if not milleniums. It is the best.

Answer 9

Sunburn is like any other burn, and needs to be cooled with water. Also try fresh aloe vera. If you can get a plant, open up the leaves and rub the sap onto the burn. If you can't get the real thing, try a cheap moisturiser that contains aloe vera.

Next time, please try to remember to stay out of the sun. You can burn even on cloudy days.

Answer 10

I read all the answers and no mention of paba or para amino benzoic acid from holland and barrett in london it took the pain away last week in london in half an hour .i also used h and b aloe vera although the plant is better.my family has used paba for over 40 years without any problem,originally in Donegal where we went every year in the sixties .9 children in a caravan and half them screaming in pain at night is more than enough to discover some magic substance to alleviate the problem