Home Remedies For Sunburn Relief

Home remedies for sunburn. We talked about some remedies for burns. But, sunburn is a slightly different issue. It is unlike a regular burn from a hot object.  Many of the remedies for common household burns may not work for a sunburn. People who sit in the sun often get sunburns and it is painful too. It usually occurs on face and uncovered areas like shoulders, chest, back and thighs.

A sunburn is absolutely tormenting. It usually has a long recovery time, and all the while you look really sunburned and red. The skin would heal at its own pace, however considerable relief from the symptoms can be obtained using powerful sunburn home remedies.

So, our aim is basically to combat the symptoms of sunburn, which includes the blisters, the peeling, redness, heat inside the skin ( that's the burning sensation ) . itching , swelling ( in some people ). In severe cases, people may even pass out (called syncope ).

In general, most of the wonder plants from the tropical are excellent for sunburn relief.  This includes coconut oil, aloe vera and many more.

sunburn and peeling skin
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Home remedies for sunburn relief. 

 1. Wear Cool Clothes 
This is a simple remedy to prevent even more discomfort and help ease the pain over the day. After a sunburn, your skin emits heat for a long period of time. After all, it has been completely seared by the UV radiation from the sun. To cool that off a bit, wear clothes that are cooler than the skin temperature. Cool a few pair of clothes and wear them. Place them on a shuffle. When one set warms up, send it to cool. The idea is to keep wearing cool clothes. It provides relief from the burning sensation, pain and blistering.

2. Aloe Vera  Gel ( The best remedy for sunburn relief )
Cut an Aloe Vera and apply the juice over the sunburn. This remedy is used by many people all over the world. Aloe Vera also prevents a sunburn if you apply it beforehand because it is a mild SPF sunscreen.



aloe vera is excellent for sunburn relief
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3. Cooling Cucumbers 
Get a cool cucumber from the refrigerator. Cut it into slices and apply on the sunburn one by one. After several cucumber slices, the pain and burning sensation can subside sunstantially. So, the adage that cucumbers are cool is really true. They are more cooler than we think. In fact, cucumbers are incredible at hydrating the skin and body.

cucumbers for sunburn
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4. Tomato juice 
Pour cool tomato juice over the affected area. The fresh pinkish red juice of a tomato is good for a sunburn. Tomato contains lycopene, which increases the sun protection factor of the skin. Although it doesn't help much when you are already sunburned, but it does soothe the skin a lot.

" If you do not have fresh tomato juice, then cool ketchup would do just fine. "

tomato juice for sunburn
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5. Bathe In Cool Milk ( Only for non - blistered sunburn )
This is a brilliant soothing recipe for sunburn. This home remedy works best just after the sunburn.



milk for sunburn
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7. Black Tea Bags (Great for swelling )
Apply a whole compress of black tea bags on the sunburned skin. It aids in reducing the swelling. Due to its yellowish color, it combats the redness as well. Black tea contains tannins, which is good at reducing swelling and inflammation.

black tea bags for sunburn
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8. Buttermilk 
If you have some natural buttermilk ready with you, keep it in a fine cloth and apply on the sunburn. Let it drip slowly on the skin. The soothing sensation is incredible.

9. Drink lots of fresh vegetable and fruit juices
A sunburn might heal faster if you can provide high quality nutrition to the skin. The best juices to heal the skin are the yellow and reddish colored juices, like that of watermelon, cantaloupe, tomato and especially carrots.

watermelon for sunburn
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10. Make A Potato mask
Potato is a great remedy for burns. Turns out it is also good for sunburn. It absorbs the heat emanating from your skin, so you feel less burned out. It is also good at preventing formation of blisters, which are even more painful.



potato for sunburn
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10. The Vinegar Treatment
It is somewhat lengthy and involves a bit more work than the previous remedies. The first thing to be done after a burn is to lightly wipe it off using vinegar. This is done to dry off the skin. After the vinegar has subsided, apply cool milk on the skin. Keep it for 10 - 20 minutes or even half an hour and then rinse it off with slightly warm water. It should be just a little bit warm. Actually it is called tepid water. After the rinse, keep applying Aloe Vera gel to heal your skin.


11. Baking Soda
Applying baking soda on the skin helps to cool it off and make it a little drier. It eases the discomfort.


" You can also use oatmeal or cornstarch in this remedy ."


12. Dab some Witch Hazel
The water extract of witch hazel is an astringent and a healer. It reduces inflammation considerably and promotes wound healing. It has been traditionally used to heal sunburns.
Ingredients
Pure witch hazel ( Just make sure that the product you use is only witch hazel and not a cream containing just a small percentage of witch hazel )
Directions / How to use
Apply a thin layer of witch hazel onto the sunburns and let it dry. Do not let it stick to any surface. Keep your skin exposed to air. It should provide relief immediately.
Why it works ?
Because of the anti-inflammatory properties of witch hazel.


13. Use Plain Yogurt 
It might be tempting to use frozen yogurt to quench your burning skin. But that would be a bad idea as the frozen temperatures would be way too cold and might increase the probability of blistering. So, go with the plain, room temperature yogurt.




14. Lavender Essential Oil for Sunburns
According to essential oil users and experts, lavender essential oil is good for a sunburn. It promotes faster healing. It should however not be applied directly to the skin as it is very strong. So, this is the actual method of using lavender essential oil


" One can also use helichrysum essential oil. There are some people who advocate its use. "

lavender essential oil for sunburn
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15. Banana Peels For Itching
The inside of the peel of banana is quite a therapeutic agent. It is great for relieving itching and it also takes the pain away. Since sunburn is a burn, pain is almost universal. The pain can be calmed down by gently placing banana peels on the skin.

16. Peppermint Tea
Make a strong infusion of any mint tea, like peppermint, spearmint etc. You can add 4 - 5 tea bags in a cup of water. Boil well and cover the kettle. Steep for 20 minutes. Then add it to your bathwater. Mix them well. Then either sit in the bath or apply that water on your skin. It provides long term relief from sunburn. This effect is mainly because of menthol found in mint which is an excellent cooling agent.

Sunburn has the potential to cause burning sensation even some hours after we think that it is relieved. Sunburns often take many days to heal completely. One can use the following herbal remedies to promote reduction in pain and redness. 

                                  At a Glance
Aloe Vera A natural sunscreen and heals skin
Cucumber Calms and soothes skin
Tomato Provide cooling effect
Tea Bag Tea nutrients provide relief
Buttermilk Acts like moisturizer 

Sunburn on babies : It may happen sometimes that babies get sunburned. If the baby's skin develops a blister, then it is a second degree ( bad ) sunburn and one should head to the doctor. If the skin is red but there are signs of weakness or fatigue and heavy breathing on the baby, get medical help. Babies are unable to communicate their immense discomfort because of a burn. For kids, one can use remedies like Aloe vera, tomato juice and tea.