Relieving Sunburn this Summer

18, Dec 2021 | SolaCare

Summer’s nearly here, and that means it’s time to head outside and soak up the sun.

But with the all the hours spent outdoors in the New Zealand sun, there usually comes one inevitable thing: sunburn. Fortunately treating mild to moderate sunburn is simple and can help cool the burning, and reduce the itching, and peeling that come with damage from the sun.

Below are a few things that you can do to make the most of your time out doors this summer, and if you do get burned, some advice on what to do about it.

1. Stay inside during the hottest part of the day

If at all possible, stay inside, or at least in a shaded area between 11am and 3pm (the hottest part of the day), and if you must go out, make sure to wear sunscreen or makeup with an SPF value.

Note: the claims made by sunscreen manufacturers can’t really be trusted, but any protection is better than nothing.

2. Sunburn is still a burn

There’s not much difference between burning yourself by touching something hot, say spilling tea on your hand, and a sun burn – to the skin they are pretty much the same thing. Sunburn is a radiation burn caused by too much Ultra Violet radiation. It can cause reddening, inflammation, and in extreme cases, blistering and peeling. The peeling is a sign that your body is trying to shed its damaged skin cells.

So if you get sunburnt the first thing to do is to treat it like any other burn, with first aid:

    • Remove the person from the heat source, i.e. move indoors to get out of the sun.
    • Apply cool water (not cold water or ice) to the burnt area for around 20 minutes using cool running water from a tap or shower. The burned area can be put in a bowl, bucket or in the bath if this is easier than pouring water over the burn.
    • Don’t burst large blisters.
    • Cover the burn
    • Make sure to stay hydrated by drinking plenty of (non-alcoholic) fluids.

3. Use sunburn ointment for minor burns that are not severely blistered and have no broken skin.

Once the burning of the skin has been stopped, apply a burn cream such as Primal Herbaria SolaCare to the effected area. SolaCare has been specially formulates to moisturize, soothe and cool burns as well as aiding the skins natural healing to help reduce damage and pealing.

Apply on a regular basis (3 to 4 times a day) for around a week, or until the skin has healed.

And remember to protect your skin from further sun exposure.

Remember that sunburn is still a burn and severe sunburns may require a visit to a doctor or even the emergency room.

See a doctor:

  • for sunburns over a large area as these will be very painful

  • if the person is feeling unwell

  • if there are large blisters in the sunburn.