The Sunburn Remedies Every Fair Skinned Person Should Know
I’m pale. Like, ‘what do you mean this doesn’t come in a paler shade, you call this ‘Alabaster’?’ pale.
And with paleness, comes sunburns – and the need for sunburn remedies. I burn at least once a year, much to the exasperation and consternation of my sister who doesn’t leave the house without SPF50 on. I’m one of those pale people who does the whole ‘I’ll burn once and then get really tan’ thing every summer, without fail (I never tan, though, let’s be clear about that), so I’m probably not the best person for this article. Or maybe I am, we are talking cure rather than prevention, after all.
Now that summer’s actually here, and we’ve had over a week of warmth in the UK, have I been making sure I’m wearing sunscreen? Absolutely fucking not.
I move with the sun. I will be bronzed come autumn, so help me God. I am the target audience for this piece. When researching for this, I’d actually not heard of any of the remedies except for the ‘drink water, apply aloe’ – little did I know there are a lot of remedies for sunburn. Like, shitloads. We really do learn something new every day.
So, if you’re pale, or even if you’re not, even if you’re just sunburnt and in pain and begging for sweet, sweet relief, come learn with me:
1. Bath/shower
First things first, take a cool bath or shower to ease the pain and calm down the skin. If you can’t take a shower or bath, try getting a cool compress that you can apply to the burn – a dishtowel soaked in cool water, for example. Don’t use any soaps or creams at this point, as it can irritate your skin.
2. Milk
The cooling properties of milk will help provide some localised pain relief. Now, we’re not actually saying bathe in milk (am I the only one who thought this was that this suggests? No? Anyway.). Wash your skin with cool water, and let dry slightly. Then, take a cup of milk, leave it out to warm up a bit, and dip a cotton pad in. Use this to gently cleanse the affected areas. Wash off after a few hours.
3. Cornstarch
Apparently this can actually be used to remedy sunburn due to its soothing and calming properties. Mix into a smooth paste, and apply to affected areas. Please wash off after a while. It will go dry and crusty and gross.
4. Coconut milk
Coconut milk is a source of lauric acid, which, when it transforms into monolaurin, is an antimicrobial agent – it also helps cell growth and regeneration. Apply coconut milk and/or oil with a cotton pad onto affected areas, let dry, and wash off after a few hours. Remember to use the canned stuff – not the drinking kind. One of the best sunburn remedies, it is moisturising and naturally helps skin.
5. Aloe Vera
A classic for sunburn – aloe vera helps smooth and moisturise sunburnt skin, as well as being a good moisturiser for peeling skin. One of the best skincare remedies, naturally helps to heal and protect skin.
6. Oats
Make an oat bath by stuffing oats into an old pair of thin tights (again, please do not actually bathe in oats. Do not bathe in porridge. This will only end in you stepping out looking like a really pale version of Muk from Pokémon and will clog your bath.) and placing this under the faucet as you run a cool bath. Soaking in oat-water will help reduce inflammation, as well as aiding healing. Make sure not to scrub yourself dry, though – the exfoliant properties of oatmeal can further skin irritation. (You can add some bicarbonate of soda into this mix, too, to make it more potent – the bicarb will help the itching, too.)
7. Lavender oil
Lavender oil can be applied onto the skin in small amounts to help ease the stinging.
8. Moisturiser
Use a good, unscented moisturiser all over the body post-shower. Remember to pat dry instead of rubbing, too – there’ll be peeling. Don’t pick this. I know you want to. We all want to. Just don’t. It’s painful and really, really gross to watch.
9. Antioxidants
These help counteract the skin damage and the free radicals that are being released. Foods like blueberries, tomatoes, dark chocolate, pecans, green tea, and kidney beans are all good sources. You could even blend everything except the beans into a smoothie. Or fuck it – add the beans. I’m not one to judge, clearly. Vitamin C and E supplements work as well, if you’re lazy. One of the best sunburn remedies!
10. Water
Basically, just drink a lot of water (but not too much water because science says this is really quite bad for you). Stay hydrated. Stay cool, kids.
