by David B Hitchcock

Created on: July 06, 2010

Sunburn treatment

When you get a burn from fire or a hot stove it’s a burn. A sunburn is the same thing, it just takes longer. A burn is a place on your skin that has absorbed too much heat. The skin turns red, gets very hot, and is painful to touch. All of these are due to the heat.

If it’s really bad it can be a first degree burn. This is when the skin is bright pink or red, possibly with white patches around the red. It is very painful touch, and impossible to wear clothing over it because of the irritation. First degree burns need to be treated by professionals. For normal sunburns, here are some important sunburn treatment ideas to speed up healing.

IMMEDIATELY APPLY COLD WATER

No matter what source of heat burned you, the first thing to do is get it under cold water. The faster you do this the less pain and swelling you will get. The idea is that the cold water helps get the heat out of the burned area. Keep the affected area under cold water for a long time – 15 minutes is not too long. This also has the happy side effect of numbing the area, so you won’t feel as much pain.

MOISTURIZE

Once you have cooled off the burn, most people forget to keep it from drying out. When a sunburn dries out it will peel , which is messy and can be painful. While your skin is still wet from the cold water, apply lots of Vitamin E cream or Aloe Vera. Vitamin E cream helps your skin stay moist and repair the burn damage.

Aloe Vera is a plant that is mostly water (succulent) that has soft juicy spikes as “leaves”. Cut one off next to the stem using scissors, and cut a slit up one side of the “leaf”. Inside is a gummy gel that is what you hear about so often. Take the “leaf” and run the gel onto your burn, using more than one if you have a large area. You cannot use too much. This gel is what goes into many skin creams, but in its pure form it is one of the best things for burns.

Don’t forget to moisturize on the inside. Often when you get a sunburn you are also dehydrated. Drink lots of cold water and you will not only replenish your fluids, but you will cool your body down as well.

PAIN RELIEF

The best thing for the pain that comes with sunburn is simple aspirin and a glass of water. This will dull the pain enough that you should be able to get to sleep. If it is too painful for you to sleep, and you are looking for something like a topical cream that will numb your skin, or make it feel cool. Anything with

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