Too much sun sometimes is inevitable (a life without a sunburn every now and again wouldn't be a whole lot of fun). Problem is, sunburns aren't fun either, and while it's all fine and dandy to order something to treat it, the question is, how do you treat it while you're waiting for the special spray to arrive?
At home sunburn remedies
Here are a few ways to treat your sun weary skin straight from your fridge (& pantry).
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Cucumber: place the whole cuke in the fridge (or freezer for 15 minutes if you're in a hurry), slice it up, and lay it on any sun weary areas.
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Aloe: most grocery stores these days have aloe leaves in the produce area. When you prep your own, filet it and use only the inner gel (you want to avoid that yellow orange layer).
- Milk (cow's milk or coconut milk): Add 1 or 2 cups of milk to a cool bath. Coconut milk and cow's milk are both cooling.
Things that make a sunburn worse
Things you may want to avoid for sunburns and hot, stressed skin:
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Oils and butters: any oils and butters (even cooling oils like coconut) have a tendency to lock in heat. If you must use an oil or butter on sunburned skin, opt for fast absorbing oils like hempseed or pair the oil (or butter) with a lightweight lotion to help it soak in faster and avoid trapping more heat in your body.
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Alcohol: because alcohol builds heat (and your body's doing everything it can to rid that excess heat through your skin), it's best to avoid alcohol while you're sunburned.
- Retinols (and other things that promote cellular turnover like acid peels): In general, I recommend avoiding any ingredients that promote cellular turnover during the summer months (and months when you're most active outside... skiers :). This is especially important when you're sunburned. Your skin's working to shed those damaged layers faster anyways, and these ingredients are kind of like adding fuel to a fire.
My favorite product for treating sunburn? Marine Layer Antioxidant Spray. This spray's dual purpose:
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An alternative to sunscreen: Marine Layer protects your skin from the effects of UV with vitamin C & two protective peptides.
Just apply before heading outside and when you're out for a beach day, apply at least 30 minutes before getting in the water to give those antioxidants time to absorb into skin (where they fight free radicals).
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A soothing post-sun spray that supports recovery: Rose & cucumber hydrosol plus aloe and a 3rd peptide provide relief to inflamed skin after sun exposure.
Those peptides I mentioned above? They're shown to help cells repair after sun exposure.
Marine Layer's available in two sizes. A pocket size spray and a larger 2 ounce bottle. Because it's a spray, you don't have to touch sunburned skin, and it's super easy to apply even when your hands aren't clean (I thought of this idea while on a fishing trip with my dad desperately wanting to reapply my protective face lotion).
While all of the tips and tricks above work great, Marine Layer's next level support for sun protection and recovery. Pick up your bottle today.
About the Author
Brandy's a formulation scientist and self-proclaimed health geek who loves hiking, gardening, bird-watching, and body boarding.
Her struggle with acne during her teens and 20s led to a holistic and healthy approach to skincare, embracing skin as an organ to be loved and cared for rather than a canvas to wage war on.
Since 2008, she's been developing all-in-one products for a simple routine at home, & Rain Organica started when her backpacking friends asked for a portable skincare routine to keep their skin healthy & happy on and off the trails.
You can try Rain Organica for yourself with The Essentials Kit, a complete skincare routine in just 3 steps.
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