Across the country, people dust off their BBQs, get out their picnic blankets and spend as much time as possible soaking up that vitamin D.
This weekend, the UK has seen blue skies and sunshine – with the warm weather expected to continue into next week.
But there is one downside to all this summer fun: sunburn.
Sometimes, it feels like no matter how much cream you slap on, you end up with painful, blistering, red skin.
If you’re suffering right now, there are things that can make you feel better past wallowing about that missed patch.
Here are eight ways to help you with your sunburn.
1) Focus on cooling down
You’ve just been out in the sun for hours. So you need to start cooling down your body internally and externally.
Drinking lots of water will stop dehydration.
The American Academy of Dermatology also recommends putting a cold compress on your skin, like a wet flannel, for 10 to 15 minutes a day to take some of the heat out of the burn.
2) Moisturisers
This should be a top priority once the sun burn starts showing up.
‘Soothing moisturisers can help ease the pain of skin that is already sunburnt,’ Matthew Gass of the British Association of Dermatologists tells Metro.co.uk.
Products with aloe vera are a great shout, and for some extra relief, but your moisturiser in the fridge for a few hours before you apply.
3) Avoid certain chemicals
The American Academy of Dermatology says that while moisturisers are great, there are ones that can do more harm than good.
Look out for petroleum, benzocaine, or lidocaine on the ingredients list of your products. Petroleum traps heat under the skin, and lidocaine and benzocaine can irritate the area.
That means you should definitely be avoiding Vaseline, which has petroleum in it.
4) Avoid soap
Harsh soaps can dry out and irritate already inflamed skin. And no one wants that.
Try a more gentle one.
Avoid soapy baths and don’t rub your skin hard after you’ve cleaned yourself, otherwise you could be risking infection by breaking the skin.
5) Anti-inflammatories
Painkillers can be a real life saver here if the pain of your sunburn is too much. We’ve all ended up unable to move without doubling over in agony because our skin brushed up against our clothes.
Matthew emphasises that only time and patience will enable a sunburn to get completely better, taking up to a week or more depending on the severity of the burn,
‘Anti-inflammatory medication can help with the pain and redness – after that it’s a waiting game,’ he says.
6) Watch out for signs of severe sunburn or other heat-related conditions
If you have any of them these symptoms and they’re severe, this is when you should seek your GP.
They include, according to the NHS:
- Blistering or swelling of the skin
- Chills
- A high temperature of 38C (100.4F) or above, or 37.5C (99.5F) or above in children under five
- Dizziness, headaches and feeling sick symptom
7) Avoid the urge to pop blisters
If you do get blisters, don’t pop them. If you do, they risk becoming infected or leaving permanent scars.
Leave them well alone.
8) Or, y’know, just don’t get burned
We can’t blame you for thinking it might be a bit too late for that at this stage.
But we tried to contact a few experts, and for some this was the advice they gave us.
‘The most important message would be don’t get burnt in the first place,’ Caroline Newton from the Skin Cancer Research Fund told Metro.co.uk.
‘If your skin is red, itchy and painful, it has already become damaged.
‘Prevention is better than a cure.
‘Having had an incidence of sun burn can increase the chances of getting skin cancer in later life.’
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