Treating Sunburns: 5 DIY Sunburn Solutions

The summer sun is fabulous…until you get fried.

Every summer I have intentions of getting a beautiful sun-kissed skin and having a fabulous summer glow that carries through the winter, but my dreams are cut short when I end up with sizzling sunburnt skin on day one of catching some rays:

Short of bathing in sunscreen, I feel like there is never enough SPF on hand to prevent my I-hide-between-buildings-most-of-the-year skin from venturing into the lobster zone.

So, vitamin D lovers, when your sunscreen skills are not up to par and you do get crispy crittered here are 5 DIY remedies that can bring you sunburn relief fast:

1. Take Tea Time

Hot tea on a hot day? No thanks. Cool tea on hot skin? Yes! The tannic acids that are naturally found in tea are a great remedy for burnt skin. Make a batch of black tea and let it cool in the refrigerator before applying it to the burn. You can press the tea bag directly to your skin or you can dab the cool tea on your skin with a soft cloth. Treating sunburns has never been so painless and easy!

2. Have an Oatmeal Bath

Don’t act like you health food junkies haven’t dreamt about swimming in your favorite breakfast food! I will never forget the time that I fell asleep face down at a beach in Florida and when I woke up the sun God had blessed me with a burn that was so bad I could hardly walk. Luckily my grandma was there to save the day by throwing me into a bath of oatmeal. You can help heel your sunburned skin by mixing 2 to 3 cups of oats in lukewarm water. Restrain yourself from bringing a spoon into the tub.

3. Learn to Love Aloe

The aloe vera plant is a saint to the sunburnt summer crew because of its anti-inflammatory and cooling qualities. I would carry around my aloe vera gel the same way I would bring my water bottle around.  Then I took a vacation to Aruba where I met “The Aloe Man,” a beach sales man, and the only souvenir I brought home was three bottles of aloe. Refrigerated fresh aloe literally sucks the sunburn from your skin and can prevent peeling.  If you have an aloe plant at home you can cut of the leaf spear and apply the gel to your burnt area. If not you can by pure aloe at local drug stores. It is liquid not gel!

4. Use Cukes for Burnt Lips

I won’t leave my house without my chap stick. We are like two peas and a pod. But if you are without protection and your lips take the heat you can use fresh cut cucumbers to soothe your sunburnt lips. Just cut a refrigerated cucumber and apply to the burnt area. The common grocery store veg went up in cool points.

5. Milk that Sunburn

The dairy aisle is also a hotspot for sunburn relief. I’m a skim fan, but an aching sunburn wants the fat in whole milk because it is soothing and healing. Apply whole milk compresses to your burn for 20 minutes or bathe in a mixture of milk and water. Mooooove over sunburn. Okay…that was bad.

What DIY sunburn remedies do you know of? Share your secrets to lobster skin relief!

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