There are some great natural ways of relieving your sunburns, as there is a high chance that some of you are suffering from them right now, given how this is one of the hottest and sunniest summers that I can recall!
First and foremost, try not to get sunburns; now that the UV index is really high, it could be dangerous. Stay in the shade whenever you can, use sun protection creams, avoid sun between 10am and 4pm, but don’t avoid it at other times, as you also need some vitamin D in your blood!
The symptoms of sunburns don’t occur immediately, it may take up to five hours for them to appear, so timely prevention is crucial. If you suspect that you are starting to suffer from sunburns, essential oils from lavender, peppermint, eucalyptus, geranium, coconut, chamomile and aloe vera are some of the best cures for this ailment.
Lavender essential oil has a huge list of benefits, some of which I was discussing here. But due to its antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties it also speeds up the recovery from sunburns.
Peppermint is a natural cooling and pain relief agent, but it also provides numerous other health benefits if taken as capsules, including relief of irritable bowel syndrome symptoms such as abdominal pain, bloating, and gas. It also relieves sore muscles, joint pain, headaches, can help in the treatment of urinary tract infections, improves circulation, promotes healthy skin health teeth, and relieves stress. I will cover the topic of peppermint in more details in one of my future blogs, but in the context of sunburn, peppermint oil will just give you the immediate relief of that burning sensation and pain.
Like lavender and peppermint oils, essential oils from chamomile, coconut, geranium, eucalyptus and aloe vera are great at cooling and healing skin burns. They all have anti-inflammatory pain relieving and antibacterial properties, so they not only stop the inflammation and pain but also protect sunburned skin from infection.
There are also some additional traditional treatments that our grandmothers were using such as baking soda, oatmeal, apple vinegar and black tea cool compress.
Some of the products that I discussed in this article can be found HERE, but I will continue the research of the best products in this category and continue adding to this list.
Enjoy the summer and don’t try to avoid sunshine at all costs, but just be careful, no more than 10 min continuously in the sun between 10am and 4pm!
Love from NutraCosme.