Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Does anyone know any home remedies for sunburn??

Spanky Deluxe

Spanky Deluxe

macrumors 603
Original poster
Mar 17, 2005
5,293
1,839
London, UK
Ok, I ended up spending way too much time on the beach today and couldn't find my sun lotion before I went out. Needless to say, I've now started turning a rather worrying shade of pink.

I've covered myself in loads of moisturiser and I'm drinking lots of water. Any other ideas? It doesn't hurt... yet at least.
 
Not necessarily a home remedy.. but better than just plain ol' lotion is aloe vera gel. At least... from what I've read and been told, never got sunburned myself. :p Hope you'll get away w/out getting too ouchie.
 
Splash out on one of the imported US/Oz after suns if you can find it. They tend to have mild painkillers in them and help much more than the normal UK aftersun.

And cover up tomorrow... or stay in the shade.

I remembered to take my lotion to work today so I could stick some on before venturing out at lunchtime

Wait for mad jew to turn up... he's a sunburn pro...
 
Applespider said:
Splash out on one of the imported US/Oz after suns if you can find it. They tend to have mild painkillers in them and help much more than the normal UK aftersun.

And cover up tomorrow... or stay in the shade.

I remembered to take my lotion to work today so I could stick some on before venturing out at lunchtime

Wait for mad jew to turn up... he's a sunburn pro...
Click to expand...

That damn Crab-man! I'll get him yet!!!!

Yes, Aloe Vera is VERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRY nice for sunburns (and burns, and cuts, and everything else) Believe me, this stuff is sexy. Devilot so smart.
 
The aloe vera gel, but make sure you get one without alcohol (or better yet a live plant if you can get one), or you'll end up drying your skin more. Drinking water and/or sports drinks helps too. Maybe take some extra vitamin E and maybe use some lotion heavy in vitamin E also.
 
Incidentally, this just in – apparently rubbing suntan lotion into your skin can be worse than not wearing it at all, in that it inhibits the rays that cause you to go red, but no longer blocks the rays that damage your skin. Link to article.

I don't wear it myself, I just try and stay out of the sun before I go pink, but it might be useful to those of you that do. But the un-rubbed in cream isn't such a good look, is it. :(

Spanky Deluxe, I think moisturiser and drinking water is a pretty good idea. :)
 
Lau said:
Incidentally, this just in – apparently rubbing suntan lotion into your skin can be worse than not wearing it at all, in that it inhibits the rays that cause you to go red, but no longer blocks the rays that damage your skin. Link to article.
Click to expand...

I read that earlier - it stops the burning rays but not the aging, potential cancer ones - although I can't believe that rubbing it in isn't better than not wearing it at all aside from perhaps a false sense of protection.

Since I rarely stay in the sun for more than an hour or so at a time- I get bored sunbathing - I'll keep wearing suncream and rubbing it in although I do spray it on liberally rather than using a teeny amount. I don't think I'm out in it enough to turn leathery any time soon.
 
Applespider said:
I read that earlier - it stops the burning rays but not the aging, potential cancer ones - although I can't believe that rubbing it in isn't better than not wearing it at all aside from perhaps a false sense of protection.
Click to expand...

I think that was the thing – if you don't go red, you think it's ok to stay out in it.

Applespider said:
Since I rarely stay in the sun for more than an hour or so at a time- I get bored sunbathing - I'll keep wearing suncream and rubbing it in although I do spray it on liberally rather than using a teeny amount. I don't think I'm out in it enough to turn leathery any time soon.
Click to expand...

I find if I wear it, I start to feel all sick and weak long before I burn, whereas if I don't I feel like I need to get in the shade because of burnage as well as crapness in sun. I'm officially rubbish at hot sunny weather. :eek:
 
Aloe is definitely the best thing. If you don't have any then cocoa-butter or some other moisturising body lotion will do.

When I were very young my Mum used to apply sour milk to sunburn. It stank to high heaven but was surprisingly soothing! :eek: :eek: :eek:
 
Applespider said:
Lots of sunburn remedies and you're bound to have the ingredients for at least one of them in the house since they range from onion, potato, baking soda, milk, yarrow as well as aloe vera
Click to expand...

I don't think I fancy the onion one!


Oh and I read "Apple cider vinegar" as "Applespider vinegar" :D
 
Applespider said:
Lots of sunburn remedies and you're bound to have the ingredients for at least one of them in the house since they range from onion, potato, baking soda, milk, yarrow as well as aloe vera
Click to expand...

Hmmm... looking at that I might be able to do the milk or tea ones. Just for reference these are the contents of my bathroom and kichen cupboards in case anyone's got any ideas:

Bathroom:

shampoo
conditioner
moisturiser
shaving foam
hair gel
body wash
tcp
a bandage
nytol
cough mixture
some anti-inflammatories from when I broke my wrist a few years back

Kitchen:

scottish oat cakes
icing sugar
candarel
sugar
cooking oil
nutella
marmite
some really old crystallised honey
tomato soup
smash
spaghetti
vineger
chopped tomatoes
red peppers
baked beans
cuppa soup
raisins
tea
coffee
butter
milk
condensed milk
salt
what appears once to have been some garlic but has now turned into a small plant

If you can think of anything from that list, let me know!! Looks like tinned tomato soup and some of those oat cakes for dinner for me! A lot of that stuff is way past its use by date. Years past for some things I think!!
 
I've heard natural yoghurt works (never tried it though)

Maybe the Nutella would be an adequate substitute.


Edit: Found something for you, and you might be in luck. Vinegar and tea might help
 
Applespider said:
Find a 24-hour supermarket... ;)
Click to expand...

Lol with no car that'll be hard! There are some late night shops around here but I only have 30p on me and am waiting for a replacement card!! I reckon that's a pretty stocked kitchen for a student!! I've got all the essentials, baked beans, tinned soup, some pasta and some tinned chopped tomatoes! The honey's nice crystallised too...

I think I'm going to try to make a bit of a paste out of the dried milk, apparently that with a bit of salt works. Sounds like fun too!!
 
Lau said:
Cough mixture and Smash. Definitely.
Click to expand...
Vineger and Tea or Cough Mixture and Smash.... hmmmm... :rolleyes:

I might give the Vineger and Tea a try... my face is now covered in dried milk and salt paste... its kind of sticky and smells grose, like gone of fudge that's really salty. :(
 
Yoghurt works really really well , just make sure you launder the bedsheets at home not in a public laundromat , the white youghurt streaks and splotches tend to be mistaken for other things...which then raises eye brows at the quantity and all the implied...:D
 
Applespider said:
I read that earlier - it stops the burning rays but not the aging, potential cancer ones - although I can't believe that rubbing it in isn't better than not wearing it at all aside from perhaps a false sense of protection.
Click to expand...

I saw that. So will this spawn a rash (ahaha...) of bikini babes who look as though they've been dipped in a tub of lard?
 
CompUser said:
Aloe Lotion stuff works.
Click to expand...

Yeah getting some of that stuff is the first thing on my to do list for tomorrow.

I've taken the dried milk off now, it didn't feel very nice. I may as well give the tea bags thing a try although I'll probably just stick to the moisturiser stuff in future! I swear I'm not as pink anymore though...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back