4 Secrets To Cool Sunburns Instantly

4 Secrets To Cool Sunburns Instantly

Warm weather is quickly approaching, and in some areas it’s here already. That means a greater risk for sunburns. In the perfect world, we’d all avoid sunburns by putting on a basic SPF regularly. But for those days when you forget an SPF, a soothing treatment will be in order to reduce the risk of peeling, dark marks and wrinkles from sunburns. Plus, cooling down the skin will restrict the capillaries, causing inflammation to go down. And it feels pretty dang nice. So to really ramp up your sunburn treatment, below are some ideas to get rid of that scorched skin heat and to cool sunburns instantly.

Ice Packs

The easiest method to cool sunburns is to get an ice pack, a freezer pack or a frozen bag of peas. Put the pack under a thin towel to protect your skin, and leave it on for about 10 minutes. That will cool your skin, numb the pain and reduce inflammation with minimal effort. Just make sure to go easy on the ice and proceed with caution. Too much ice, and you risk cooling your skin too much and could even cause frostbite.

Aloe Vera Gel Ice Cubes

Aloe vera is especially helpful for skin repair, so freezing some aloe vera is a no-brainer. Get some natural, organic aloe vera gel from a health store. It should be almost 100% aloe vera. The less additives, the easier the gel will freeze. You can also get a fresh aloe vera plant, and squeeze out the juice into a gel with a lower aloe vera concentration. Or you can squeeze the juice right into the ice cube tray.

Fill the ice tray three-quarters of the way full, and let it freeze. Apply the ice cube directly to your skin for about a minute or less, rubbing the area with the cube. To cut the risk of frostbite, don’t apply the ice cube for much longer or hold the cube in one place.

Cool Milk Compress

For this method, put chilled milk in a bowl with some ice cubes. Dip a clean cloth into the milk, and lay it on the troubled area until the cloth is warm. Repeat about three times. That will cool your skin, and the milk will act as a natural moisturizer.

Cooling Cucumber Paste

Cucumbers are great for sunburns, thanks to their antioxidants, analgesic (pain relieving) properties and their high water content for adding moisture back onto the skin. Simply cool a cucumber in the fridge, and then stick it in the blender to form a paste. Apply the paste to the sunburn, and leave it on until the paste is warm. It’s a great option if you feel applying ice to your skin to cool sunburns is too harsh.