The mercury on this side of the world is hitting highs of 44°C, which is code for staying indoors. While yours truly is good at obeying temperature commands (which is just about the only thing she listens to), I have friends who are busy wilding at the beach or by the poolside without a care, and with the goal of getting that golden tan. But this might come at a price, namely sunburn, which can lead to a host of other skin issues, but who cares? Well, I do and that’s why I’ve compiled some homemade sunburn remedies to calm down your charred skin.

Come to think of it, with this summer heat isn’t the water boiling hot? Anyway, that’s none of my business. Moving on, most people put a lot of effort to prevent sunburn but despite this, you still end up with patches of red skin (aka sunburn). Unfortunately, sorry to disappoint, there is nothing you can do to reverse this damage to your skin. However, you can treat it. You can choose to go with big pharma sunburn products or homemade sunburn remedies, some of which I have listed below.

Tried and Tested Homemade Sunburn Remedies

Take a cool bath

After spending the day at the beach drowning mimosas and soaking up the sun, the first thing that you should after you’re done broiling your poor skin is to take a bath to cool it down. Sounds easy, yeah? Not so much, because it should be the right kind of bath. Avoid scents or bath soap as these can easily escalate the damage by irritating it further. And to relieve some of the annoying stinging, adding lavender essential oil to the bath can do wonders.

Pay your kitchen a visit

You may not be aware, but your kitchen holds amazing staples that can soothe sunburn and hydrate the skin while at it. Below are a few ideas:

Apply a mixture of cornstarch with water and apply to the sunburned area for relief.
Milk; it might not fall under the category of homemade sunburn remedies, but can we at least call it ‘home-found’? Milk contains some anti-inflammatory properties and if applied to the sunburned areas, it will give some relief. Just make sure the milk is ice-cold and use a compress to deliver the remedy.
Another home-found remedy is yoghurt. It has the same anti-inflammatory properties as its older cousin above. When applied to the sunburned areas it can keep irritation at bay.
Finally, for the easiest and most available, is holding a cold and wet compress over the sunburned area. This, at most, will absorb some of the heat from the skin giving you much-needed relief.

Don’t pick or peel the skin

If you have ended up with blisters, this means that you suffered from severe sunburn and you should probably cover the area while it heals. And, as tempting as it might be, if you pick or peel the skin off, you are increasing the chances of getting a bad infection.

Coconut oil

As soon as the stinging from the sunburn has calmed down, moisturize the area with coconut oil. But, just in case I need to remind you, coconut oil is not a sunscreen.

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Prevention is better than cure

Yes, I have to tell you about prevention. But first, a tan is not worth all the sunburn and its risks. Anyway, remember to wear protective clothing and sunglasses and always use a sunscreen that has an SPF of 50 or higher. Avoid direct sunlight (but how will you get the tan?) and apply the sunblock about 30 minutes before leaving the house, and every 90 minutes or so afterwards.

Just one more thing; before you try the above sunburn home remedies, do a patch test to make sure you’re not allergic to any of those ingredients. And with that, I wish you all the best with your tan. Just remember that skin cancer is not a joke!