Sunburn
Each one of us will have sunburn once in our lives. It’s that red, painful skin we get that feels hot to touch whenever we stay too long under the sun. Sunburn usually appears within a few hours after sun exposure and may take from several days to several weeks to fade.
Sunburns are caused by exposure to too much ultraviolet (UV) light. UV radiation is a wavelength of sunlight in a range too short for the human eye to see. UV light is divided into three wavelength bands — ultraviolet A (UVA), ultraviolet B (UVB) and ultraviolet C (UVC). Only UVA and UVB rays reach the earth. Commercial tanning lamps and tanning beds also produce UV light that can cause sunburn.
Signs and Symptoms
- Pinkness or redness
- Skin that feels warm or hot to the touch
- Pain or tenderness
- Swelling
- Small fluid-filled blisters, which may break
- Headache, fever and fatigue if sunburn covers a large area
Signs and symptoms of sunburn usually appear within a few hours after sun exposure. But it may take a day or more to know the full extent and severity of sunburn.
Within a few days, your body starts to heal itself by “peeling” the top layer of damaged skin. After peeling, your skin may temporarily have an irregular color and pattern. Depending on the severity, it may take several days or more for the sunburn to heal.
When to see a doctor
See your doctor if the sunburn:
- Is blistering and covers a large portion of your body
- Is accompanied by a high fever, extreme pain, confusion, nausea or chills
- Doesn’t respond to at-home care within a few days
- Also, seek medical care if you notice signs or symptoms of an infection. These include:
- Increasing pain and tenderness
- Increasing swelling
- Yellow drainage (pus) from an open blister
- Red streaks, leading away from the open blister, which may extend in a line upward along the arm or leg
Risk factors
People with fair skin are more likely to sunburn than are people with dark skin. That’s because people with darker skin have more melanin, which offers some protection from sunburn but not from UV-induced skin damage. However, regardless of your skin type, the sun’s energy penetrates deeply into the skin and damages DNA of skin cells. This damage may ultimately lead to skin cancer, including melanoma.
Complications
Sunburn increases your risk of getting certain complications and skin diseases which include dry, wrinkled skin; liver spots and the following:
- Infection
- Photoaging
- Actinic keratoses
- Skin cancer
- Eye damage
Prevention
Use these methods to prevent sunburn:
- Avoid the sun between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.
- Cover up.
- Use sunscreen frequently and liberally.
- Wear sunglasses when outdoors.
Lifestyle and home remedies
Here are some tips that may reduce your pain and discomfort in the hours and days following sunburn:
- Take anti-inflammatory medication
- Apply cold compresses — such as a towel dampened with cool tap water — to the affected skin. Or take a cool bath or shower.
- Apply a moisturizing cream, Aloe Vera lotion or hydrocortisone cream to affected skin.
- If blisters form, don’t break them.
- Drink plenty of fluids.
- Treat peeling skin gently.
Source: Mayo Clinic
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