General Question

syntak's avatar

What is the best way to treat a horrible sunburn?

Asked by syntak (275points) April 27th, 2008

My legs havent seen the light of day for about a year. I went to the beach the other day for about 4 hours in shorts. Woke up this morning hating myself.

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16 Answers

jcs007's avatar

Keep it very moisturized. I mean, you should bathe your legs in any kind of petroleum jelly. I got a mild sunburn on my face, and keeping it moisturized greatly eased the pain.

kevbo's avatar

I apply layer upon layer of aloe. Use a lot, and apply the next layer after the previous one dries. 4–7 coats.

Kay's avatar

Advil every 6 hours. It’s an anti-inflammatory and can help a lot in the early stages (within the first 24 hours). Also pure aloe as stated before. Do not take Advil if you are using an aloe solution that already has a topical pain-reliever in it.

peedub's avatar

Keep a steady lather of aloe vera going.

PupnTaco's avatar

All of the above, plus drink lots of water. Watch for signs of heat stroke.

susanc's avatar

Do you know that we’re talking about actually buying a big aloe plant and lathering up
the goo from the leaves? It’s a miracle. Another possibility is to lay slices of papaya
on them burns. Some kind of enzymes. Miraculous.

andrew's avatar

Also vitamin E is really helpful on burns. Buy the pills, crack them open, and spread the gel on your burns. Drink water!

wildflower's avatar

Wet a soft towel in cold water and wrap it over your legs….......been there.

whatthefluther's avatar

The sap from an aloe vera plant is marvelous but with a severe burn you will appreciate the immediate cooling affect from refrigerated aloe vera gel which you can pick up at any drugstore. I always have a bottle in my refrigerator and it is the first thing I grab for any type of burn, then, follow-up using the plant, which by the way, is very hearty and easy to grow.

Fallstand's avatar

Don’t use moisturizing lotion.. I read that, that traps the oxygen in your skin prolonging the burn…but all of the above are pretty good tips

-aloe
-advil
-water
-time

TheHaight's avatar

I think everyone should grow aloe vera plants, reminds me of my grandmother..there was always a good ol’ aloe vera plant in her backyard.

Response moderated
Alina1235's avatar

you will think its gross but sourcream works great. My gramma useto do it to me every summer when I was little

syntak's avatar

sour cream? sounds like a russian thing. are you russian?

Response moderated (Spam)
asmonet's avatar

I once got a terrible burn and went blind from being in the same room as a tanning bed, long story short – I’m really fair and ended up blind and crispy with a melty eyelid. Gross I know. BUT all is well, I have no scarring and 20/20 vision which is a miracle on it’s own, thru that I learned Philip’s stool softener when applied to a sunburn IMMEDIATELY soothes. Almost completely. You look like you were dipped in white ash but who cares? You feel wonderful. It’s because of the very high Milk of Magnesia content. One of the highest you can get easily from what I understand. Just spread it on and leave it there while you watch a movie or something, when it’s dry and powdery take a shower. :) Voila!

P.S. I learned this from an E.R. Doctor, so you can imagine if it worked for a burn THAT bad, it must work for you. :D

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