Burn Baby, Burn: What to Know About Sunburns

If you’ve never had a sunburn in your life, then a “congratulations” is in order. However, if you are like most people, you have probably found yourself with a little too much sun on your skin after a long day outside at the beach or pool. Too much sun damage won’t just leave you with premature signs of aging, but it can also leave you with a sunburn.

Let’s take a closer look at a few things for you to know about sunburns.

How Can I tell if you have a sunburn?

Press your Skin

One of the easiest ways to tell if you have a sunburn or not is to gently press your skin. Does it go white where you pressed, and then the rest of the skin is red? If so, then this is a sign that you have a sunburn.

Feel Your Skin

Put your hand on your skin. Is it hot to the touch? Usually, when people suffer from a sunburn, the heat radiates off of their skin, which you can feel with your hands.

Tenderness and Pain

If your skin feels tender or painful, then this is also a sign that you have a sunburn. Often, patients say that their skin feels like it’s stinging; especially when they touch it or brush it against something like their clothing or a blanket.

It’s Red

Another common sign that you have a sunburn is if your skin is bright red. Depending on the color of your skin and how much sun you’ve had will determine just how bright and red our skin is.

How Can I Treat It?

We encourage all of our sunburn patients to stay out of the sun until their skin has completely healed. In addition to avoiding sun exposure, we also encourage patients to take ibuprofen for the pain, apply some aloe vera or lotion and ice the skin if it is sore.

If you find yourself with a sunburn this summer, use these tips to help soothe your skin. To learn more, contact our Chicago office and call us at (773) 763-3990.