Delaney Nothaft | Special to USA TODAY
The word “sunburn” is a bit of a misnomer – it does, certainly, sting and burn, however it’s not a “burn” in the technical sense. “It’s an inflammatory reaction to UV damage to the skin,” states Dr. Emily Newsom, a board-certified skindoctor and fellowship-trained dermatologic cosmeticsurgeon with UCLA Health. “So the UV rays are what is triggering it. It’s not infact a burn – it’s not a thermal burn or heat burn – it’s that UV light triggers damage to the skin.”
UV light can damage the DNA in our cells, and over time, this can lead to skin cancer.
Lots of individuals takepleasurein soaking up that summerseason sun, and some might even believe they desire to get a sunburn to get that golden tan. But it’s not worth the danger. Read on to discover out more about sunburns, tans and how to avoid and reward sun damage.
What is the finest treatment for sunburn?
The veryfirst priorty for skin defense must be avoidance, however often life simply occurs. If you end up with a sunburn, Newsom suggests hydrating, utilizing a cooling gel or cream like aloe, and taking non-prescription NSAID (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) medications like ibuprofen for discomfort and swelling.
Do sunburns turn into a tan?
You might haveactually observed that sunburns can lateron turn into a tan. And this is real – however it’s not a excellent indication. “Both sunburn and tan are not healthy or excellent. So what a tan is – is your body produces melanin and melanin is a pigment. And so a tan is your body is attempting to secure itself,” states Newsom.
Which sunblock oughtto I utilize? How to keep your skin safe – and why that SPF number matters
She more discusses, “People with various skin tones have various quantities of melanin. Darker-skinned people have more melanin, so they kind of have a natural sunblock built-in (around SPF 4 or 5 depending on how dark your skin is.) But when you get a tan, your body is tryi