Going outside and having more sunny days than before are associated precisely with spring. When greyish snowy clouds scatter, and the first flower blossoms show, you may know that you are about to spend a lot of time outdoors. Maybe you will be playing basketball with friends, riding your bike in the village, jogging in a park, walking a dog or quietly reading a book on a lakeshore – the spring is lovely for so many reasons that it would take too much time just to try and list them all. What unites these activities is fresh air and sunshine leading your every step and ensuring only the best emotions. However, every minute spent outdoors can be overshadowed by bright sun and heat. How can we prepare for it and face every adventure as bravely as could?
Some say they can sunbathe for hours and it would still not be enough, while for others, five minutes spent in the sun is already too much. Sunbathing, no matter how fun it may sound, is a very responsible activity because sun rays affect us and our skin even when the weather may look cloudy. To protect you from painful experiences, today we will talk about the sun and sunbathing’s three significant problems – sunburn blisters, skin pigmentation, and heatstroke.
Why Little Sunburn Blisters Hurt So Much?
Rising temperatures mean more time spent in the fresh air and lighter and more comfortable clothing. Although winter or autumn clothing can also be comfortable, in the spring, we all enjoy wearing short-sleeved shirts; we start pulling dresses and skirts out of our closets and say goodbye to jackets and coats for at least half a year. No matter how much fun it is, this time also means that our skin will be more exposed to the sun, so the joyful moments outside can end up in unwanted tan lines, usually accompanied by painful sunburn blisters.
Sunburns are pale-coloured blisters on the skin’s surface that occur from a few hours to a day after sun exposure. Although it may not seem so scary, we start to feel pain around the burnt areas, which is difficult to bear after at least a day. We then struggle to find a comfortable position to sleep or sit; we experience pain while putting on clothing and having any other skin contact. After a while, the skin begins to peel off, and sunburns start to fade and heal. However, if the sunburn is more dangerous, it will be more painful – it means you will probably have watery blisters and bursting them can lead to an infection. In this situation, the healing process would be much more complicating, and there is a greater chance of having scars.
It is essential to understand that sunburns are often accompanied by certain health complications – vomiting, pain, chills or fever, dizziness, and more. On the other hand, sunburns are relatively easy to prevent – more about this at the end of this blog!
How and Why our Skin Change Colour?
It is widely acceptable to distinguish people into several races by their skin colour. However, there are many different skin tones among more than seven billion humans – after all, even in cosmetic shops, we see many different tones to suit clients’ needs. But now, let’s ditch cosmetics and talk about something more serious. Intentional sunbathing and frequent visits to the solarium force our skin cells to produce more melanin – a natural skin pigment responsible for our eye and hair colours. Therefore, the more time we spend in the sun, the more melanin is produced and the more tanned we get.
The overall process now seems quite simple; however, there are two different types of melanin. Eumelanin gives the skin so much wanted brown shade and tan, while pheomelanin production results in red burns and is far from what we would like. The oddities do not end here either, as after sunbathing, we can see different skin colour patches – pigmentation differences. One of the possible causes of skin pigmentation is the production of melanin, but in many cases, it can also mean the growth of bacteria, blood vessel changes, inflammation, etc. For this reason, it is essential to look at sunburns and skin discolouration responsible as more prominent and more noticeable pigmentation patches, for example, can mean a higher risk of getting cancer.
We must mention that a change in body colour is more of a cosmetic thing than negatively affecting physical health, but it is always better to be safe than sorry.
How Does the Sun Penetrate our Bodies and Heads?
Staying in the fresh air and engaging in various activities is fun until we start to feel the harmful effects of heat and sun. One of the most relevant problems and, sadly, one of the least understood by society is heatstroke. People of all ages can experience a heatstroke, while considered the most dangerous for children, the elderly and those with heart problems. Heatstroke happens due to prolonged exposure to high temperatures, resulting in the body’s inability to control its internal temperature. Elevated body temperature can lead to pain, dizziness, vomiting, disorientation, cramps, fainting and even a severe loss of consciousness.
Heatstroke is not a simple problem like sunburns and blisters that can be solved on your own – once you feel the symptoms of a heat stroke, you should immediately end whatever you are doing and visit specialists. While it is quite a severe problem, it is relatively easy to recognize the upcoming threat and prevent it from happening. Symptoms of heatstroke include non-sweating despite high temperature, weaker and more dull breathing, muscles pain, etc. We have already mentioned that after having a heat stroke, the body is unable to control its internal temperature – due to that, our internal organs start to heat up and shut down. In general, not paying attention to the symptoms can be very painful and lead to complex and long-term health problems.
Nevertheless, it is pretty simple to avoid such things – one needs to drink more water, cover the head with a hat or a scarf, from time to time spend some time in shadows, and spend time outdoors when the sun is least active, in morning or afternoons. At noon the sun is at its highest point, so we feel the most extraordinary heat – we advise everyone to have a little siesta after eating lunch and plan activities in less sunny hours.
What’s the Secret of Enjoying Sunshine?
From what we have told you today, it is easy to understand that the sun is both a positive and a negative thing. To enjoy its rays so that you do not regret it after, we must face it prepared. We already mentioned drinking loads of water and enjoying the sun in later hours, but in addition to all this, we need to take care of our skin as for it, the UV rays are the most damaging.
The skin needs to be taken care of before sunbathing, during, and after. Before spending time in the sun and wanting the most beautiful tan, dermatologists advise moisturizing the skin as much as possible because dehydrated skin is more exposed to UV rays. You may use creams and lotions to help restore and strengthen the protective layer of the skin. Secondly, you should exfoliate the skin to get rid of dead skin cells. However, it is important not to overdo it as the skin can become irritating – consult your cosmetician before the sunny season to have the most fantastic skincare products waiting to be used. What else can be done? You should include as much carotene and Vitamin E in your daily diet as you can eat. Choose orange vegetables and fruits, have carrots, sweet potatoes, and pumpkins for lunch and mangoes for a healthy snack. Vitamin E can be found in vegetable oil, almonds, nuts, so sun protection is essential and really tasty.
Diving into adventures sounds like a lot of fun as you are excited to know where they would take you. On the other hand, sunburns and blisters are the exact opposite, and although extreme, the pain can be unbearable. To have a beautiful tan and avoid blisters’ formation, you need to expose yourself to the sun progressively. Therefore, few shorter sessions are better than one long. At the same time, dermatologists advise smearing the skin with a high protection level sunscreen, which will lessen harmful UV rays and guarantee an even tan. Do not forget – it is better to hide in shadows from time to time than to lie in the sun all the time.
To protect the skin after sunbathing, you need to use nourishing cream, body butter or lotion – our cream is perfect for that! It will cool the skin after heat, allow it to relax and restore moisture levels. Besides, the cold shower works as well as applying aloe vera gel! However, if safe sunbathing techniques have not worked as you wished them to and you have burns on your skin, talk to your doctor or pharmacist about the treatment and use our balm to speed the healing process.
Spring and summer are great times for adventures, but like any of them, your need to be prepared and think before doing. Be aware of sunny dangers to avoid regretting your decisions later. Enjoy spending time in the sun!