Cory's Healthy Tips:
 Sun & Burn!


by Cory Dan

















Everyone loves a sunny day, but the danger of sunburn is real.  You don't 
even realize it until you get home from a day of playing and your arms are 
sore and red.  Here are several ways you can stop the sun from burning you 
as well as ideas for helping to heal a burn once it happens.  It may help to 
think of a regular burn that you might get in your kitchen.  Believe it or
not, this is the same process as a sunburn; you are killing the cells of your 
skin.  A really bad sunburn can have other effects such as fever, rashes, or 
nausea.


In order to stop the sun from burning you:



    

  1. Put on SUNSCREEN.  SPF means Sun Protection Factor and every bottle
should be labeled with an SPF number.  The higher the stronger.  If you are light skinned you should start at the beginning of the summer or vacation with the highest sunscreen you can 
find.  If you think you will swim, it's best to get one that is waterproof.  But always remember that no sunscreen can block the sun, no matter how strong, so you will slowly tan and that is more healthy than any burn.

    

  2. Wear a hat.  Baseball cap, straw hat, cloth, anything that covers your
head and part of your face works.  This will keep the sun off your head and help you stay cool and shady.

    

  3. Stay in the shade.  It sounds so easy. If you're playing quietly or
sitting, try under a tree where it's cooler and you won't get burned.

    

  4. Wear long sleeves and long pants.  It sounds crazy but it works!  Wear
white or another light color if you have to be in the sun for a long time, like on a hike or a bike ride.  The long clothes will actually help you to stay cool and sheild you from the sun's harmful rays.

    




If you think you already have a sunburn:

    


  • Apply some aloe vera lotion.  Aloe is a type of plant which has a gel-like inside.  This gel helps soothe a sunburn and heal your skin.  If you have an aloe plant at your house, check with your parent, then cut a couple of leaves for yourself.  Squeez


e the gel out of the plant leaf and rub the gel on your most burned spots.  Or mix it with lotion and cover your whole body.  Aloe is good for your skin anytime.  They even sell lotion with aloe in it.

    

  • Apply a soothing lotion- the kind with aloe is best for a sunburn but any kind will help mosturize and heal your skin.



    

  • Stay out of the sun for a few days until your skin has had a chance to recover.  Getting another sunburn on top may increase the dry, itchy feeling and cause more skin to peel after it heals.

    




Your skin is one of the most important organs in your body, it does things like keep out germs, imagine if you didn't have it!  Also, our atmosphere is getting thinner every year, that means there is less between you and the sun so the rays that touch you




r skin are more powerful.  Remember some of these simple tips and you should have a great, burn-free summer!







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