Your Complete Guide to Skincare After Sun Exposure

person angelina swanson
calendar_today Jul 01, 2024
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Angelina's Top Tips for Minimizing Sun Damage

Sun exposure on our skin can lead to a variety of harmful effects, ranging from premature aging to more serious health concerns like skin cancer. The ultraviolet (UV) rays from the sun penetrate the skin, causing DNA damage in skin cells. Over time, this can result in wrinkles, loss of elasticity, and age spots. More concerning, however, is the increased risk of developing melanoma and other forms of skin cancer.

To protect your skin from UV damage, it's crucial to adopt sun-safe habits. Wearing broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30, seeking shade during peak sun hours, and wearing protective clothing like hats, long sleeves, gloves and sunglasses can significantly reduce your risk. Additionally, regular skin checks can help in early detection of any suspicious changes, allowing for prompt medical intervention if necessary.

Remember, taking these precautions not only helps maintain youthful skin but also plays a vital role in safeguarding your overall health.

After Sun Care

Anti-inflammatories and antioxidants are key!

Cooling, soothing foods work from the inside to heal all of our tissues and organs, including our largest organ, our skin. Especially in the summer months, be sure to eat plenty of anti-inflammatory foods like organic salads, melons, cucumbers, olive oil, salmon, almonds and dark leafy greens. Antioxidant rich foods like berries, dark leafy greens, broccoli, avocados and, of course, dark chocolate.

Apply soothing skin care after a day in the sun. Central Oregon is very hot and dry in the summer. Some of our favorite products for sun-drenched skin are:

STEP 1: CLEANSE
Use a gentle, soap-free cleanser like the Apple Chamomile Cleansing Gel.

STEP 2: EXFOLIATE
EXFOLIATE: Removing the topmost layer of dead, dry skin restores that radiant glow and helps your leave-on products sink in better. *Only exfoliate if you if your skin isn't tender or sunburned. I love to give my body a good scrub with one of our shea butter enriched Detox Lemon Drop Brightening Sugar Scrub. For face, try a gentle scrub like the Cucumber Face Polish. The added brightening ingredients help reverse some of that sun damage.

STEP 3: TONE
Toners tighten the skin and restore your pH. Our most gentle mist is the Bulgarian Rose Hydrosol - we spray this cooling mist head to toe. I keep this instant skin soother in the refrigerator all summer. This is also a favorite with my family when we're camping. We store it in the ice chest and the cold mist feels both soothing and invigorating.

STEP 4: TREAT
Apply some Cucumber Aloe Rescue Gel (keep it in the fridge- it feels wonderful!) to any skin that's hot and red.Increase the anti-inflammatory effects with a few drops of the Blue Sapphire Concentrated Brightening Oil.

The day after sun exposure, which is every morning for many of us, be sure to use a vitamin C serum. Vitamin C helps reverse some of the damaged caused by UV rays, enhances collagen production and lightens "age" and dark patches. While ascorbic acid is the most potent form of vitamin C, many folks find that it irritates their skin. The other downside is that ascorbic acid causes sun sensitivity for several hours. We've opted to use a blend of vitamin C derivatives in our Ultra C Serum because they're less likely to cause irritation and they don't cause photosensitivity, so you can use this potent serum during the day.

STEP 5: MOISTURIZE
Sun exposure can really dry out the upper layers of our skin and applying a little extra moisture is key to keeping skin healthy and radiant. Explore our range of luscious Body Moisturizers and apply a generous amount after you come out of the sun. For your face, be sure to use an antioxidant-rich moisturizer like our Saving Grace Night Cream.

Did you forget to reapply sunscreen or just stay out too long?

Sunburns are the worst! As a redhead, I can't begin to count the number of times I've burned my delicate, pale skin. No matter what your skin tone, you can burn if you stay out in the sun long enough.

Treating Sunburn

Sunburns sneak up on even the most vigilant of us! I recently burned the tops of my feet badly because I applied sunscreen while wearing shoes, then took them off while paddle boarding and didn't even think about it. After more than two hours on the river, my feet were lobster red. They even swelled up that night and were painful. Fortunately, I had some handy products in my skincare apothecary at home.

#1 Treat Your Sunburned Skin Immediately

Here are a few different options for treating sunburned skin naturally:

I keep a bottle of our Cucumber Aloe Rescue Gel in the refrigerator and applied that to my sunburned feet every few hours for the next couple days. It felt so soothing and in just three days, the redness was gone without any peeling. I recommend this little gem to everyone. Whether you get too much sun, get eaten by mosquitos or burn yourself on the stove, this is a handy remedy to have in your home apothecary.

If you have an aloe plant growing nearby, you can slice off a couple inches of leaf, fillet it open and apply the gel right to your skin. These healing plants are easy to grow even in Central Oregon - we grow them inside in a sunny window. If you live in an area that rarely freezes, try growing some outdoors.

Don't have any aloe products or plants on hand? You can still get some relief. Try making a cup of soothing herbal tea, cooling it in the refrigerator and dabbing that on your sunburn. Even better- freeze the tea in an ice cube tray and give yourself a little cryotherapy treatment by gliding the icy cube over your sunburned skin. You can do this with the Bulgarian Rose Hydrosol too!

Calming herbs to use: chamomile, lavender, rose petals, green and black tea, jasmine flowers, plantain leaves, comfrey, calendula, yarrow and St John's wort flowers.