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Lobster Red... I went on a Caribbean cruise 2 months ago and bought sunblock with some extremely high 85+ SPF factor. Years ago, I remember thinking SPF 35 was high, and now, most of the places sell sunscreen with factors over 75. That said... I couldn't help but notice the number of tourists who had no concept of how easily a bad sunburn can ruin a vacation. Some were so bad they had to apply creamy white anesthetic ointment to reduce the pain. Maybe they were thinking of getting a tan? Honestly, it doesn't work that way. First... you have to stage it in SMALL DOSES or you will burn. Living in South Florida, I've seen this 1,000's of times. If you stay in the sun until 'you feel a burn' it's too late. At that point, you will completely bypass any chance of tanning and go directly to burn. Why? because the affect of exposure is still happening. Here's my analogy. If you've tried deli chicken fresh off the rotisserie you will find it is uncooked at the bone, but the meat is hot. 30 minutes later 'at the bone' is now done. When you expose yourself to the sun... lets say 20 minutes under noon sun and you come inside, you probably don't feel anything more than the deep warmth. Two or three hours the skin is still deeply warm and you are red... not tan. If you are really pale white, 20 minutes would mean "lobster red" and you will be painfully blistered usually by the next day. Seriously, 20 minutes in direct sunlight is too much for a 'solar newbie'. 20-30 minutes under the cover of an umbrella, shade tree or overhang by a pool bar can give enough reflective rays to give a similar effect without the burn. Use some common sense... let's say you are using SPF 100 lotion and you lay on a blanket for 20+ minutes in direct sunlight... can you guess how hot your skin gets?? Think of the Mojave Desert in July... if you are near an oven, set it to 130 degrees Fahrenheit and mix dough for cookies... hopefully, my favorite: chocolate chip. Yeah, bake some cookies. Who gets done first... you or the cookies? After burn care I use white vinegar. Wet the affected area several times an hour for a few hours. It completely stops the sting and there's a good chance you won't peel after. Don't use any other lotion or oil or it won't work. |
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I've never really understood the logic of laying in the sun to change my tone.
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