Mayo Clinic Health Manager
Get free personalized health guidance for you and your family.
Get Started
close window
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
By Mayo Clinic staff
Signs and symptoms of sunburn usually appear within a few hours of exposure, bringing pain, redness, swelling and occasional blistering. Because exposure often affects a large area of your skin, sunburn can cause headache, fever and fatigue.
If you have a sunburn:
- Take a cool bath or shower. Adding 1/2 cup (about 120 milliliters) of cornstarch, oatmeal or baking soda to your bath water may provide some relief.
- Apply an aloe vera lotion several times a day.
- Leave blisters intact to speed healing and avoid infection. If they burst on their own, apply an antibacterial ointment on the open areas.
- If needed, take an over-the-counter pain reliever such as aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, others), naproxen (Aleve) or acetaminophen (Tylenol, others). Don't give children or teenagers aspirin. It may cause Reye's syndrome, a rare but potentially fatal disease.
Do not use petroleum jelly, butter or other home remedies on your sunburn. They can prevent or delay healing.
If your sunburn begins to blister or if you experience immediate complications, such as rash, itching or fever, see your doctor.
