Senior Care in Raleigh NC
The spring is a fantastic time to shake off the chill of winter and bring your senior care outside to enjoy some fresh air. Being outside, however, means exposure to the sun and that means the 
potential for sunburns. Sunburns are not just uncomfortable and even painful. They also dramatically increase the risk of skin cancer as well as making the skin more vulnerable to infection. While preventing sunburn should be the first goal in your outdoor senior care, you should also know how to handle one if your prevention methods do not work completely and your aging loved one suffers from a sunburn.
The first step as soon as you notice that your parent’s skin is starting to burn is getting them out of the sun. The longer that they stay in the sun, the deeper that the burn can go and the higher the risks of serious complications. Rinse the skin with cool water to begin removing the heat from the layers and prepare for treatment.
While there are many different options for treating a sunburn, including cooling sprays, these natural, inexpensive methods not only cool the skin immediately for prompt relief, but help to hasten the healing of the skin over the long term. This means that your parent will not suffer as much pain, discomfort, and itching, and will be at lower risk of the serious complications associated with a sunburn.
If your parent has suffered a severe sunburn, is not healing, or is showing signs of illness after a sunburn, be sure to get them medical attention as quickly as possible.
Mint and Tea
What You Will Need
- Cotton pads or a clean cloth
- 5 green tea bags
- 1 quart of water
- A pan
- 3 cups of fresh mint leaves
- A strainer
- A bowl
- Plastic wrap
What to Do
- Place the water into the pot and set it over high heat
- Cover the pot
- When it begins to boil, remove the strings and tags from the tea bags and add them to the pan
- Add the mint leaves to the pan
- Pour the boiling water, carefully, over the tea bags and mint leaves in the pan
- Cover the pan
- Allow to simmer and sit for 1 hour
- After an hour, strain the pan and move the liquid to a bowl
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap
- Place the bowl in the refrigerator
- Allow to chill for 20 minutes
- If not fully chilled, allow to chill further
- When fully chilled, remove and use the soft cloth or cotton pads to soak in the liquid and apply it directly to the burn
Witch Hazel Treatment
What You Will Need
- Cotton balls (or a soft cloth)
- 3 tablespoons of witch hazel (or more depending on the size of the burn)
- A medium sized bowl
What to Do
- Put the witch hazel in the medium bowl
- Place the cotton balls in the witch hazel to soak for around 3 minutes
- Dab the burn gently with the soaked cotton balls, creating a smooth layer, but not dripping wet, over the burned area
- Reapply when the pain returns
