Monday, 18 July 2011
-
OUCH!: Scientists Discover Why Sunburns Hurt
Attention readers currently slathering on aloe: scientists at King's College in Londonhave found the molecule that causes sunburns to be painful! Why is this cause for celebration? Because it may help lead to more effective pain treatments for sunburn as well as other inflammatory conditions.
They found that sunburns are painful because of the protein CXCL5, "which recruits inflammatory immune cells to damaged tissue" and causes stinging. Volunteers were asked to expose a small patch of skin to UVB radiation, which was then biopsied two days later to look for proteins associated with the pain. CXCL5 was one of the pain mediators that were "over-expressed," so scientists took this knowledge and tested it on rats. When treated with an antibody that neutralized CXCL5, the rats' sensitivity to pain was greatly reduced.
As a pale girl whose mom is a skin cancer survivor, I'd much rather them have found a miracle alternative to sunscreen, but hey! I'm a total baby when I get burned (because I rarely do; I'm careful), so having something to effectively ease the pain will be a welcome relief!
But until these new treatments are developed, Healthkickers, what's your best sunburn pain remedy?
RecommendRelated Posts
Post a Comment
- Back to healthkicker's Healthkicker Site!
- Note: your comment will appear in healthkicker's local time zone: GMT -05:00 (Eastern Standard - US, Canada)
About the Author
-
- From: darci
- About Me: I'm a New York native attending the University of Miami (go Canes!). I love Cherry Coke, all '80s pop culture, the Olympics, snow, and a good story. I hate running, have been known to eat junk food after I finish up at the gym, and have an ongoing rivalry with the Jacob's Ladder. I'm my own brand of health nut!
Stats: This Week All Time Posts: 0 67 Views: 0 153100 Comments: 0 1354 View all posts by darci
Comments (29)
They didn't know why burned skin hurt before this?
I'm a yellow girl, even though I'm not asian, but I burn really easily.
I've found that mud or dirt is the best sunscreen. I use aloe and cold towels when I get a bad burn, but I haven't had a bad burn since I was a kid. Well, see what happened is that my skin got a tone darker whe nI was in the army, so I don't burn as bad as I used to. I used to be as white as the screen.
If you tan for little sessions, your skin will darken. If you want it to. I'm now yellow.
Sunburns don't really affect me, and it kind of makes sense, if I'm taking this correctly. I have a suppressed immune system, so basically, the immune cells that this protein is recruiting to treat the damaged tissue are drastically depleted in number. So, if it's the immune cells' response that causes the stinging, and I have no immune response, then there shouldn't be any stinging. Thanks for connecting the dots for me! (that is if I'm thinking correctly).
wait!
but easing the pain doesn't necessarily mean curing the sunburn
the skin cancer risk is still there
sunblock is still the way to go!
vinegar takes the pain away like THAT -snaps fingers-
works like a freaking charm. google it.Staying out of the sun to the point that I burn or just putting on sunblock if I can't prevent the first from happening.
I prevent the pain by not getting sunburned! Which is difficult considering that I can burn in literally 5 minutes. But it would be nice to have a way to effectively curb the pain when I do get burned once in a blue moon. Aloe gel works to a certain point, but when it reaches the 24/7 itching along with stabbing/stinging pain combo, there's not a whole lot I can do except writhe in constant pain for a couple days. Tanning is so not worth it :)
I like aloe for moisturizer on my face. :) Not getting burned in the first place is a good way to cure sunburn! Not that I always follow that advice.
@StatelessPilot@revelife - I agree with you on the fresh aloe, my brother grows it and it does wonders. And as for sunscreen causing cancer, it more depends on what is in the sunscreen. Most sunscreens (pretty much all the brands people are familiar with) do contain stuff that will increase cancer risks, but mineral-based sunscreens with zinc or titanium won't.
I am the palest person in my family, and for as long as I can remember, I've had porcelain skin. I used to be in marching band in high school and college, but even then, I was never truly that dark. I always use SPF 50 all over, and I have to reapply on my face within half an hour - everywhere else after an hour or so.
I've also had sun poisoning twice in my life. Another time and I'm guaranteed to acquire skin cancer. The last time I got sun poisoning (which was on Memorial Day) I was burned so badly that my skin turned purple from the heat, I had a rash on top of my burn, I had blisters the size of my fists, and was so swollen from my knees below that I looked 400 pounds. I ended up having to go to the doctor to get a steroid shot, as well as steroid pills, a diuretic, and potassium pills. It was seriously rough on me.
Whenever I get a bad burn, I use aloe vera gel with the highest amount of pure aloe available. I don't use lotion because the rubbing creates too much friction. I always take an Aveeno bath nightly and soak for no less than 15 minutes. But if the pain is worse on the second day, it's a good sign it's more than just a burn.
I always start with SPF 30, but usually miss a nice streak of skin or forget one spot.... Lesser burns, aloe is great, serious "ouchies" I use vinegar. Works great.
My only remedy is SPF 100 and not to get sunburned at all! They have some melanin shot thing they are researching. Because I've already had skin cancer, I'd be very interested in a shot to makes it impossible for me to burn. :)
A remedy I use for a sun burn is to wear a damp tshirt to bed. Something about the cool cloth makes my skin feel like some of the burn was sucked out in the morning.. And then through the day using the usual aloe
@StatelessPilot@revelife - But I thought the sun caused skin cancer because O3 used to protect us from the UV rays before, but now it's slowly depleting due to all the CO2 in the atmosphere? I'm all for nature and nature's cures...but if it's a man-made problem, shouldn't we use a man-made solution like sunscreen?
@Digital_Angel21@xanga - My boss encourages us to use sunscreen without all those nasty cancer causing agents (because she's a ginger). Especially this week, since our job is to be outside and I've recently burned my boobs x_x But yeah. Just natural stuff is totally the way to go.
I just avoid the sun. I can't be in it because of my medicines. They cause you to get heat stroke/exhaustion super easily.
I just don't get sunburned...
@StatelessPilot@revelife - You can't build up immunity to the sun. Exposure to UV rays is cumulative, so the more years you're out in the sun, the higher the risk of skin cancer. Its crazy to have it backwards. That's like saying eating tons of sugar builds up an immunity to diabetes!
Its also funny you say you built up immunity to the sun....but then also say the sun doesn't even cause skin cancer. Tell that to the two kids in my high school who were "surfer kids" and didn't use sunscreen and got skin cancer in their teens.
@ToMarilyn@xanga - There are probably a lot of factors that contribute to why skin cancer is so prevalent....not just the ozone layer, but also the fact that we're living longer, and just out in the sun more, and also that "tans are cool and more attractive" (when back in the day, paler skin was more attractive).
The studies show that many sunscreens can promote skin cancer....but that the overall rate would be slower than if exposed to the sun without any protection at all. Your best bet is to avoid sun when possible but if you're gonna be out in the sun, its better to use certain sunscreens. Its probably a good idea to research which sunscreens are better and worse. I forget some of the chemicals and derivatives that are harmful, but I'm sure its easy to look up. (I remember Vitamin A and its derivatives are not good). Also keep in mind that the SPF labels are misleading......higher is better but their protection is really nowhere near the number they say.
I use aloe vera gel and take a cool shower.. if you take a cool shower it helps release some of the heat from your skin which relieves a lot of the pain -- at least for me anyways.
@wizexel22@xanga - Basically, my policy: if a doctor says it, then it's a lie. Period. The reason they promote sunscreen is so that you'll get skin cancer and go to them for treatment, which makes them money. That's also why prescription drugs (pharmaceuticals) are designed to make you sicker, not better. Modern medicine is the biggest scam in the modern era. There's a reason I refuse any and all routine and emergency medical services, for whatever reason (including in life/death situations).
Interesting and cool-- kinda crappy that they tested it on rats though...
I use aloe vera and if it's bad, and the itch of hell comes, I use the hot shower and dermoplast.
So funny I run across this post as I got burned on Saturday and am still in agonizing pain. I'm taking 3 topical creams/gels for it now. Ahhh never again!
@ToMarilyn@xanga - Chlorine atoms from chlorofluorocarbons and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (used in refrigerators, air conditioners, spray cans and some other applications) break apart ozone molecules to form oxygen and chlorine monoxide. The chlorine monoxide then reacts with another ozone molecule, destroying it to form two oxygen molecules and freeing the chlorine atom to do further damage. This process repeats itself an average of 50,000 times until the chlorine atom binds with hydrogen to form hydrochloric acid, ending the cycle of ozone depletion. Of course ... that's just one atom of Chlorine. One liter of Chlorine gas at standard temperature and pressure contains 26,875,000,000,000,000,000,000 chlorine molecules, meaning double that number of atoms. Now, imagine what just a fraction of that could do.