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Caught too many rays this summer? Scalp sunburn can be really painful and is often an afterthought when it comes to picking up your holiday essentials – but what can we do to protect our scalp?
Sunburn on the scalp can be incredibly painful, and dangerous if left untreated. We all know that excessive exposure to the sun will lead to sunburn and It’ll show your scalp no mercy regardless of the number of strands covering it. So for today, we are going to show you how to protect your hair from the sun.
But first, how can you tell you that a scalp is sunburned?
Any skin (and that includes your scalp) exposed to too much of the ultraviolet (UV) light in sunlight burns. For the scalp, symptoms such as redness, feeling warm or hot to the touch, tenderness or pain, itching, small, fluid-filled blisters are markers of sunburn damage. When severe, symptoms can range from headache, fever, nausea to fatigue.
Usually, it’d take a few hours for the first symptoms of sunburn to appear, but you can only determine its full extent after 24 hours or longer.
See your doctor if your sunburn symptoms include extreme pain, high fever, headache, confusion, nausea or has been infected (increasing pain, swelling, pus draining from an open blister, red streaks extending from an open blister).
Typically, sunburn on your scalp will not cause hair loss unless the skin in the burned area is peeling, and even that should regrow. However, in extreme cases, sunburns may damage your follicles and interfere with hair growth in the burned region. If you have less natural protection from the sun’s UV rays, your hair will thin out. If this is the case, adjust the level of protection you provide for your scalp.
Okay, then what?
Don’t panic. You can prevent scalp sunburns without having to avoid the sun altogether. All you need is scalp sun protection, and silk headcovers are great at doing just that. The UV light is most intense between 10 am to 4 pm. Wear a silk head wrap or at the very least a hat if you intend to be out in the sun at this time. This will prevent sunburns to your scalp while conserving your hairs’ moisture and nutrients, thus promoting hair growth.
Headcovers with loose weaves allow UV light through to your scalp. And if that happens, it wouldn’t matter if it’s silk covering; your scalp will burn.
Here are steps you can take to reduce the pains and effects of a sunburned scalp.
When your scalp starts healing, your skin may start breaking out. Flaking could mimic signs of dandruff and hair loss. However, this is usually temporary and will resolve itself within the next few days if you keep taking care of your scalp.
Ultimately the easiest way to prevent sunburn is to avoid the sun. Easy ways to prevent sunburn on your scalp from appearing in the first place include: