Sun poisoning is a severe sunburn that goes beyond typical redness and tenderness, often producing blisters, swelling, and sometimes systemic symptoms like nausea or fever. Helping it heal starts with aggressive cooling and hydration in the first few hours, then shifts to protecting damaged skin while your body repairs itself. Most cases resolve at home within one to two weeks, but some require medical attention.
What Sun Poisoning Actually Looks Like
The term “sun poisoning” isn’t a formal medical diagnosis. It describes a spectrum of severe reactions to UV exposure that go well beyond a pink, mildly tender sunburn. The skin may turn bright red, feel hot to the touch, and develop fluid-filled blisters. Swelling is common, especially on the face, forearms, and chest.
What separates sun poisoning from a regular sunburn is the addition of whole-body symptoms: headache, nausea, chills, dizziness, or a general feeling of being unwell. These happen because the inflammation is intense enough to trigger a systemic response, similar to what your body does when fighting an infection. Some people also develop a dense, bumpy rash rather than uniform redness. This type of reaction, called polymorphous light eruption, typically appears 30 minutes to several hours after sun exposure and is most common in spring and early summer when skin hasn’t yet adapted to stronger sunlight. It produces clusters of small bumps and blisters, raised rough patches, and significant itching or burning.
Cool the Skin Immediately
The single most helpful thing you can do in the first hours is bring the skin temperature down. Apply a clean towel dampened with cool tap water to the affected areas for about 10 minutes at a time, repeating several times throughout the day. A cool bath works too. Adding roughly 2 ounces (about 60 grams) of baking soda to the bathwater can help soothe inflammation and itching.
Avoid ice or ice-cold water directly on the skin. Severely burned skin is already compromised, and extreme cold can cause further damage. Cool tap water is the right temperature. After cooling, let the skin air dry or pat very gently with a soft towel. Rubbing will irritate blistered or inflamed areas.
Hydrate Aggressively
Severe sunburn pulls fluid toward the skin’s surface and away from the rest of your body, which is why sun poisoning often comes with headache, fatigue, and dizziness. Drink extra water for at least the first full day, and continue increasing your intake until symptoms improve. Water is best, though drinks with electrolytes can help if you’re also dealing with nausea or vomiting. Avoid alcohol, which accelerates dehydration.
Manage Pain and Swelling
Over-the-counter anti-inflammatory pain relievers like ibuprofen help reduce both the pain and the underlying inflammation driving the reaction. Taking them early, within the first several hours of noticing the burn, is more effective than waiting until the pain peaks. If you can’t take ibuprofen, acetaminophen will ease pain but won’t address the inflammation itself.
For the skin surface, apply a nonprescription 1% hydrocortisone cream to affected areas three times a day for up to three days. This reduces redness, swelling, and itching more effectively than basic moisturizers. After the first few days, switch to a gentle, fragrance-free moisturizer or pure aloe vera gel to keep the skin from drying out and cracking as it heals.
How to Handle Blisters
Blisters mean the burn has reached deeper layers of skin. Leave them intact. The fluid inside protects the raw skin underneath and helps it heal faster. Popping blisters dramatically increases the risk of infection because you’re exposing a wound that has no protective outer layer.
If a blister breaks on its own, gently clean the area with mild soap and water, apply a thin layer of antibiotic ointment, and cover it loosely with a non-stick bandage. Watch for signs of infection over the following days: increasing redness spreading beyond the original burn, pus, worsening pain, or warmth that intensifies rather than improving. Infected sun blisters need medical treatment.
What Recovery Looks Like
The first two to three days are typically the worst. Pain, redness, and swelling peak during this window, and systemic symptoms like nausea or chills, if present, usually resolve within the first 48 hours. By days four through seven, the acute inflammation calms and peeling begins. This is your body shedding the damaged outer layer of skin.
Resist the urge to pull or pick at peeling skin. Let it shed naturally. The new skin underneath is thin, sensitive, and extremely vulnerable to further UV damage. Full recovery from a severe case typically takes one to two weeks, though the new skin may remain more sensitive to sunlight for several weeks beyond that. During this entire period, keep the area covered or completely shielded from sun exposure.
When Sun Poisoning Needs Medical Care
Most sun poisoning heals with the home care described above, but certain symptoms signal that your body needs more help. The American College of Emergency Physicians recommends seeking immediate care if you have a severe sunburn with blisters along with any of the following:
- Fever or chills that persist beyond the first day or spike significantly
- Nausea or vomiting severe enough to prevent you from keeping fluids down
- Confusion or disorientation, which can indicate dangerous dehydration or heat-related illness
- Bright red, oozing skin covering a large portion of the body
Burns covering a large surface area, particularly on the face, or burns in young children and older adults, also warrant a call to a healthcare provider. In severe cases, a prescription-strength corticosteroid cream may be needed when over-the-counter hydrocortisone isn’t enough to control the inflammation.
Preventing It From Happening Again
If you’ve had sun poisoning once, your skin has demonstrated that it’s particularly vulnerable, and the same exposure will likely produce the same reaction. Prevention is straightforward but requires consistency.
The American Academy of Dermatology recommends sunscreen that is broad-spectrum (blocking both UVA and UVB rays), SPF 30 or higher, and water-resistant. SPF 30 blocks 97% of UVB rays. Apply it 15 to 30 minutes before going outside and reapply every two hours, or immediately after swimming or sweating. Most people use far too little: a full ounce (roughly a shot glass) covers the average adult body.
Sunscreen alone isn’t enough if you’re prone to severe reactions. Seek shade during peak UV hours, roughly 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wear tightly woven clothing, a wide-brimmed hat, and UV-blocking sunglasses. If you experienced polymorphous light eruption, gradually increasing your sun exposure in spring rather than jumping into prolonged outdoor time can help your skin build some tolerance, though this approach has limits and won’t fully protect you.
Some medications increase sun sensitivity dramatically, including certain antibiotics, diuretics, and acne treatments. If you’re taking any prescription medication and have experienced sun poisoning, check whether photosensitivity is a listed side effect. You may need to be even more cautious than the general recommendations suggest.