5 Reasons to Use Manuka Honey for Sunburn

Spending time outside and getting some much-needed vitamin D is always nice, but it can go wrong if you forget to apply sunscreen and end up with a red, painful sunburn. Between the burning, the itching, and the peeling, sunburns are incredibly unpleasant, and most people don’t know what to do about them other than waiting for them to heal on their own or maybe slathering on some aloe vera gel.

But did you know that there are actually natural remedies for sunburn that work much more effectively than that store-bought stuff that’s full of chemicals and fragrances? In particular, we’re talking about using Manuka honey for sunburn. That’s right, honey isn’t just a sweetener for your tea anymore. It can also help you deal with even the nastiest of sunburns.

Here are five reasons why you should consider using honey for sunburned skin the next time you spend too much time in the sun.

1. It Provides Relief

When you have a painful sunburn, the first thing on your mind is getting some much-needed relief from all of that stinging and burning. Well, Manuka honey is great at soothing red, irritated skin. With its natural healing properties for wounds and burns, Manuka honey for sunburned skin is a great relief option.

2. It Helps Prevent Infection

Once you’ve gotten some relief for your pain, your brain is freed up to think about the next most important consideration for sunburns: how do you make sure that you don’t get an infection that will make the issue worse? After all, sunburns are wounds that, when not taken care of properly, are incredibly vulnerable to pollutants and bacteria. The good news is that Manuka honey can help here, too. It creates a natural barrier on the skin to protect you from harmful contaminants, providing another reason why Manuka honey is a great natural remedy for sunburns.

3. It Speeds Healing

Not only can Manuka honey help prevent your sunburn situation from going from bad to worse, but it can actually also speed up the healing process so that your skin can feel normal again as quickly as possible. It’s an incredibly nourishing substance, with an ability to speed the natural wound repair process that your body kicks off once you get a sunburn.

4. It Moisturizes the Skin

One of the ways that Manuka honey can help your sunburn heal is by drawing moisture to the skin. This is because Manuka honey is a natural humectant, a substance that can retain or preserve moisture. The more moisture your sunburnt skin can absorb, the faster you’ll heal. Plus, this moisture will help you avoid any uncomfortable dryness and inconvenient peeling. And the itching that comes when your sunburn is starting to finally heal? Manuka honey’s moisturizing properties can help relieve that, too.

5. It Prevents Scarring

There is a lot of relief when your sunburn is finally in the late and final stages of the healing process, but there’s still one thing to worry about: scarring. When wounds don’t heal properly, they can develop unsightly scars, and you don’t want a reminder of your sunburn to stay with you forever. Using Manuka honey as a natural remedy for sunburn can help your burn heal fully and completely so that you don’t have any scarring afterward.

How to Use Manuka Honey for Sunburns

In theory, you can just slather some raw Manuka honey directly on your sunburn to help it feel better and it would work just fine. But that’s pretty sticky and inconvenient. That’s why we’ve formulated our signature Sunny Days kit that comes with every Manuka honey product you could possibly need to keep your skin healthy in the summer (and the other seasons, too). 

With our beloved, all-natural first aid Manuka honey ointment, Manuka bandages, and skin therapy cream all stored in a convenient travel bag, the kit has you covered with everything you need to protect and heal your skin. The First Honey® Skin Therapy Cream is perfect for taking care of your sunburns, while the First Honey® Manuka Honey Ointment and First Honey® Manuka Bandages can save you from any other summer accidents that might happen like seashell cuts and sand rashes.

We always recommend having at least our Therapy Cream on hand with you every time you go to the beach so that you can immediately reach for it should you find yourself waking up from an accidental nap on the sand under the glaring sun with a brand-new sunburn on your skin. The sooner you can apply Manuka honey, the sooner you can begin to benefit from its amazing healing, moisturizing properties.