Does cocoa butter assist sunburn? Science says… Type of, however not likely. Ouch.

Sunburn is the last word oops second of summer season. One minute, you’re basking within the solar, absorbing the heat. The subsequent, your pores and skin feels prefer it’s been set on hearth, you’re glowing redder than a cease signal, and each motion is painful. And also you’d put actually something in your pores and skin to make it cease. Why not strive cocoa butter?

Cocoa butter is understood for being wealthy, creamy, and deeply moisturizing, so it is smart that it’d assist with a extreme sunburn – particularly when you have delicate pores and skin. However earlier than you go digging into that jar of cocoa-scented lotion, let’s get actual. Does it truly work, or is it simply one other outdated wives’ story?

Let’s break all of it down, with out the fluff or false hope, and get to the reality about whether or not cocoa butter is your sunburn savior… or simply one other fantasy that’ll make your pores and skin tremendous mushy however gained’t truly assist when it’s screaming for aid.

What Is Cocoa Butter?

Cocoa butter comes from the seeds of the Theobroma cacao tree. Yep, the identical tree that offers us chocolate. Yummy! These seeds (aka cocoa beans) are fermented, dried, roasted, after which pressed to launch their pure fats, which we name cocoa butter. These items is thick, creamy, and melts at physique temperature. No marvel pores and skin loves it a lot!

Cocoa Butter Advantages For Pores and skin

1. It’s Tremendous Moisturising

Ever marvel why cocoa butter feels so wealthy in your pores and skin? This butter is loaded with saturated and monounsaturated fat, the identical varieties of fat present in coconut oil and avocado. These fat create a protecting barrier in your pores and skin that locks in moisture, stopping it from drying out.

Cocoa butter improves pores and skin hydration by stopping trans-epidermal water loss (TEWL), a elaborate method of claiming it retains moisture from escaping your pores and skin. In plain English, it’s wonderful for dry, cracked pores and skin, and even eczema. However right here’s the factor: Simply because one thing is a superb moisturizer doesn’t imply it heals sunburn (we’ll get to that in a sec).

P.S. That is true of different butters, like shea butter, for instance. 

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2. It Has Antioxidant Properties

Cocoa butter is wealthy in polyphenols, flavonoids, and Vitamin E, highly effective antioxidants that combat free radicals, aka, the harm your pores and skin will get from UV rays, air pollution, and simply present within the trendy world. A current research discovered that cocoa polyphenols stimulate collagen manufacturing to enhance pores and skin elasticity and scale back indicators of getting old.

3. It Has Delicate Anti-Inflammatory Properties

A number of research counsel that cocoa butter has gentle anti-inflammatory properties that assist calm irritations and soothe painful pores and skin. Something that may scale back irritation is sweet information for pores and skin – not vital a treatment for sunburn. Cocoa butter isn’t as cooling or soothing as, say, Aloe Vera Gel, cool baths or chilly compresses, so it gained’t work as nicely. In different phrases, cocoa butter is nice for retaining pores and skin mushy and stopping future dryness, but it surely doesn’t pull warmth out of a burn or velocity up therapeutic.

Does Cocoa Butter Helps Sunburns? What Science Says

Cocoa butter has a status. Individuals swear by it for retaining pores and skin mushy, decreasing stretch marks (FYI, it doesn’t work for this both, however it is a matter for one more publish), and making their legs appear like a glowing Instagram advert. So when your pores and skin feels prefer it’s been roasted to a crisp, it’s tempting to achieve for that thick, creamy goodness.

However right here’s the deal: sunburn isn’t just dry pores and skin. It’s precise pores and skin harm. You didn’t simply neglect to placed on lotion; you principally slow-cooked your self underneath the solar’s UV rays, and now your pores and skin is screaming for sunburn aid. That’s the place cocoa butter falls quick. Let’s break down why.

1. Cocoa Butter is a Moisturizer, Not a Healer

Moisturizing is nice, but it surely doesn’t restore burned, broken pores and skin. Let me clarify: You get a sunburn when UV rays penetrate deep into your pores and skin and harm the DNA in your cells. As a way to defend you, your physique reacts by rising blood move to the world (which is why you flip crimson), and in excessive circumstances, it actually kills off the burned cells to forestall mutations (why you peel).

Cocoa butter seals in moisture and prevents dryness, which is nice for later phases of therapeutic. However analysis reveals that cocoa butter doesn’t comprise the energetic elements wanted for repairing broken pores and skin. It gained’t cease peeling, gained’t velocity up restoration, and gained’t undo UV harm. So in the event you’re making use of cocoa butter considering it’s going to repair your sunburn, sorry. It’s simply retaining the world hydrated, nothing extra.

2. Cocoa Butter Doesn’t Cut back Irritation

Let’s get one factor straight: sunburn is an inflammatory response. Your pores and skin isn’t simply dry. It’s indignant. Your immune system detects broken cells and floods the world with inflammatory proteins. In flip, your pores and skin turns crimson, swollen, and sore. Aloe vera, hydrocortisone cream, and ibuprofen work as a result of they actively scale back irritation and assist calm the burn.

What does cocoa butter do? Not a lot on this division. Whereas cocoa butter accommodates some antioxidants that would possibly have gentle anti-inflammatory results, it’s nowhere close to as efficient as all the opposite cures already talked about. You realize, those truly designed to combat irritation. 

Consider it this fashion: in case your pores and skin is on hearth, you want one thing cooling and soothing, like aloe vera or a chilly compress. Cocoa butter? It’s like attempting to place out a hearth with a thick blanket. It gained’t make issues worse, but it surely’s not likely fixing the issue both.

So… Is Cocoa Butter Ineffective for Sunburn?

Cocoa butter gained’t assist when your pores and skin is sizzling, crimson, and painful, however it may be helpful later, as soon as the burn begins to heal. Right here’s how:

• It retains peeling pores and skin from drying out:  Sunburn sucks the moisture proper out of your pores and skin. Cocoa butter helps lock hydration in, so that you don’t find yourself feeling like a shedding lizard.
• Relieves the itching: You realize that annoying peeling part the place you need to scratch your pores and skin off? Cocoa butter helps tone that down, so that you’re not consistently preventing the urge to scratch.
• Prevents cracking: As your pores and skin heals, it might probably get stiff, tight, and uncomfortable. Cocoa butter retains it mushy, so that you don’t find yourself with tough, dry patches.

However let’s be actual: cocoa butter gained’t do something for redness, swelling, or ache.

The perfect transfer? Let your pores and skin settle down first with aloe, chilly compresses, or anti-inflammatory remedies. When you hit the dry, peeling stage, cocoa butter will help hold your pores and skin hydrated and feeling good whereas it heals.

Finest Methods To Deal with Sunburns

Cocoa butter may not be the magic repair for sunburn, so right here’s what works (primarily based on science, not hype): 

1. Aloe Vera

Aloe vera is fingers down top-of-the-line issues you may placed on sunburnt pores and skin. It cools your pores and skin immediately, helps scale back irritation, and retains the burn from drying out too quick. Research discovered that aloe vera quickens therapeutic and reduces redness and peeling. Simply ensure you’re utilizing pure aloe vera gel and never the stuff loaded with synthetic colours and fragrances.

2. Ibuprofen or Aspirin

Ibuprofen or aspirin aren’t only for complications, They will truly assist with an itchy sunburn, too. These drugs combat irritation from the within to cut back swelling, ache, and redness. Pop a dose as quickly as you discover the burn and hold taking it for the following day or two to maintain irritation down. Hold taking it as directed for the following 24-48 hours.

3. Chilly Compress 

A chilly compress is the quickest solution to cease a sunburn from getting worse. Solar harm doesn’t finish if you get out of the solar. Your pores and skin continues to overheat and that deepens the burn. Cooling it down as rapidly as doable helps to slows the method and reduces ache. Research discovered that decreasing pores and skin temperature instantly after UV publicity helps forestall additional harm. Simply soak a fabric in chilly water and press it onto the burned space for 10-Quarter-hour.

P.S. Questioning if a chilly bathe has the identical impact? Yep, you can have a cool bathe too, in the event you’ve courageous sufficient (I’m SO not!).

4. Hydrocortisone Cream 

Hydrocortisone cream is nice when your sunburn feels further swollen, itchy, or irritated. It’s a gentle steroid that helps calm irritation and scale back discomfort, particularly within the first couple of days. Hydrocortisone cream can  fast-track the therapeutic course of and scale back signs quicker than moisturizers alone Apply a skinny layer a couple of times a day, however don’t overuse it. Lengthy-term steroid use can skinny your pores and skin.

Different Sunburn Therapies That Can Assist

Together with these foremost remedies, a number of different issues can relieve the signs of sunburn:

• Drink loads of water: Sunburn dehydrates your physique and pores and skin. Additional fluids assist your pores and skin heal quicker.
• Keep away from tight or scratchy clothes : Persist with mushy, unfastened materials that gained’t rub in opposition to burned pores and skin. 
• Keep out of the solar: Your pores and skin is already broken. Extra solar publicity will simply make issues worse.
• Don’t pop blisters: In case your burn blisters, go away them alone! Popping them will increase the chance of an infection.
• Keep away from important oils: These little buggers sneak their method into so many lotions and potions, however can irritate the affected space.

Find out how to Stop Sunburn

Sunburn is pores and skin harm – and time beyond regulation it might probably result in pores and skin most cancers. The excellent news? You’ll be able to 1000% forestall it, in the event you play it sensible. Right here’s the way to benefit from the solar with out regretting it later:

• Use sufficient sunscreen (as a result of most individuals don’t): SPF 30+ is the minimal, but it surely solely works in the event you truly use sufficient (a couple of shot glass price to your physique and a nickel-sized quantity to your face). 
• Keep within the shade between 10 AM and 4 PM: That is when the solar is at its peak, that means you’ll burn method quicker than within the morning or night. If you wish to benefit from the sunshine, discover shade, put on a hat, or take breaks indoors.
• Cowl up: Vast-brimmed hats, sun shades, and UV-protective clothes can save your pores and skin when sunscreen wears off (particularly in the event you don’t reapply it recurrently). 

Backside Line

If you happen to’ve already peeled and healed, cocoa butter can hold your pores and skin mushy and stop it from trying like a shedding snake. However in the event you’re crimson, in ache, and hoping for a miracle treatment for sunburn, cocoa butter isn’t it. So save your cocoa butter lotion for post-burn hydration, and subsequent time, put on a broad-spectrum sunscreen (and reapply it recurrently!).

About Gio

Hello, I am Gio. I am a no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is pores and skin coach and author on a mission that will help you obtain your finest pores and skin day ever – daily. I bust skincare myths and debunk advertising and marketing jargon that will help you work out what’s well worth the splurge and what’s finest left on the shelf – utilizing science, not hype. I additionally provide skincare consultations that will help you create the very best skincare routine to your distinctive wants.