Too much sun exposure can sometimes go beyond just an unpleasant sunburn. It also can lead to sun poisoning.
While a sunburn will cause red, painful skin, sun poisoning is a severe type of sunburn that goes beyond the skin. It is an overexposure to ultraviolet radiation from the sun’s rays that causes a reaction throughout the body.
“Sun poisoning is likely a combination of the body’s response to a severe sunburn in addition to overall dehydration,” says Dr. Ashley Elsensohn, a dermatopathologist and Mohs surgeon at Loma Linda University Medical Center in Loma Linda, California.
[READ The Best Home Sunburn Remedies and Treatments]
Symptoms of Sun Poisoning
Common symptoms of sun poisoning include:
— Blistering of the skin that eventually peels
— Chills
— Dizziness
— Fever and other flu-like symptoms
— Headache
— Loss of consciousness
— Muscle aches
— Nausea and vomiting
— Red, painful skin
— Small bumps that look like hives
The symptoms of sun poisoning may last for a couple of days, although recovery to the skin can take a couple of weeks.
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Risk Factors for Sun Poisoning
There are some factors that can put you at higher risk for sun poisoning:
— Skin tone. You have fair skin.
— Lupus. Lupus causes your cells to be more sensitive to damage caused by UV radiation. Sun exposure could trigger certain skin symptoms like a rash.
— Family history. Having a family history of skin cancer can increase your risk of sun poisoning.
— Geographic location. You live near the equator.
— Medications. You’re using medications that make you more sensitive to sun exposure. These may include tetracycline antibiotics, retinoid products, hydrochlorothiazide and naproxen.
— Time in the sun. You spend a lot of time outside in the sun without shelter or shade. This may include athletes and construction workers.
Is sun poisoning dangerous?
Aside from the pain and discomfort caused by sun poisoning, there are other reasons why it’s dangerous. Getting sun poisoning can increase your risk for skin cancer in the future.
This includes basal cell and squamous cell skin cancers as well as melanoma, the more severe type of skin cancer. Even just one blistering sunburn from your childhood can double your risk for melanoma in adulthood, according to the Skin Cancer Foundation.
Plus, the dehydration caused by sun poisoning may decrease your blood pressure, cause fatigue and make you faint. Depending on the severity of your heat exposure during your time in the sun, there’s a risk for heat stroke, which occurs when your body overheats and can no longer control its own temperature.
[See: Surprising Facts About Sunscreen.]
How to Treat Sun Poisoning
There are a few things to do for sun poisoning treatment:
— Get the person out of direct sunlight as fast as possible.
— Offer a cool (not cold) bath. A cold bath can be too much of a shock to the body.
— Apply aloe, or another type of sunburn relief product, to the skin.
— Offer plenty of fluids, including water and sports drinks or other electrolyte drinks. Electrolytes are minerals like calcium, magnesium and potassium that help balance your body’s fluid levels. These types of drinks are helpful to replace lost fluids due to dehydration.
— Use nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications (like aspirin or ibuprofen) to help manage pain.
— Use cold compresses on the skin.
— Avoid peeling the blistering skin as this can lead to infection.
When to see a doctor for sunburn or sun poisoning
You should go to the ER right away if you have sun poisoning and you lose consciousness. You should also seek immediate medical care if you suspect sun poisoning in an infant or an adult older than age 65. If you’re not sure if the person you’re with has sun poisoning or how to treat them, seek medical care.
It’s also time to go to seek medical care for sun poisoning if the following symptoms still occur after the first 12 hours of sun exposure:
— Chills
— Dehydration
— Dizziness
— Nausea and vomiting
You don’t want to delay medical care for sun poisoning if someone can’t maintain good hydration because of their nausea and vomiting.
A health care provider can offer several types of treatments for sun poisoning, including:
— Antibiotics for an infection caused by open blisters
— Fluids given intravenously to help treat dehydration
— Steroid pills
Once the redness and inflammation from sun poisoning decreases, it’s also a good idea to see a dermatologist to assess the skin.
Sun Poisoning Prevention
The long-standing advice you’ve heard on how to avoid sunburns also applies to preventing sun poisoning. Here are a few tips:
— Wear protective clothing. Use protective clothing in the sun, including sunglasses, long sleeves and wide-brimmed hats. Some sportswear and beachwear have UV protection built in, so be sure to look for clothing with an ultraviolet protection factor (UPF) label. UPF 30 to 49 offers very good protection, while UPF 50 or higher offers excellent skin protection, according to the Skin Cancer Foundation.
— Wear sunscreen. Many dermatologists recommend mineral-based sunscreens that contain zinc oxide or titanium dioxide with SPF 30 or 50. Reapply your sunscreen every two hours or more frequently if you’re in the pool or the ocean.
— Check your local UV index. This indicates how strong the intensity of UV radiation from the sun is. Numbers 6 to 11+ indicate high UV levels, so you have to be especially careful about sun exposure.
— Limit your time in the sun. Avoid spending a lot of time in the sun during its peak hours, between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Find shady spots if you must spend time outdoors during peak hours.
— Drink more fluids. While it’s always important to stay hydrated, increase your fluid intake when you’re out in the sun to avoid dehydration.
— Watch out for drug-induced photosensitivity. Because certain drugs can increase your sensitivity to sunlight, find out whether any medications you take are one of them.
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The Difference Between Sun Poisoning and Sunburn originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 06/16/25: This story was previously published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
