ATXMI Blog

Treating Burns at Home: Effective Strategies

Burns can result from exposure to heat, steam, hot liquids, chemicals, or sun exposure, and their treatment depends on their severity. Severe burns can damage all skin layers, including muscles and underlying fat, necessitating immediate medical attention. Natural remedies can aid wound healing and alleviate pain. If you’re wondering how to treat a burn at home, here are some effective natural remedies to reduce infection risk and promote scar-free healing. To aid burn recovery, consider applying essential oils, antioxidants, and plant compounds topically. Additionally, modify your diet by reducing inflammatory foods and incorporating anti-inflammatory options for optimal healing.

Types of Burns

Burn symptoms may include redness, swelling, pain, and blisters, which may take one to two days to fully develop in severe cases. To assess the burn’s severity, evaluate your symptoms, and determine whether medical attention is required.

Burns are typically categorized as follows based on skin damage levels:

First-degree burn: A minor burn affecting only the outer skin layer causing redness and pain.
Second-degree burn: Involves both the epidermis and dermis, leading to swelling, red or splotchy skin, blisters, and potential scarring.
Third-degree burn: A severe burn that reaches the fat layer beneath the skin, resulting in black, brown, or white areas and leathery skin. Third-degree burns can cause numbness due to nerve damage.

Treatment options vary based on the burn type. First-degree burns are often minor and can be treated with natural home remedies. Here’s how to treat minor burns effectively:

How to Treat a Burn: 10 Home Remedies

Cool It Down: To soothe the affected area, place it under cool running water or use a cool, wet compress for about five minutes. Avoid cold water or ice.
Top Healing Foods: Consume healing foods to facilitate recovery, including water, vitamin C-rich citrus fruits, omega-3-rich fish, zinc-rich foods like grass-fed beef, pumpkin seeds, and spinach, and clean, lean protein sources.
Foods to Avoid: Stay away from inflammatory foods like sugar, trans and hydrogenated oils found in processed foods, which hinder healing.
Aloe Vera: Apply pure aloe vera gel (at least 99% pure) twice daily to promote healing.
Vitamin E: Increase your intake of vitamin E-rich foods, take supplements, or apply topical vitamin E to aid healing.
Zinc: Consider a zinc supplement if your diet lacks sufficient zinc.
L-glutamine: This amino acid supports tissue healing and infection prevention. Include it in your diet or as a supplement.
Antioxidant Supplements: Burns trigger inflammation and the release of free radicals. Antioxidants like vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium, and flavonoids counteract these free radicals.
Essential Oils: Lavender oil is effective for burn healing, while frankincense oil reduces scarring, and tea tree oil helps prevent infection. Try a homemade burn ointment with lavender, honey, and olive oil for faster healing
Conventional Burn Treatment and When to Seek Medical Help:

Treatment approaches vary depending on the burn’s severity. Major burns require immediate medical attention, while minor burns can be managed with home remedies.
Major burns are deep, resulting in dry, leathery skin with white, brown, or black patches. They may cover extensive areas and affect the hands, feet, face, groin, buttocks, or major joints. Seek medical help immediately for such burns.
For minor burns with superficial redness, pain, and possible blisters, you can use over-the-counter products like antibiotic ointments, aloe vera creams, and pain relievers. Ensure you do not pop blisters.
Second-degree burns, depending on their severity, may require antibiotic ointments, pain relief, wound cleaning, and dressing changes. Burns covering less than 10% of the skin’s surface can often be treated as an outpatient.
Third-degree burns may necessitate intravenous antibiotics, fluids, skin grafting, or synthetic skin use.
For chemical burns, flush the affected area with cool running water for at least 10 minutes, remove jewelry or clothing that came into contact with the chemical, and cover the burn with a sterile gauze bandage or clean cloth.

Precautions

For severe or major burns, prioritize seeking immediate medical assistance and remove jewelry or tight clothing gently before swelling occurs.
Contact your doctor if you notice new or unexplained symptoms, signs of infection, a burn or blister that doesn’t heal within two weeks, or significant scarring.
Avoid popping blisters, as they protect against infection. Clean any broken blisters with mild soap and water and cover them with a loose bandage.
In the case of chemical burns to the eyes, seek emergency medical care.
Consult your doctor before using new natural remedies or supplements, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, have an underlying medical condition, or are taking medication

In conclusion, burns can result from various sources and require different treatments depending on their severity. Utilizing natural remedies and maintaining a healthy diet can aid in burn recovery, but always seek medical attention for severe burns. You can find a range of wound care products to assist in your recovery journey at our online store here.