Skin is something which has long since fascinated me. Not least because often skin complaints are our bodies way of showing what is going on internally. Our skin is the largest organ of our body (it covers approximately 1.5-2sqm of an average adult) and its main job is to act as a protective barrier to our external environment. So look after your skin if you want it to look after you!

During the summer months, our skin can take a battering – from the sun, the heat and the humidity and it does need a little extra care. I’ve spoken before about how essential hydration is to our organs and our skin is no exception which needs plenty of water to keep it healthy and replenished. Anti-inflammatory herbal teas like hibiscus and nettle tea are especially good at providing a little extra support for our skin.

What we eat can also have such a beneficial effect on our skin. We hear a lot about omega 3 and the benefits on inflammation in our body, but the same would be true for our skin. Omega 3 is very beneficial to the moisture barrier of our skin and high doses are often used therapeutically in skin conditions like eczema. You might have heard of the term ‘eat a rainbow for health’ and using this principle for skin health too will mean your skin is provided with a wide spectrum of vitamins, minerals and polyphenols which can help keep it healthy and looking fresh.

There’s a lot of conflicting information about sunscreen. Yes we do need vitamin D from the sun but also too much sun can of course be harmful. Generally the best advice is to try and get some sunshine on bare skin for 20 minutes in the morning so your body can absorb vitamin D. After this, in the summer time if you are going to be spending a lot of time in the direct sun, it is recommended to wear sunscreen as the UV rays can cause damage to the skin barrier. The chemicals in a lot of sunscreen brands are actually quite harmful to health (and marine life!) In particular our endocrine health as the chemicals can act as hormone disrupters. My advice would be to use a good quality mineral suncream – titanium dioxide or zinc oxide as the main ingredients which will help protect from the UVA/B rays. Generally speaking zinc oxide offers more protection from both UVA II and UVA I.

The no 1 thing is to avoid burning in the sun. If you do suffer from sunburn or might want to think about skin damage in general there are some remedies I would recommend. Firstly applying a cold compress from cooled herbal teas such as chamomile or calendula. Both herbs are very soothing and anti-inflammatory and great for sunburn, irritation, or heat rashes. Some homeopathic remedies too might help: Belladonna 30C, for red, hot, sunburned skin or Apis mellifica 30C, for swelling, puffiness, or heat rash with itching. Hydrosol mists are also lovely in the summer these are floral waters that offer a gentler alternative to essential oils. Rose or lavender hydrosols can be kept in the fridge and misted onto your skin throughout the day to cool, hydrate, and balance the skin’s pH. But possibly my favourite topical application for sun damaged skin would be calendula – it is extremely cooling and anti-inflammatory and in my opinion one of the best remedies for sunburn. Lastly you could also try adding 1–2 drops of helichrysum or blue tansy oil to your moisturiser as both are potent for skin repair, and will help reduce any redness and calm inflammation.

Dr Elizabeth Thompson