13 best creams for sun-damaged skin 2022: Our picks from Dermalogica, Trilogy, No7 and The Inkey List | The Sun

We’ve been through some gloriously sunny weather these past weeks, and we hope you remembered to lather yourself in sunscreen before going outside and escaped unscathed.

However, it you’ve been a little lax and your skin is now paying the price, there are sun-damage creams that can help.

When fighting sun damage, the kinds of ingredients to look out for in your products are:

• Vitamin C for brightening and reducing hyperpigmentation
• Retinol for reducing the visible signs of ageing
• Rosehip oil and vitamin E for fighting premature ageing
• Shea butter, omega 3, and avocado oil for deep hydration
• Aloe Vera for soothing sunburned skin
• Hyaluronic acid for hydrating the skin and locking in moisture

How to prevent sun damage

For future protection, prevention is always better than cure, especially as sun damage can lead to more health problems than just wrinkles.

According to Dr Unnati Desai, national GP lead at Nuffield Health: “A single sunburn or use of a tanning bed increases the risk of developing skin cancer exponentially. Excessive UVR exposure causes approximately 90% of all skin cancers. This means that they are almost entirely preventable.”

Always limit your time in the sun, use a broad-spectrum sunscreen of at least SPF 30 with a good level of UVA protection also (at least four stars) and reapply it regularly; wear loose clothing, a broad brimmed hat and sunglasses to protect your eyes.

If you’re concerned about any new moles, or changes to your skin, speak to your GP and have them checked out. For further information about staying safe in the sun, please visit the NHS website.

If it's too late for all that and your skin is seeing the effects of too much sun exposure, read on for our roundup of the best creams for sun-damaged skin.

Best creams for sun-damaged skin at a glance

• Best natural moisturiser:Weleda Skin Food Body Butter
• Best luxury night moisturiser: Dermalogica PowerBright Overnight Cream
• Best multi-purpose moisturiser: Trilogy Everything Balm
• Best vegan moisturiser: Dr Jackson’s 01 Day Cream
• Best budget aftersun: Kinkind Soothe Me! Aftersun Lotion Bar
• Best organic vitamin C moisturiser: Madara Organic Skincare Vitamin C Illuminating Recovery Cream
• Best night-time retinol moisturiser: No7 Pure Retinol Night Repair Cream
• Best spf sunscreen: Glow Hub Defend Yourself Sun Silk SPF 30
• Best budget moisturiser: The Inkey List Peptide Moisturiser
• Best hyaluronic lotion: Hada Labo Tokyo Anti-Ageing Super Hydrator
• Best mid-price moisturiser: Liz Earle Skin Repair Rich Cream
• Best high SPF moisturiser: Skin Chemists SPF 50 Wrinkle Killer Sun Protection Day Moisturiser 
• Best gel moisturiser: SkinSense by Abi Cleeve Hydrating Collagen Gel

Weleda Skin Food Body Butter

• Weleda Skin Food Body Butter, £19.75 from Boots – buy here

This is perfect for those really dry patches on your elbows and knees, but it’s a great all-round body moisturiser if you’ve really overdone it in the sun.

With ingredients including soothing calendula and chamomile, as well as hydrating cocoa and shea butters, the texture is rich without being sticky and the cream absorbs easily.

Apply after bathing for immediate relief from rough, dry skin.

READ MORE:

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Dermalogica PowerBright Overnight Cream

• PowerBright Overnight Cream, £75 from Dermalogica – buy here

Uneven pigmentation, or dark spots on the skin, are often caused by excess melanin production due to sun exposure.

This overnight cream from Dermalogica is part of a range that tackles uneven pigmentation as well as hydrating, repairing and protecting the skin from further damage.

It contains magnesium ascorbyl phosphate, a form of vitamin C, which brightens and brings antioxidant benefits, liquorice extract to soothe, cranberry and raspberry seed oils to protect against free radicals, and pumpkin enzyme to even out skin texture. And all this while you sleep!

Trilogy Everything Balm

• Trilogy Everything Balm, £14.50 from Look Fantastic – buy here

Another all-rounder that can be used to alleviate a whole host of dry skin problems, including sun damage.

Trilogy’s Everything Balm contains organic rosehip oil – a great anti-ageing ingredient and hydrator – as well as echinacea, pawpaw, papaya and coconut extracts.

The 45ml size is ideal for carrying with you for on-the-go hydration.

Dr Jackson’s 01 Day Cream

• Dr Jackson’s 01 Day Cream, £68 from Look Fantastic – buy here

This luxury vegan moisturiser is suitable for even sensitive skin and is choc-full of hydrating ingredients, including omegas 3, 6 and 9, vitamins A and E, kigelia fruit, baobab seed oil, marula seed oil, and shea kernel butter.

The apothecary jar also looks fantastic and will be an object of beauty on your bathroom shelf long after you’ve finished the product.

Kinkind Soothe Me! Aftersun Lotion Bar

• Soothe Me! Aftersun Lotion Bar, £7.50 from Kinkind – buy here

Now this is an aftersun with a difference and it’s perfect for those of us looking for ways to cut back on our plastic consumption.

No bottle, no jar, just a moisturising bar of loveliness containing shea and cocoa butters, and aloe vera, which is renowned for its sunburn-healing properties.

Simply warm the bar in your hands then glide it over your skin for instant hydration. Use it all over, or just on elbows and feet. It makes a great hand cream to keep on your desk at work – there’s an aluminium tin to store it in, which is also available on the website

Madara Organic Skincare Vitamin C Illuminating Recovery Cream

• Madara Organic Skincare Vitamin C Illuminating Recovery Cream, £34.50 from Feel Unique – buy here

Dark spots are a tell-tale sign of sun damage, but there are certain skincare ingredients that can lessen their appearance and improve the look of skin – vitamin C is one such ingredient.

It’s a powerful antioxidant, making skin appear more youthful and energised. Madara’s Vitamin C Illuminating Recovery Cream contains a stabilised form of vitamin C, promoting radiance and brightening skin.

Hyaluronic acid plumps and hydrates, while seaweed extract boosts the brightening effects. It’s also organic, vegan friendly and cruelty-free. Use daily or as a treatment two or three times a week.

Be sure to avoid sun exposure afterwards as vitamin C can cause photosensitivity.

No7 Pure Retinol Night Repair Cream

• No7 Pure Retinol Night Repair Cream, £31.45 from Boots – buy here

Retinol has long been the gold standard when it comes to reducing visible signs of ageing and this night cream from No7 works its magic while you sleep.

As well as retinol, the cream contains collagen peptide-based technology – matrixyl 3000+ which the company calls its ‘next generation age-defying complex’. In tests, uneven pigmentation appeared reduced after two weeks use.

Glow Hub Defend Yourself Sun Silk SPF 30

• Glow Hub Defend Yourself Sun Silk SPF 30, £12 from Feel Unique – buy here

Now you’ve damaged your skin by overdoing the sunshine, you’re not going to do that again are you?

Applying a sunscreen with a high SPF will help prevent further damage – and don’t forget, sunscreen should be applied all year round, not just in the summer.

Glow Hub’s Sun Silk sunscreen is light enough to go over moisturiser, yet heavy enough to pack an SPF 30 punch. Most importantly, it doesn’t leave your skin with a white tinge to it.

The Inkey List Peptide Moisturizer

• Peptide Moisturizer, £14.99 from Look Fantastic – buy here

If the sun has left your skin dry and irritated, and you fear your fine lines are not so fine anymore, then The Inkey List’s Peptide Moisturiser could be what you’re looking for.

Its hydrating peptide solution plumps your skin, increases collagen production, adds radiance and helps even out skin tone.

Suitable for use both morning and night. Add a few drops of The Inkey List’s Q10 serum or squalene oil to your moisturiser for an antioxidant and hydration boost.

Hada Labo Tokyo Anti-Aging Super Hydrator

• Hada Labo Tokyo Anti-Aging Super Hydrator, £17.45 from Superdrug – buy here

Japanese beauty brand Hada Labo Tokyo is finding lots of fans here in the UK and at this budget-friendly price point, it’s hardly surprising.

Their Anti-Aging Super Hydrator lotion contains no less than four types of hyaluronic acid, providing an intense hydrating boost to thirsty skin.

It contains retinol and collagen to plump out fine lines and help rejuvenate a dry complexion. Apply this lotion as an extra step before your moisturiser.

Liz Earle Skin Repair Rich Cream

• Liz Earle Skin Repair Rich Cream, £25 from Boots – buy here

This award-winning cream promises 72 hours of hydration for stressed and dry skin, so it's ideal for soothing your face after too long in the sun, or to treat accumulated sun damage.

The texture is rich, as the name suggests, but not overwhelmingly so and the cream sinks nicely into the skin.

Ingredients include nourishing avocado and borage seed oils, echinacea and hops extracts – which both have soothing and toning effects – vitamin E and sustainably sourced shea butter.

Skin Chemists SPF 50 Wrinkle Killer Sun Protection Day Moisturiser

• SPF 50 Wrinkle Killer Sun Protection Day Moisturiser, £34.99 from Feel Unique– buy here

As well as having a great name, this broad-spectrum UVA and UVB moisturiser has an amazing SPF 50.

It’s not just a sunscreen though, it promises to nourish and hydrate your skin, in addition to protecting against sun burn and premature skin ageing, thanks to its mineral and chemical filters.

It’s definitely an option if you’re trying to prevent further damage to your skin. It doesn’t leave an ashy tinge or sticky residue either – yay!

SkinSense by Abi Cleeve Hydrating Collagen Gel

• Hydrating Collagen Gel, £30 from Skin Sense by Abi Cleeve – buy here

If you suffer from oily skin, you’re probably thinking the last thing you need for your face is a super-rich cream, but think again.

This moisturiser is no featherweight on the skincare front and it packs a powerful collagen punch, just right for thirsty skin.

The gel becomes a water-like serum when you apply it, creating a protective layer and preventing moisture loss – and the collagen is plant-based too.

The gel also contains shiitake, maitake and reishi mushroom extracts. If your skin is dry, simply use the gel as an extra layer under your usual moisturiser for a hydration boost.

What does sun damage on skin look like?

Damage from UVA and UVB light shows up in a number of ways – fine lines, wrinkles even, freckles, moles, dry patches and hyper pigmentation – patches of darker colour on your face, neck and hands.

Is there any way to avoid sun damage?

The best way to avoid sun damage is to stay out of the sun, but if you’re sensible then limited exposure should be fine – and it will provide vitamin D, which is needed for so many of your body’s processes and functions.

Always use a sunscreen that protects against UVA and UVB rays, so at least SPF 30 and four stars. Reapply sunscreen regularly and protect your eyes with sunglasses. Loose clothing and a sun hat will also help protect your skin.

If I am sunburned, what can I do?

Apply hydrating products to your face and body after sun exposure to reduce any redness and dry skin – aloe vera is brilliant for soothing and cooling sunburn. Drink lots of water to rehydrate yourself from the inside and stay out of the sun.

What to avoid when you're sunburned

Don’t exfoliate just before going out into the sun as your skin is likely to be extra sensitive and reserve retinol treatments and creams for night-time use.

Creams and serums containing vitamin C help brighten the skin and reduce the appearance of dark spots, but don’t use them just before going into the sun, or just after, as you could experience irritation or photosensitivity.

Can diet effect skin sun damage?

According to nutritionist, naturopath and gut health expert Caroline Peyton of Peyton Principles, what you eat can also affect your body’s response to sun damage.

She recommends eating strawberries, blueberries and blackberries as they are rich in polyphenols, as well as dark green leafy vegetables. “These contain other antioxidant compounds called lutein and zeaxanthin. Like polyphenols, these compounds are extremely protective to the skin,” she explains.

Cooked tomatoes are rich in lycopene, which has been found to absorb UVA and UVB rays, while carrots contain beta carotene, which is converted by the body to vitamin A, also helping to protect from sun damage.

Lujain Alhassan, nutritionist for health and wellbeing brand exante, agrees that diet can help protect your skin. "There is emerging research that supports the effects of nutrients in repairing skin damage,” she says. “Fish such as salmon and tuna contain high amounts of omega 3, a fatty acid that can help repair sun damage and enhance skin’s elasticity over time.

“Green tea can protect against collagen damage, which helps maintain skin’s elasticity and reduces some effects of sun exposure such as wrinkles,” she adds.

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