eli5 why sunburns feel hotter than “unburnt” skin

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I know sunburns are literally your skin cells dying to prevent you from getting cancer, but that doesn’t explain the excess heat thing, does it?

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4 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

Part of the repair process is inflammation which both makes the skin more sensitive and floods the area with warm blood.

Anonymous 0 Comments

What you feel is the increased blood flow to the sunburnt skin to give it more nutrients to help it heal from the injury. Blood is slightly warmer than the rest of your body and under these conditions is closer to the surface of your skin than normal.

Anonymous 0 Comments

Part of the repair process is inflammation which both makes the skin more sensitive and floods the area with warm blood.

Anonymous 0 Comments

What you feel is the increased blood flow to the sunburnt skin to give it more nutrients to help it heal from the injury. Blood is slightly warmer than the rest of your body and under these conditions is closer to the surface of your skin than normal.