Poison ivy treatment can be done at home with no major expenses, and in most cases it doesn’t need the help of any prescribed medication. It is a combination of ways to alleviate the itching and ways to help the blisters dry up and fall off, so new skin tissue can grow.
There are various natural poison ivy cure options used for this purpose, but there are also conventional treatments, which are the ones recommended by doctors, like the use of lotions and creams that help finding relief to the rash, swelling and itching. Let’s take a look at what are the most common options because of their effectiveness.
One of the most widely-spread home remedies to treat poison ivy, is the use of baking soda. People from around the World have used this common ingredient to eliminate the damaged layers of the skin. To use it, you’ll start by building a paste mixing the baking soda with water in equal parts. Next, you need to apply the baking soda paste on top of the affected areas with the poison ivy rash to find relief to the itching pretty quickly. Like with any home remedy, there are cases where it doesn’t work, depending on the severity and the reaction of every individual.
Poison Ivy Treatments To Avoid
The Internet is a vast source of information, but not all information is good. In the case of poison ivy treatments, information can even be harmful! There are different so-called remedies that can have a negative effect on your health, such as the use of bleach. Some time ago, bleach was widely used for this purpose, as it was believed effective against damaged skin; however now we realize bleach can in fact make matters worse as it is a caustic chemical! Yu can find treatments with the same properties that do not cause any type of damage.
Some people recommend using hot air and hot water to dry the rash; needless to say this goes against medical advice that recommends cooling for itching relief. Some people use blow dryers to dry the skin and let it fall off, and while it may be true that the skin may dry, this method is not recommended at all. Why? Your skin is currently harmed and affected by a serious rash. Using hot air or hot water will add inflammation on top of the rash, worsening the current terrible situation.
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Poison Ivy Rashes
Poison Ivy rashes are a huge source of discomfort, pain, blistering, itching and swelling; they appear after you have come in contact with the plant, and a toxin present in its resin, named Urushiol; this substance is also the responsible of producing poison sumac and poison oak rash.
You can avoid the rash completely, if you quickly notice you have come in contact with the resin and take immediate action to clean the area completely. Usually, this means you have 10 minutes to clean it. The truth, however, is that the vast majority of people don’t know they have touched the plant until a day or two, time in which the symptoms start to develop. Poison ivy can be difficult for the untrained eye to spot, since the plant can have different forms.
Poison ivy rashes appear at first as a simple skin irritation, with the accompanying redness and itching. As more days pass, the rash will proceed to the formation of blisters filled with a fluid; at this stage, the itching increases. Treatment, instead of looking for a complete cure (which doesn’t exist yet), aims for having more control over the symptoms, relieve blistering and itching and speed up the skin’s healing time. Drying up the blisters is also important to allow healthy skin to grow again, some people use measures such as applying heat to the blisters with a blow dryer; be extremely careful, as burning can worsen the condition and cause additional inflammation. Other remedy includes the use of baking soda and vinegar, rubbed on the affected areas to dry the skin and alleviate itching.
You can also use the help of over-the-counter medications to relieve the torture of poison ivy rashes. Cool water in the form of compresses or a bath is also a great weapon to help you get rid of the constant itching throughout the day. You can add to your bath two cups of oatmeal to add effectiveness to this natural poison ivy cure.
Be on the lookout for severe allergic symptoms, such as excessive swelling irritation or if the resin has come in contact with your mouth, eyes or nose. In these cases a doctor will prescribe you special medication to deal with your particular case; if left untreated you could suffer from damage.
You can avoid the rash completely, if you quickly notice you have come in contact with the resin and take immediate action to clean the area completely. Usually, this means you have 10 minutes to clean it. The truth, however, is that the vast majority of people don’t know they have touched the plant until a day or two, time in which the symptoms start to develop. Poison ivy can be difficult for the untrained eye to spot, since the plant can have different forms.
Poison ivy rashes appear at first as a simple skin irritation, with the accompanying redness and itching. As more days pass, the rash will proceed to the formation of blisters filled with a fluid; at this stage, the itching increases. Treatment, instead of looking for a complete cure (which doesn’t exist yet), aims for having more control over the symptoms, relieve blistering and itching and speed up the skin’s healing time. Drying up the blisters is also important to allow healthy skin to grow again, some people use measures such as applying heat to the blisters with a blow dryer; be extremely careful, as burning can worsen the condition and cause additional inflammation. Other remedy includes the use of baking soda and vinegar, rubbed on the affected areas to dry the skin and alleviate itching.
You can also use the help of over-the-counter medications to relieve the torture of poison ivy rashes. Cool water in the form of compresses or a bath is also a great weapon to help you get rid of the constant itching throughout the day. You can add to your bath two cups of oatmeal to add effectiveness to this natural poison ivy cure.
Be on the lookout for severe allergic symptoms, such as excessive swelling irritation or if the resin has come in contact with your mouth, eyes or nose. In these cases a doctor will prescribe you special medication to deal with your particular case; if left untreated you could suffer from damage.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Poison Ivy Blisters
One of the main symptoms of this condition are the poison ivy blisters, they can get pretty bad, and be as awful as having to deal with the itching itself!
Upon coming in contact with the resin of the poison ivy, you’ll need to wash thoroughly the contaminated skin or else as more time passes, the skin irritation will get stronger and stronger. Usually after the first 24 – 48 hours your skin, as a reaction to the allergenic, will develop the rash along with blisters filled with fluid, these blisters will cause swelling, pain and severe itching. You can get rid of the blistering by drying them out and allowing them to fall off. There are different options to do this, including the use of natural poison ivy cure home remedies and creams and lotions like Calamine. You may need a prescription medication if you are suffering from a severe case of poison ivy.
Poison ivy blisters should not be touched and popped to let the fluid go out. Doing this will compromise the skin barrier and may open the way for bacteria to enter the affected area and bring an infection on top of your current rash; in addition doing this may leave permanent scars on your skin that later may only be removed with an expensive laser resurfacing therapy. There are better methods. Some people recommend using hot water showers to dry out the blisters, of course, you’ll have to be smart with the use of hot water or can end up causing skin burning and inflammation.; another option is to use a blow dryer, but you need to be extremely careful.
Poison ivy blisters look really bad, and I know is easy to be ashamed to show your rash I public; however, it is better to stay closed in your home rather than just covering the affected areas because air circulation is essential for a faster blister drying and skin recovery. Another home remedy you can use is a paste made with baking soda and vinegar, you need to apply it and rub it in the skin and then rinse off with warm water. Some people assure this method really helps accelerating the skin healing process and helps drying up the skin allowing the blisters to recede.
Upon coming in contact with the resin of the poison ivy, you’ll need to wash thoroughly the contaminated skin or else as more time passes, the skin irritation will get stronger and stronger. Usually after the first 24 – 48 hours your skin, as a reaction to the allergenic, will develop the rash along with blisters filled with fluid, these blisters will cause swelling, pain and severe itching. You can get rid of the blistering by drying them out and allowing them to fall off. There are different options to do this, including the use of natural poison ivy cure home remedies and creams and lotions like Calamine. You may need a prescription medication if you are suffering from a severe case of poison ivy.
Poison ivy blisters should not be touched and popped to let the fluid go out. Doing this will compromise the skin barrier and may open the way for bacteria to enter the affected area and bring an infection on top of your current rash; in addition doing this may leave permanent scars on your skin that later may only be removed with an expensive laser resurfacing therapy. There are better methods. Some people recommend using hot water showers to dry out the blisters, of course, you’ll have to be smart with the use of hot water or can end up causing skin burning and inflammation.; another option is to use a blow dryer, but you need to be extremely careful.
Poison ivy blisters look really bad, and I know is easy to be ashamed to show your rash I public; however, it is better to stay closed in your home rather than just covering the affected areas because air circulation is essential for a faster blister drying and skin recovery. Another home remedy you can use is a paste made with baking soda and vinegar, you need to apply it and rub it in the skin and then rinse off with warm water. Some people assure this method really helps accelerating the skin healing process and helps drying up the skin allowing the blisters to recede.
Monday, December 28, 2009
Poison Ivy Swelling
Poison Ivy swelling is very serious and is one of the symptoms that causes the most trouble in sufferers of this allergic reaction. As an allergic reaction it can be very severe in a small number of people, compromising the health of vital organs causing heavy damage or even death.
The vast majority of people who have touched poison ivy will develop normal swelling; it is only on very rare cases when the swelling takes place near the throat area, blocking the delivery of oxygen to vital cells in the body, leading to anaphylactic shock.
If you have a severe swelling caused by contact with poison ivy, you must go to the doctor and talk about what are your options to start reducing it, and talk about what to do in a case of emergency. You may talk about options such as the use of Benedryl to minimize the symptoms, but in case your doctor will be better qualified to give you directions according to your medical history and the sensitivity to Urushiol.
Nowadays, people use many methods to reduce the swelling, including the use of home remedies or a natural poison ivy cure. Some people recommend using heat and ice alternately to bring down skin swelling. Vinegar is another remedy used by a lot of people with this problem; it has been used extensively to bring relief for the itching, bring down the swelling and dry out the unhealthy skin tissue.
On the field of creams and medicines, there are products such as Ibuprofen and Motrin which can ease the torture of the rash. Cortisone creams can also help reducing the swelling, but their use must be controlled appropriately.
Poison ivy swelling is not the same in all people, as it has different degrees of severity according to your sensitivity to Urushiol. The best thing to do, besides preventing contact with poison ivy, is to treat the swelling as soon as it appears to minimize the discomfort associated with it. If you have found poison ivy near your home, contact a gardening company that has experience removing these plants without hurting anyone; in the meantime keep your children and pets indoors. Animals don’t get the symptoms but can easily spread the toxin throughout the house.
Remember that if the swelling gets pretty bad, you need to seek immediate medical help, to avoid any complications in the future.
The vast majority of people who have touched poison ivy will develop normal swelling; it is only on very rare cases when the swelling takes place near the throat area, blocking the delivery of oxygen to vital cells in the body, leading to anaphylactic shock.
If you have a severe swelling caused by contact with poison ivy, you must go to the doctor and talk about what are your options to start reducing it, and talk about what to do in a case of emergency. You may talk about options such as the use of Benedryl to minimize the symptoms, but in case your doctor will be better qualified to give you directions according to your medical history and the sensitivity to Urushiol.
Nowadays, people use many methods to reduce the swelling, including the use of home remedies or a natural poison ivy cure. Some people recommend using heat and ice alternately to bring down skin swelling. Vinegar is another remedy used by a lot of people with this problem; it has been used extensively to bring relief for the itching, bring down the swelling and dry out the unhealthy skin tissue.
On the field of creams and medicines, there are products such as Ibuprofen and Motrin which can ease the torture of the rash. Cortisone creams can also help reducing the swelling, but their use must be controlled appropriately.
Poison ivy swelling is not the same in all people, as it has different degrees of severity according to your sensitivity to Urushiol. The best thing to do, besides preventing contact with poison ivy, is to treat the swelling as soon as it appears to minimize the discomfort associated with it. If you have found poison ivy near your home, contact a gardening company that has experience removing these plants without hurting anyone; in the meantime keep your children and pets indoors. Animals don’t get the symptoms but can easily spread the toxin throughout the house.
Remember that if the swelling gets pretty bad, you need to seek immediate medical help, to avoid any complications in the future.
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Poison Ivy Relief
The treatment choice will greatly depend on your personal preferences and the severity of the resulting rash; some people trust more natural approaches and homemade recipes, others will rely on prescription medication and some people will rely on the use of over-the-counter creams. Medications such as Motrin and Tylenol have been used extensively by people with poison ivy rash to keep the discomfort and swelling controlled.
The most important part of a poison ivy relief option is to provide help against the incessant itching produced by the rash; if you haven’t suffered from this poison ivey rash, then you won’t completely understand how just one minute of relief can feel like heaven! Scratching as always won’t help, you’ll feel compelled to scratch and scratch but no real result will come from that. You’ll find that some doctors will recommend the use of Calamine lotion; this lotion provides relief but only for a short time before the itch begins again.
A best approach seems to be the intake of Benedryl pills combined with a topical treatment – be it through a home remedy or an over-the-counter cream. Some successful home remedies for poison ivy include the rubbing of vinegar and lemon juice on the affected area of the skin. These home remedies produce discomfort at first but as the soreness goes away, you’ll find the skin will start to improve, and the dry crusts will start to fall off, allowing the re-growth of healthy skin tissue.
Avoid completely the use of bleach and other types of chemicals for poison ivy relief. I’ve seen this advice on different forums across the Web, and I think it’s pretty sick some people are actually recommending this! Bleach and other substances may help drying out unhealthy skin, but the truth is that its action will go deeper, penetrating other layers of the skin and producing even more damage than the one caused by poison ivy. There are far better natural poison ivy cure options, including the use of baking soda/vinegar and oatmeal, this options are perfectly safe and won’t case any awful secondary effect. In case you need relief for a severe case of poison ivy, the best option is to seek the help of a doctor, who will be able to provide you with more choices.
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Poison Ivy Treatment and Cure
Getting a natural poison ivy cure or a poison is of extreme importance if you are currently suffering from this rash, without proper treatment not only will itching continue, but the condition can get worse.
There are a lot of natural cures for poison ivy that can have really great results, but following any advice on the Web can be problematic as there are many useless tips and advice that can end up worsening the current state of your skin; most of these bogus treatments are based on myths rather than on solid information. As an example, some people recommend the use of bleach, when in fact bleach will cause burns on top of the rash!
A cure that is often recommended by doctors is Calamine lotion, a product that is easily found in all pharmacies. It provides relief to sufferers from poison ivy rash, and is very convenient if you need to go outside to do your every day chores.
Poison Ivy rash is the result of the skin coming in contact with a toxin named Urushiol, found on this plant as well as in poison sumac and poison oak. Urushiol, upon contact, triggers a strong response from our immune system, which in turns translates to the rash, which will start as redness to then develop blistering.
A total cure for poison ivy rash is not available and doctors state that all treatments are aimed at controlling the symptoms and make life bearable over the weeks the skin needs to fully heal.
There are a lot of natural cures for poison ivy that can have really great results, but following any advice on the Web can be problematic as there are many useless tips and advice that can end up worsening the current state of your skin; most of these bogus treatments are based on myths rather than on solid information. As an example, some people recommend the use of bleach, when in fact bleach will cause burns on top of the rash!
A cure that is often recommended by doctors is Calamine lotion, a product that is easily found in all pharmacies. It provides relief to sufferers from poison ivy rash, and is very convenient if you need to go outside to do your every day chores.
Poison Ivy rash is the result of the skin coming in contact with a toxin named Urushiol, found on this plant as well as in poison sumac and poison oak. Urushiol, upon contact, triggers a strong response from our immune system, which in turns translates to the rash, which will start as redness to then develop blistering.
A total cure for poison ivy rash is not available and doctors state that all treatments are aimed at controlling the symptoms and make life bearable over the weeks the skin needs to fully heal.
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