AVOIDING THE ITCH OF POISON SUMAC, POISON OAK AND POISON IVY
Many individuals have severe allergic reactions to poison sumac, poison oak, and poison ivy. A skin-penetrating oil which binds to cells deep within the dermis, called urushiol, is found in all of these plants. When the stems or leaves are crushed or bruied, the oil is released. Learning to identify the plants will enable you to avoid a painful rash.
POISON OAK
Growing as a shrub, poison oak can often be found growing with oak and pine trees. Commonly, it is found in sandy soils. Deep green leaves are common in the spring and summer months. In the spring, flowers of yellowish green hang in clusters and turn to greenish white berries. The fall foliage of the plant changes color in the fall and can vary from red, yellow, orange or reddish black. Native peoples were known to use the plant to make black dye. In the early spring and winter, there are no leaves. The stems can be up to five feet in length and are colored gray to light brown.
A single stalk supports leaves that grow in groups of three. One leaf grows off of the end of the stalk and the other two are at 90 degree angles. Resembling the white oak tree leaf, the leaves are lobed randomly along the edges and have a rounded tip. While groups of three leaves are most common on a stalk, occasionally there will be groupings of as many as five.
POISON IVY
Most often, poison ivy is seen growing as a vine, but there are shrub varieties. The groups of leaves grow in groups of three, but can be found to have as many as 5 or even 7 per stem. These leaves are sometimes notched, not lobed, and they narrow to a point.
POISON SUMAC
This plant thrives in swampy habitats and can reach heights of 15 to 20 feet. Each leaf has a reddish stem with seven to thirty smooth-edged leaflets.
In the spring, sweet-fragranced flowers bloom that turn to cream-colored berries. The leaves turn yellow and bright red in the fall.
Avoiding contact with the plant is your next line of defense. Cover your skin with garments that shield your arms and legs, wear gloves and wear shoes that cover your feet when you plant to be around plants outdoors. Try not to rub against plants or crush them with your body.
Stay away from piles of burning brush. The urushiol oil becomes airborn when poison ivy, sumak or poison oak are burned and can be taken into the lungs. The result can be a serious lung inflammation with rash that spreads all over the body. The inflammation to the lungs can sometimes be fatal.
SKIN BARRIER CREAMS CAN HELP
Before you come in contact with a plant, some topical creams* can be applied to prevent outbreaks. Several of these have the ingredient bentoquatam which is a type of bentonite clay. By forming a protective barrier on the skin, these over-the-counter claylike lotions keep urushiol from binding with oils in the skin. Apply these to exposed skin before going out.
*These include Hylands Ivy Block Lotion, Ivy Block Lotion, and Enviroderm Ivy Block.
By penetrating the top layer of skin, urushiol is then able to bind to cells deep within the epidermis. Usually, this process takes close to 30 minutes, but it can occur within as little as 3 minutes after exposure. If used before bonding, almost any solvent will remove urushiol oil from the skin.
UPON EXPOSURE
When you've gotten urushiol on your skin (or think you might have), you should rinse the area with plain water immediately.
Find a fine grained soil, similar to what you'd find on a footpath, and use it like a powder on your skin. The soil will help absorb the oil. Gently pat your skin with the soil to neutralize the urushiol. Take care to use a patting motion as rubbing the soil into the skin could spread the oils.
As soon as you are able, wash the exposed area using properly made lye soap and lukewarm or cool water. The better choice is lye soap as it has the ability to clean without stripping the skin of its naturally protective oils. Other soaps remove this protection and can actually speed the skin's allergic response. Remember to carefully clean hands and nails. Urushiol remaining on the hands could transfer to any other skin you touch. Soap your skin a second time and allow the area to dry naturally.
Rubbing alcohol, mineral spirits, and witch hazel are organic solvents that can be utilized. Don't ever use petroleum based products such as kerosene, or gasoline on the skin. Products such as these will damage the skin and make it easier for urushiol to penetrate the skin.
Bath soaks, paste applications, topical liquid applications and poultices are ways to treat the allergic rash reaction to urushiol. The rash isn't spread by scratching unless you have urushiol on your hands. Scratching will however cause the itching to be more severe and increase your discomfort.
BATH APPLICATIONS
A few tablespoons of oatmeal ground in a blender can be added to a warm bath. This is drying to a blistered rash and relieving to the itch. Protect your pipes from clogging by using a strainer or cloth over the drain. Take care when exiting the tube as oatmeal makes the surface slippery.
Another good ingredient for bath soaks is Epsom salts as this will help dry the rash. Follow the instructions on the label.
PASTES FOR THE SKIN
Various ingredients can be utilized to produce pastes that will speed healing, lessen itching and reduce blistering & inflammation.
A common weed called plantain (also known as Plantago Major) reduces, itch, inflammation and pain. This plant speeds healing of the skin. The leaves and stems can be gound into a paste by using your mouth or a blender; then apply the goo to your skin.
The root of Hydrastis Canadensis, also known as Goldenseal root is an anti-inflammatory. This can be ground into a paste and applied to the skin. Aloe vera gel is added to the mixture by some.
Near the growing habitat of most poison ivy patches, you will find jewelweed, or Impatiens aurea. The juice from the leaves and stem are a traditional herbal treatment for plant rashes and other types of dermatitis. The juice has the ability to help neutralize the chemicals from plants that cause skin rashes. If you are in the field and are exposed to poison oak, ivy or even stinging nettle, find a jewelweed plant, slice the stem and rub the inside of the plant against your skin. This stops the discomfort and can prevent rashes in most individuals. Because jewelweed leaves have a high moisture and oil content, they don't lend themselves to drying.
One way to keep jewelweed is to make a strong tea of the chopped leaves, letting it steep until the liquid is dark orange in color. If you don't see the orange color (usually because you've used yellow jewelweed) the liquid won't be as effective. When cooled, strain the liquid and freeze into cubes. Use the jewelweed cubes to rub onto irritated skin to speed healing. In the freezer, these will maintain their potency up to a year. The fresh leaves work well as an ingredient in homemade soap. It is not recommended to make an alcohol tincture using jewelweed as the combination can cause a bad reaction in some individuals.
Three parts of a blend of baking soda and alum can be added to one part water to form a paste. The alum increases the styptic properties of this paste.
SOOTHING LIQUIDS
To relieve the itching and dry the rash a white vinegar compress is helpful. Add 1 1/2 cups of water to 1/2 cup vinegar. Chill this in your refrigerator. Use a cloth moistened in the solution and then place it onto your rash for cooling relief.
Other ingredients to add to this solution:
The juice of a lemon
A cooled tea made from honey suckle leaves
Use a cotton ball dipped into witch hazel to soothe your skin. Use the kind that comes in an alcohol solution as the evaporation of the alcohol will cool your skin.
Hold a cloth soaked in cold milk against your skin. This is more soothing to irritated skin than cold water. It isn't known why this is more effective, but it could be because of the milk fat.
TEA POULTICE
Apply moistened tea bags (green or black) to a skin rash. Tea's tannic acid is an astringent and causes infamed tissue to contract, relieving itching.
ADDITIONAL TREATMENTS
Dab calamine lotion onto the rash. This lotion will help to dry blisters and relieve the itch. Should the lotion prove too runny it can be thickened with cornstarch.
Whichever application(s) you utilize, acting quickly is important. These ideas are presented for only for your information. Using any of these suggestions must be done with good judgment at the risk of the reader.
- 0 Comments
Your comment