You do seem to build a tolerance for
poison oak at least since that is the unoffical state flower for Southern Oregon. You can’t walk too far without seeing it as a bush or a vine. It’s all over my property. I spray yearly to keep it down around the house. The problem is that you can have an outbreak simply by petting a dog that went through a patch or touching something that brushed against it. I only had an outbreak once though in the ten years out here even though I get exposed to it daily. My daughter really suffers when she comes out here to visit.
Here’s a thought toward prevention…
When I was a small boy my dad had a small bee hive. He would take it to various groves and orchids in the Tampa Bay area. He would get paid by the farmers to pollinate the grove and we kept the honey. One day I mentioned to him about the bees pollinating some poison ivy close to a citrus grove and asked him if the pollen from the ivy ruined the honey. He told me that if it weren’t for a little poison ivy pollen in the honey we wouldn’t be hunting and fishing in the poison ivy-infested rivers, swamps and forests without both of us being laid up for a week due to the itch.
I know that if a person with allergies eats raw honey that has some of the pollen they’re allergic to in it the honey’s minute amount of the pollen will acclimate the sufferer’s immune system to be able to handle (if not cure) the affliction.
Would any doctor on this site know if this could be why I’m not bothered by poison ivy to this day?Would this method of acclimation work for others as well?
I’ve also heard a paste made from
– Last Updated: Oct-08-07 7:56 PM EST –
rolled oats and water will relieve the itch. However, this is not from personal experience, just hearsay but as beneficial as oatmeal is for skin problems I don't see why it wouldn't work.
Washing: Gotta get the oil off
I think the reason for the pros and cons posted about washing has to do with the soap or detergent. Since PI is oil born, the oil needs to be removed.
As any shade-tree mechanic can attest, ordinary bath / hand soaps don’t take off oil. Dishwash soap is better, but still not as good as soaps specifically made for mechanics, like go-jo. Dishwashing detergents are specifically formulated to remove greases and oils in foods, and PI oil must resemble these, because dishwash soap will remove it. I bet go-jo or similar products sold at the auto parts store would work even better, but if you are on a long camping trip, you are more likely to have DW soap than car-mechanic soap.
So, once the kids are done running through the PI fields, SCRUB off exposed skin with DW soap, and you should be able to avoid developing the PI reaction.
In late August a friend and I arrived at a camping spot after dark. My friend picked the flatest open spot for the tent and set up the tent. Unknown at the time, the door of the tent was set up on PI, and we both went in and out of the tent barefoot, walking right through the stuff. We both get PI. In the morning light, recognizing the PI, we both scrubbed our feet with Dawn dw detergent from the kitchen box, and both escaped PI rash. Your results may vary, but it works for me
~~Chip Walsh, Gambrills, MD
poison ivy
Benydryl cream seems to work best for me. When washing on one trip I must have sat my pants in dormant poison ivy… lol… I had a rash from my butt to my knees… not pleasant at all.
Zanfel
is great to put on an area that you suspect is poison ivy. I’m very allergic to poison ivy, but I find if I know I’ve been exposed to it and I jump in the water right away that I can usually avoid getting an outbreak.
The couple of times that I’ve gotten really bad outbreaks was when I wasn’t able to take a good hot, soapy shower (like a wilderness trip). Anytime I’m going on a camping trip, I take the zanfel with me and use it over areas of skin that I think might have been exposed to poison ivy.
Below is a link to the stuff…it’s pricey, but well worth it.
http://www.planetrx.com/shop/brands/index.cfm?b=14345&rfr=msn
Jamie
My dear departed grandmother
who has been gone from this world for more than thirty years now, swore that if you put a leaf of poison ivy between two pieces of bread and ate it that you would never get poison ivy again.
I never had the nerve to try it, so I don’t know if it works, but born before the turn of the 20th century she was a font of folk wisdom, so maybe it would work.
It does share a certain logic with the idea of eating honey from bees with access to poison ivy.
take a cold shower
I’ve had poison ivy too many times to count. At least 10 bad outbreaks. I can wear long pants, long sleeves, balaclavas, gloves, sealed wrists and ankles and still get it. I’ve been trying to eradicate it from my property for years - it is a very tenacious plant! My solution has been to always take a cold shower immediately after possible exposure. It’s critical to remove all the plant’s oil with soap at this point. Once the oil is gone it cannot spread anymore. Clothes I’ve been wearing go into a grocery bag to be dumped into the washing machine with no contact. I may get a couple dots, especially on my wrists, but nothing more, when I do this. Once I have it, I’m partial to the pink caladryl. It’s the easiest stuff to use and works well. Use gauze if you’re going to have clothing chaffing it - especially long underwear on a trip. Ivy takes a long time to go away when it’s kept wet all the time, but gauze at least allows the scabs a foothold even when it’s wet. Once you have it (badly) and it’s itching and you’re certain all the plant’s oil is off of you, take a warm shower and gradually crank it up to hot - it’ll feel like you’re itching it without you ever touching or damaging the scabs. Then just before you’re ready to get out turn the water to ice cold and close up all your pores.
Doctor says
As a former horticulturist (now there’s a useful degree), one of my jobs was getting rid of this stuff and I had a few good cases of PI that required the pills to get rid of. My physician told me it often takes multiple exposures and several years to build up sensitivity to poison ivy before a person will break out and lucky me, my sensitivity had finally matured! According to the good doctor, camps swear by the soap and water method because in most first-aid situations, unless there is a doctor to prescribe something else, all they are allowed to do is wash the affected area. Straight alchohol would be a big no-no. Fortunately for them, even if a camper is truly exposed, he or she probably won’t have a reaction because of the multiple exposure requirement.
Eradication of poison ivy is difficult because it coexists with other plants that keep it under control but is more resistant to herbicides. Indiscriminate use of chemicals can take out the good stuff first and just leave the PI- we see this a lot in camps- poor shriveled leaves of Virginia creeper sitting amongst barely thwarted PI. Hardiness is one of the reasons you do see it in areas such as impacted trails- it withstands conditions it’s competitors can’t!
PI
I worked outside year-round for a surveying company, and never had poison ivy before starting that job. After the first time I got it,(clearing an area with a machette) it seemed pretty easy to contract again.
My doctor prescribed some type of steroid which cleared it up in a couple days if I started taking the pills immediately. I always ask for a presciption now before leaving for any vacation. Washing up as soon as possible I think is good also.
Duluth Pack Store sells a soap that is supposedly made to wash off the oil.
Poison Ivy
I read this remedy in several articles, have tried it and did not get P.I. but then I usually don’t anyway: The use of a companion plant is common in nature. If one plant creates nasties, another plant, usually growing nearby will counter those nasties. So it supposedly is with Poison Ivy and JEWELWEED. It has soft yellow flower petals on long, thin branches and usually grows in the shade. It’s in the impatiens family. Here’s a blurb from a website:
Jewelweed is best known for its skin healing properties. The leaves and the juice from the stem of Jewelweed are used by herbalists to cure poison ivy and other plant induced rashes, as well as many other types of dermatitis. Jewelweed works by counter-reacting with the chemicals in other plants that cause irritation. Poultices and salves from Jewelweed are a folk remedy for bruises, burns, cuts, eczema, insect bites, sores, sprains, warts, and ringworm.
One other word of caution: Some poison ivy grows as thick as a small sapling. Woody poison ivy, if burned, will create a smoke that can cause irritation, too…especially to your eyes and lungs…Get to know this stuff and be able to identify it if you react to it… be safe out there.
Calagel
has worked better than calamine lotion for me.
Natural remedy
There is a plant called Jewelweed, it has yellow flowers on open, airy branches, usually growing in moist, shady areas - and in the vicinity of poison ivy. Wilderness books will tell you that the juice from the jewelweed (leaves and branches crushed in your hand to release the juice) can be rubbed on the area affected by poison ivy to dilute/counter/neutralize the oils in the ivy. Check out any wild plants guidebook and most will mention this in its description. Several other plants are said to work as well, too…
jewelweed
I think its a member of the “touch-me-not” family of flowering plants. It has a yellow blossom on an open, airy, plant that tends to grow in the shade, in the immediate vicinity of poison ivy.