Health experts agree that if you follow the necessary steps to treating and cleaning the exposed area of the skin within ten minutes of coming in to contact with it then you are likely to not have an outbreak. However, most of us don’t even realize when we have touched it or even that it was around where we were walking. The is especially true for our children who are too busy playing and having fun to realize what they were walking into.
Because of this it is too difficult for us to catch it until the poison ivy rash has already broken out on their skin. When this occurs it is time to pull out the necessary poison ivy medicines to help treat it. Not all of us like to use these medicines because of the different chemicals that are used to make them. Instead we prefer to rely on poison ivy home remedies.
Vinegar
Vinegar is used to help alleviate the poison ivy symptoms as well as to speed along the healing process. Just dab some lightly onto the rash and it will immediately soothe your skin.
Aloe Vera
Aloe vera gel is common when trying to heal almost any type of skin rash, burn, or cuts. When applied to the skin it will help to soothe the itching and help it to heal faster.
Oatmeal
Growing up our parents begged us to eat this for breakfast in place of the delicious cocoa puffs or cheerios. Who knew that it would help to treat poison ivy? All you have to do is boil it in water like you would do if you were going to eat it. Allow it to cool off and then apply it to the affected skin. Make sure that you have applied a thick layer and allow it to harden as it dries. If the itching is hard to handle you should mix baking soda into the oatmeal.
Baking Soda
This is a classic poison ivy home remedy that many mothers will swear by. All you need to do is combine three teaspoons of baking soda with one teaspoon of water. It will form a thick paste – which will be applied to the rash and allowed to dry. If it is over a large area it would be more effective to soak in a baking soda bath.