Home Remedies for 8 Summer Pains
2008-04-23来源:
The Sore Spots of Summer
When the temperature's out to set new records, the last thing you want is the pain of poison ivy or the burn of a blister. Here we offer inexpensive, easy remedies for those familiar troubles.BlistersCuts and ScrapesDry Hair Heat RashInsect, Spider, and Tick BitesPoison IvySunburnSwimmer's Ear
Blisters
The eternal dilemma: Should I drain this thing or leave it alone? In general, don't bother blisters that are small or those that probably won't pop on their own. They are less likely to become infected if you leave the natural covering intact, and under the sheltering cushion of fluid, the area has time to form new skin. Meanwhile, follow these tips to relieve the pain and itching and speed healing. If your blister is large, or in a spot where you can't avoid putting pressure on it, drain it the proper way. Never pop a burn blister, though. There's a serious risk of infection if you do.What's Wrong? You've most likely rubbed your skin the wrong way ... literally. The most frequent cause of blisters is excessive friction on moist skin. As a blister forms, clear fluid accumulates in a pocket between the layers of the skin. Sometimes a small blood vessel in the area is damaged, and the fluid in the blister becomes tinged with blood. These types of blisters are generally found on the hands and feet, but can occur elsewhere too. Other potential blister causes include poison ivy and oak, sunburn and other burns, and eczema and other skin conditions.
Let It Be
Protect the blister with a piece of moleskin -- a soft, adhesive cushion that's sold in pharmacies. (Don't worry -- no real moles have been sacrificed to make this product.) Leave it on for two days, and remove it carefully so it doesn't tear the fragile skin beneath.
Wash it with soap and water. Apply a healing cream or gel like Neosporin or Betadine. Cover it with a bandage. Four times a day, remove the bandage and treat the raw spot with a mixture of one part tea tree oil and three parts vegetable oil. The tea tree oil will help kill bacteria and prevent an infection.
Practice the Art of Careful Draining
If your blister is large, or in a spot where you can't avoid putting pressure on it, you may be better off draining it rather than trying to protect it. To drain a blister properly, first sterilize a needle. Use a pair of pliers or tweezers to hold the needle over a flame for a few seconds until it glows red. Let it cool.
Clean the blister with rubbing alcohol or a disinfecting product like Betadine.
Open a sterile gauze pad and lay it gently on top of the blister. Pierce the edge of the blister, sliding the needle in sideways, and gently squeeze out the liquid by pressing down on the gauze pad. Make sure you don't tear or remove that top layer of skin -- it's protecting an extremely sensitive circle of skin beneath.
Smear on an antibiotic ointment like Neosporin and cover it with a clean bandage. You can also cover it with a 2nd Skin Moist Burn Pad, made by Spenco. This is a moist, jellylike covering that can be cut to size and taped in place. Change it twice a day.
If the blister refills again later, drain it again the same way.
Apply a mixture of vitamin E and calendula ointment to help your skin heal faster. Vitamin E comes in gel capsules. Slice open a capsule, mix equal amounts of the vitamin and calendula oil, and smear the mixture on your blister. Reapply as needed for up to a week.
Should I Call the Doctor? If your blister is extremely large -- more than two inches across -- you should seek medical care. Symptoms of infection should also send you to the doctor. These include prolonged pain that isn't fading, fever, redness that extends beyond the borders of the blister, yellow crusting, and oozing pus. Some disorders that cause blisters, such as chicken pox, eczema, and impetigo, also may require a doctor's care.
The Power of Prevention
Cuts and Scrapes
If you can stop the bleeding and keep the wound clean to prevent infection, you've done your part; nature will take over from there. Required: some bandages and antibiotic ointment (doctors recommend any triple antibiotic variety). Other wound remedies that work in a pinch are within easy reach -- from honey to garlic to your own saliva.What's Wrong?
You have just sliced yourself with a sharp object -- a kitchen knife, your razor, a broken drinking glass, even a piece of paper. Or you've had a sudden encounter with a section of concrete and lost a bit of skin on your elbow or knee. There may be visible bleeding -- and perhaps an invisible invasion of bacteria into the wound, bringing a risk of infection.
Clean, Cover, and Disinfect
It seems like kids manage to scrape their knees every day. Solution: Bag Balm. Originally designed for use on cows' udders, it protects scraped skin and keeps scabs soft so that they're less tempting to pick at. Vaseline, or any other kind of petroleum jelly, is also effective.
Take a Lesson From Rover
If you can't wash a wound -- say you're smack in the middle of the woods -- lick it. Researchers at the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research demonstrated that a protein in saliva not only helps to heal wounds, it also acts as an anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antifungal, and antibacterial agent.
Glue It Together
Read the warning label on Instant Krazy Glue, and you'll learn that it "bonds skin instantly." But if you've got a very small slice in your finger (like a paper cut), maybe an instant skin-sealer is just what you want. In fact, Krazy Glue contains the same ingredients as a new "liquid Band-Aid," and just a drop on a cut will seal it closed for quicker healing. Just make sure you don't touch that drop while it's drying, or you'll end up with a very awkward case of Siamese fingers.
Should I Call the Doctor?
Call the doctor if your wound won't close or stop bleeding, or if you have any signs of infection, (pus, unusual discharge, fever, red streaks that spread outward from the wound). If you have a deep puncture wound your doctor may insist that you get a tetanus booster.
Dry Hair
Believe what you see on TV and you might get the idea that only brand-name shampoos and conditioners can give you the buoyant and swirling strands that make life such fun. What those ads don't tell you is that something as simple as mayonnaise can add just as much luster to too-dry locks, giving you the bounce and flounce that those models flaunt.What's Wrong?
Your hair can become dry, rough, brittle, and frizzy for many reasons. It's a non-living material, similar in composition to your fingernails, but each strand has an outer layer of cells that protect the inner hair shaft. If this coating becomes damaged, hair loses moisture and luster, and the ends become frayed. Chlorine, excessive sunlight, and heat from blow-dryers and curling irons can all damage it. Also, some people tend to have dry hair just because they don't have an abundance of oil-producing glands on their scalps. Start in the Shower
Thoroughly mix a ripe, peeled avocado with a teaspoon of wheat-germ oil and a teaspoon of jojoba oil. Apply it to freshly washed hair, and spread it all the way to the ends. Cover your scalp with a shampoo cap or a plastic bag, wait 15 to 30 minutes, then rinse thoroughly.
Let your hair air-dry whenever possible. If you must use a blow-dryer, use it sparingly. The same goes for curling irons or hot rollers. When you apply heat, it's like drying out a leaf in sunlight: You're inviting brittleness.
When you do use the hair dryer, make sure you use a warm, not hot, setting.
Brush Up on Your Brushing Technique
Use a brush that has natural rather than plastic bristles. Plastic generates static electricity, which will make your hair more brittle.
First brush the ends to remove tangles. That way, you won't pull and break your hair when you take full strokes with the brush.
After you brush the ends, take long, full strokes all the way from the roots of your hair to the ends to spread hair's natural oils.
Strengthen Your Strands
B vitamins may make hair stronger. Take one 50-milligram B-complex supplement twice a day with food.
The mineral selenium is also helpful for maintaining healthy hair. Take 200 micrograms twice a day.
A beneficial oil that may help keep hair lustrous from inside your body is evening primrose. Try taking 1,000 milligrams of evening primrose supplements three times a day. The oil is high in gamma-linolenic acid, an essential fatty acid.
The Power of Prevention
When you swim in a chlorinated pool, wear a swimming cap to keep the chlorine away from your hair. As soon as possible after getting out of the pool, wash your hair.
Use a humidifier in your bedroom. In cold weather, your Home heating probably keeps the air very dry, which in turn dries out your hair.
Get your hair trimmed at least every six weeks to eliminate dry, split ends.
Heat Rash
When your skin has been prickled by the heat, the first order of Business is to cool down. For the next few days, spend as much time as you can in the cold comfort of an air-conditioned environment. Take a cool bath or shower. Have your favorite someone fan you with an ostrich feather. And while you're waiting for your skin to chill, try these other remedies.What's Wrong?
The itchy red bumps dotting your neck, armpits, chest, and groin are caused by sweat with nowhere to go. Normally, perspiration evaporates, which cools your skin. But sweat trapped by fabric can't escape. The skin swells, blocks the sweat pores, and perspiration leaks into the skin, which erupts into that bumpy rash. As the bumps burst, releasing their sweat, you may feel the stinging sensation that gives heat rash its other name: prickly heat. Hot, humid weather; sweat; and constricting clothes are a recipe for heat rash. So is skin rubbing against skin, which is common in heavy folks or women with large breasts.
Pack It With Ice
Anything that cools the temperature of your skin will reduce the itching and swelling. So if you don't have time for a bath, put an ice pack or a cool compress on the rash for 10 minutes every 4 to 6 hours.
Add the Magic Powder
Sometimes it seems as if baking soda is good for just about anything, and it's certainly good for relieving heat rash. Soak in a tub to which you've added a few tablespoons of the powder. It will ease the itching and make you feel more comfortable while the rash heals. You can also add fine-ground oatmeal, which is sold under brand names such as Aveeno.
Apply baking soda or cornstarch directly to the rash site to absorb moisture and sweat. This is an age-old approach, recommended by many country grandmothers. Some say cornstarch is better because it is softer on the skin. Reapply every few hours, rinsing and drying the skin beforehand.
Slather to Soothe
Apply the gel to the affected skin two or three times a day, washing the skin before each application.
If blisters accompany the rash, don't cover them up. Fresh air will speed their healing.
Should I Call the Doctor?
Simple heat rash is irritating but hardly serious; the itch and inflammation should clear up in a day or two. But call your doctor if the rash doesn't go away within a few days, or if the bumps become infected. You may need medication. Also seek emergency assistance if nausea, dryness, thirst, headache, and paleness accompany the rash. In severe forms, heat rash can interfere with the body's temperature-regulating mechanism and cause fever.
The Power of Prevention
Insect, Spider, and Tick Bites
If you live near a polar ice cap, you'll never have to worry about mosquitoes, bees, wasps, or spiders. For the rest of us, confrontations with these pesky predators are as inevitable as the summer solstice. For some bugs, insect repellent is an effective deterrent. Others, however, seem eternally bold, and their bites are as bad as their buzz. Here's how to recover from sneak attacks and protect your skin from further affronts.What's Wrong?
Some bugs bite you because they're hungry and they see you as food. Mosquitoes, ticks, fleas, and chiggers are on this team. Others sting you because they regard you as a threat. This club includes spiders, wasps, fire ants, yellow jackets, and bees. Mosquitoes inject you with a little saliva that leaves a maddeningly itchy bump, while bees and wasps penetrate skin with a poison that makes you yelp and run. Worst, of course, are venomous spiders -- but fortunately, they're the rarest of foes.
Get Out the Credit Card
If you've been stung by anything larger than a mosquito (a honeybee, for instance), scrape away the stinger as soon as possible using the edge of a credit card, a knife blade, or your fingernail. As long as it remains in your skin, this little sac of poison keeps pumping its contents into your body. Don't use tweezers or pinch the stinger with your fingertips, since you'll squeeze more venom into your skin.
Pamper the Sting Site
If you know you've been bitten by a spider, try to memorize its appearance. Some spiders can cause serious symptoms affecting your whole body, while others just create a localized reaction. Whether or not you have a severe reaction, get medical attention right away.
Outsmart Ticks' Tricks
If you're been in tick territory, be sure to follow this advice.
If you've been bitten by a spider, call the doctor immediately. If you've been stung by a bee or wasp and then have trouble breathing, feel faint, or have swelling in your mouth or throat, a rapid pulse, or hives, get to an emergency room. You could be having a potentially fatal allergic reaction called anaphylaxis. And see a doctor if you develop a bull's-eye rash, muscle aches, fever, and headache within three weeks after getting a tick bite; these could be signs of Lyme disease, which can lead to mental confusion and arthritis if not treated.
The Power of Prevention
Poison Ivy
No one would knowingly touch a toxic plant, yet generations of even sharp-eyed outdoors people, not to mention kids wandering in the woods, have picked up the itch. If you know you've been exposed, you may be able to wash off the allergy-inducing urushiol before it's too late. And there are many ways to ease the itching and dry the blisters if you do get poison ivy. But avoidance is by far the best approach -- especially if you're one of those people driven nuts by itching.What's Wrong?
Seven out of ten people are allergic to poison ivy, making this the world's most common allergy. People who have the allergy are sensitive to urushiol, an irritating resin that's found in poison ivy, poison oak, and poison sumac. If you so much as brush one of these plants, urushiol can get on your skin. Within as little as two hours, you'll develop an itchy rash that will have you scratching for three weeks or more. You can also get the rash by touching clothes or other items that have been contaminated with urushiol. And if there's urushiol on your fingers, you'll be spreading the rash around your body every time you scratch.
Rush to Wash
Run for the shower -- or the nearest creek, if you're hiking -- and wash away the resin before the allergic reaction takes hold. Once you come into contact with poison ivy, the clock starts ticking: You have about 15 minutes to get rid of the urushiol. Use soap and warm water, if they're available. If you have a choice of soaps, use one that does not contain moisturizers. Skip the washcloth, since it can spread the oil around your body.
If it's impossible to wash right away, clean your skin with rubbing alcohol to dissolve the urushiol. If none is handy, you can use any product (or beverage) that contains alcohol.
Alternatively, you can clean off the urushiol with Tecnu, an over-the-counter solvent that's designed especially to remove urushiol from the skin. Tecnu is very effective at removing the resin, but be sure to rinse it off immediately or you risk skin irritation.
A Gem of a Cure
If you know what the jewelweed plant looks like (it has tall, translucent stems and hanging, trumpet-shaped yellow or orange flowers) and there's one growing nearby, crush a handful of the leaves and stems and smear the juice on the affected area. Also known as impatiens and touch-me-not, this plant sometimes grows near poison ivy. There is some research to support the old folk notion that it works against poison ivy rash.
Other Plant Remedies
If you're in extreme discomfort, or if you have severe blistering, swelling, or redness, call your doctor. You should also alert the doctor if you might have inhaled the smoke of burning poison ivy plants, particularly if you become short of breath. Seek medical attention at once if the rash is on your eyes, nose, mouth, throat, or genitals. The Power of Prevention
Sunburn
If you have the complexion of boiled lobster and you're in significant pain, take aspirin, ibuprofen, or some other over-the-counter anti-inflammatory drug to reduce the swelling and relieve the pain. And of course, do what you'd do for any other type of burn: Cool it with cold water to stop the sizzle. You may also want to use one of the sunburn sprays, sold in the drugstore, that contain numbing ingredients. Finally, make sure to learn your lesson and remember to wear sunscreen next time you venture out into the sun.What's Wrong?
The outer layers of your skin have become inflamed by overexposure to the sun's ultraviolet (UV) rays. With a first-degree burn, the skin may be hot and tender as well. Small, fluid-filled blisters indicate second-degree sunburn. Worst of all are third-degree burns, which cause blistering, red or purple skin discoloration, chills, fever, nausea, and headache. With repeated severe sunburns, your skin ages more rapidly, and risk of skin cancer increases. Fair-haired people with light skin are more at risk for sunburn, as are those who take certain medications such as sulfa drugs, some antibiotics, and oral Diabetes medications.
Dip In
Most sunburns are first-degree burns. The pain will ease in one to four days. But call the doctor if your sunburned skin starts to blister, you run a fever or develop chills or nausea, or if the pain becomes unbearable.
The Power of Prevention
Always slather your skin with a sunscreen that contains a sun protection factor (SPF) of 15 or higher, at least 30 minutes before going outdoors. Insist that your loved ones do the same.
Between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., limit your exposure to the sun. This is when the sun's rays are at their strongest.
If you burn easily or have been diagnosed with skin cancer in the past, take no chances: Cover up in the sun. That means long pants, long sleeves, a wide-brimmed hat, and sunglasses.
Swimmer's Ear
"But I'm not a swimmer!" you say. You don't have to be. The infection can get started when you're just taking a shower. But you can be quite sure it's swimmer's ear if you feel a piercing pain when you push on the triangular flap that covers the opening to the ear canal. To deal with the pain, your easiest option is an over-the-counter painkiller such as aspirin or acetaminophen. Also try heat to ease the ache and take steps (described below) to dry out the ear canal and make it unfriendly to the bacteria or fungi that caused the infection.What's Wrong?
Swimmer's ear is an infection of the outer ear canal. It happens when water gets trapped in your ears and allows bacteria or fungi to flourish. At first, the affected ear feels blocked and may itch. If you leave it untreated, the infection can cause swelling, accompanied by some drainage of fluid. The condition can be quite painful. Often, the area that hurts the most is the triangular piece of cartilage called the tragus that covers the front of the ear canal.
Warming the Cockles
For soothing relief, treat your ear to heat. Use a hot-water bottle or a heating pad set on low. If you're using the bottle, wrap it in a towel so it feels comfortably warm, not super hot. If you're using a heating pad, for safety's sake, be careful not to fall asleep with that electric pad nestled against your ear.
Drop In Center
If your ear itches, mix a few drops of lavender oil with a teaspoon of olive oil and rub the mixture in your outer ear. You don't need to use much.
If you've ever had a ruptured eardrum or had tubes put in your ears, see your doctor for any kind of earache. Otherwise, you can usually treat a mild case of swimmer's ear at Home. But if you develop sudden, severe ear pain, or hearing loss, get to the doctor.
You'll also need a doctor's help if you have signs or symptoms of a punctured eardrum (blood, discharge from the ear, very intense pain followed by sudden relief). For swimmer's ear that doesn't respond to Home remedies, a doctor can prescribe antibiotics.
The Power of Prevention
Usually swimmer's ear is easy to treat and goes away, never to be heard from again. But not always. In about one percent of all cases, it comes back again no matter what you do to prevent a recurrence. Some particularly hard-to-treat bacteria has set up Home in your ear, and all you can do is try to keep it under control. If you have this problem, be sure to keep your doctor informed. In rare cases, the infection can spread into nearby tissue around the ear (a severe condition called malignant otitis externa). People with Diabetes and those with compromised immune systems are most susceptible.