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 How to Avoid Becoming a Poison Ivy Victim
By Naomi Graves, Pharm. D.
August 3, 2004
About 85% of people will develop a rash after contact with poison ivy, poison oak, or poison sumac. Even if you don’t touch the plant, you can get this allergic reaction from clothes that have contacted them (even years later), or through the air after the plants have been disturbed by a lawn mower or weed whacker. Inhaling smoke from burning plants can be very dangerous.
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The first step toward avoiding a rash is to learn to recognize the plants. Poison ivy has three leaflets, the one in the middle larger than the others. A poison oak leaf has three oak-like leaflets. In the fall the leaves turn yellow, then red. Poison sumac grows mainly in peat bogs of the Northeast and Midwest and in swamps of the Southeast. Each leaf has 7-13 staggered leaflets. Find great pictures of the poisonous plants at www.poisonivy.aesir.com (note… most of the treatment suggestions on that site were not provided by medical professionals; talk to a health care professional for advice about your situation).
When you plan to spend time in areas with poison ivy, you may consider asking your Lewis pharmacy to order Ivy Block lotion, which will protect against or reduce the severity of your poison ivy rash.
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 Let’s say you think you have been exposed to on the poisonous plants, but you don’t have a rash yet. The first thing to do is to wash the area thoroughly, preferably within 10 minutes. Use plenty of water, and do not scrub! Lewis pharmacies may carry or can order poison ivy washes, such as IvyCleanse Towelettes, IvyStat, Tecnu Outdoor Skin Cleanser, or Zanfel Poison Ivy Wash. Always read all directions carefully before using. Don’t forget to wash affected clothing to avoid getting exposed again.
Maybe you weren’t able to avoid poison ivy and didn’t wash it off before getting a rash. You may see it start with severe itching and lines of redness and swelling. Then tiny fluid-filled blisters appear, which can break and crust over. Talk to your pharmacist about an over-the-counter product to relieve swelling and itching, to dry blisters, and to speed healing. Options include calamine lotion, zinc oxide, Aveeno colloidal oatmeal bath, or hydrocortisone. You can use cool compresses on the area because sweat can make the itch worse. A baking soda paste (three teaspoons baking soda with one teaspoon water) can also soothe the rash.
See a doctor if oozing sores develop, blisters cover more than 15% of the body, the rash appears on the face or genitals, joints swell, the rash appears in a just a few hours (instead of a day), or a new rash appears after day 4. |
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