06.21.06
Poison Ivy
Poison Ivy Remedies 
Here in South Carolina, we have as much posion ivy as we do the infamous kudzu you see growing everywhere. There can be found not only tons of the three leave variety growing along the ground and on vines, but also (as pictured) the five leaf creeper variety commonly seen hanging from furry looking vines on trees. Today I found, on Dr. Williams site, remedies I thought might be useful this time of year should you be unfortunate to have a run in with these proliferative plants.
Poison Ivy Remedies
by Dr. David Williams @: http://www.drdavidwilliams.comThe following suggestions may help you shorten the duration of poison ivy:
- Mix vitamin C powder with water to form a paste that can be applied to sites where the skin has been exposed to poison ivy or poison oak, and the problem will completely resolve within 24 hours. Thanks to Dr. Karen Davis for contributing this Health Hint. Dr. Davis also suggests that you take 2 grams of vitamin C orally for a few days following the episode. The vitamin C helps to strengthen your immune system against the poisonous sap (urushiol) in poison ivy.
- Try the essential plant oils lavender or camphor to help stop the itching and pain and speed healing. [Note: some essential oils could actually exacerbate the problem, so we don't want to send readers looking for just any old essential oil.] One of my favorite products to use for the symptoms of poison ivy is "White Flower Oil." It can be found in larger health food stores and practically all Chinese medicine shops. (In Chinese it's called Pak Fah Yeow.)White Flower Oil is a blend of the natural oils of eucalyptus, peppermint, lavender, wintergreen, and camphor. I have found it most useful for treating poison ivy and poison oak. It is a potent product, as the strong smell will indicate. Apply a couple of drops and rub it gently into the skin lesions. The oils actually have a drying effect, so as soon as the lesions have stopped oozing you can stop using the White Flower Oil and instead apply your favorite moisturizing lotion. White Flower Oil is inexpensive and commonly comes in a small 20-milliliter bottle—enough to last a long time.
Well that's all for today. Until next time, this is your health care advocate,Dr. Laurie Cribben
chuck said,
July 31, 2006 at 8:20 pm
Hi,
here is a short french message i wrote but mainly i just show up 6 pictures of different phases of an poison ivy rash. the last two pictures are the itchy ones. The other ones are just creepy and not fun to have.
http://blog.eglis.com/index.php/2006/08/01/99-voici-quelque-photos-de-mon-herbe-a-puce
Deirdre said,
August 3, 2006 at 9:03 pm
I’ve never heard of a 5-leafed version of poison ivy. Your photo looks a lot like Virginia Creeper to me. Often the three-leafed poison ivy vine will be mixed up in with the virginia creeper vine, and if it’s an old vine, it might not even have leaves on it, but it can still contain urushiol, the irritant.
Dr. L said,
August 4, 2006 at 1:54 pm
Thank you Chuck. I visited your blog entry. Great pictures, although I don’t read or speak french, so I am unable to interpret what you have written. Is there a way I can convert it to English? Thank you for your input.
Dr. L said,
August 4, 2006 at 2:14 pm
Deirdre: I have tried to find my source for this as I had not heard of it either and cannot duplicate where I got that info from. hmmm…very suspicious! I will send off a note to The Clemson Extension (my favorite source for info regarding plants) and let you know what they say. I agree, we do have tons of Virginia Creeper growing here as well, however the poison ivy article(s) I was reading at the time did not refer to that. We will let Clemson clear this up.
Dr. L said,
August 7, 2006 at 12:18 pm
Deirdre: I did send a note off to Dr. Layton and below is the reply I received from Professor Shelburne. Thank you for your observation leading to clarification. Following is Dr. Shelburne’s response:
Dr. Layton asked that I field your question below.
There is not a variety of poison ivy that I am aware of that has 5 leaflets. However, the poisonwood tree (Metopium toxiferum) grows in south Florida–see this link:
(http://www.sfrc.ufl.edu/4h/Poisonwood/poisonwo.htm). It is in the same family
as poison ivy (Anacardiaceae). It has 3-7 leaflets (usually 5). So I’m guessing that is
your culprit.
Vic Shelburne
Professor
Forestry and Natural Resources
Clemson University