close window
Housecall Archives
About our e-newsletters
- Free e-newsletters
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- We do not share your e-mail address
Housecall, our weekly general-interest e-newsletter, keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics with timely, reliable, practical information, recipes, blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts and more. Our biweekly topic-specific e-newsletters also include blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts, and other useful information that will help you manage your health.
Housecall Archives
close window
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Alternative medicine
By Mayo Clinic staffIn addition to self-care measures, such as taking an oatmeal bath, some people may seek out alternative therapies to help control symptoms associated with poison ivy, oak and sumac. Some treatments that have been tried include:
- Jewelweed. This plant was used as a Native American treatment for poison ivy. However, a randomized, controlled study found that it isn't effective.
- Bovine cartilage cream (5 percent concentration). A study done in the 1970s found that when applied daily, this cream helps to clear a poison ivy rash within one to two weeks.
- Deodorant containing aluminum chlorohydrate. Spray this deodorant on your skin and clothing before heading outdoors, and you may help prevent urushiol from irritating your skin. Of course, it's still a good idea to wash your skin and clothes as soon as you can if you think you've brushed up against poison ivy.
References
- Contact dermatitis and patch testing. In: Habif TP. Clinical Dermatology. 5th ed. Maryland Heights, Mo.: Mosby, Inc.; 2010. http://www.mdconsult.com/book/player/book.do?method=display&type=bookPage&decorator=header&eid=4-u1.0-B978-0-7234-3541-9..00013-4--s0105&displayedEid=4-u1.0-B978-0-7234-3541-9..00013-4--s0115&uniq=186228941&isbn=978-0-7234-3541-9. Accessed Feb. 28, 2010.
- Contact dermatitis: A practice parameter. Palatine, Ill.: Joint Council of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. http://www.aaaai.org/professionals/resources/pdf/contact_dermatitis_%202006.pdf. Accessed Feb. 28, 2010.
- Contact dermatitis. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/print/sec10/ch114/ch114c.html. Accessed Feb. 25, 2010.
- Outsmarting poison ivy and other poisonous plants. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. http://www.fda.gov/forconsumers/consumerupdates/ucm049342.htm. Accessed Feb. 28, 2010.
- Poison ivy, oak and sumac. American Academy of Dermatology. http://www.aad.org/public/publications/pamphlets/skin_poison.html. Accessed Feb. 25, 2010.
- Gladman AC. Toxicodendron dermatitis: Poison ivy, oak, and sumac. Wilderness and Environmental Medicine. 2006;17:120.
- Bovine cartilage. Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database. http://www.naturaldatabase.com. Accessed Feb. 28, 2010.
- Poison ivy, oak and sumac. PDRHealth (Physician's Desk Reference). http://www.pdrhealth.com/disease/disease-mono.aspx?contentFileName=BHG01DE21.xml&contentName=Poison+Ivy%2c+Oak%2c+and+Sumac&contentId=120&TypeId=1. Accessed Feb. 28, 2010.
- Mark BJ. Allergic contact dermatitis. Medical Clinics of North America. 2006;90:169.
Find Mayo Clinic on