Guest guest Posted August 7, 2007 Report Share Posted August 7, 2007 You can treat some common insect bites at home with these handy herbal hints. Ants: Treat ant bites topically with apple cider vinegar, green clay moistened with vinegar or water, cucumber juice, or a plantain leaf poultice. You can also try applying mud or a paste of baking soda and apple cider vinegar to help neutralize the formic acid in the bite. Caterpillers and Centipedes: When brushing off hairy caterpillars, do so from tail to head, or irritating hairs may remain in your skin. Apply lavender essential oil to their bites. Echinacea tincture can be used topically and internally (1 dropperful 3 to 4 times daily). Mosquitoes: Apply mud, witch hazel, lemon juice, moistened vitamin C powder, apple cider vinegar, peppermint, a plantain leaf poultice, or lavender or tea tree essential oils to the bite. Ticks: Brush them off clothing or flick them off skin. If they are attached, it's imperative that the ticks be removed without leaving their heads embedded in the skin. Do not traumatize the tick or squeeze its body in the center. Either use a tick scooper -- a plastic device available from your vet for little more than a dollar -- or sterile tweezers to grab the tick as close to the head as possible. Pull the tick straight out and use the tweezers to remove any part left in the wound. Afterward, wash the area and your hands well with antiseptic soap and water, dry, then apply a few drops of infection-fighting echinacea tincture. Avoid the Itchies. If you have lots of itchy bites, any one of the following ingredients added to a warm bath may provide some relief: 1 cup (230 ml) apple cider vinegar 1 pound (454 g) baking soda (use half as much for children) 1 gallon (3.8 l) infused tea of peppermint, white oak bark, or cleavers 1/2 cup (115 ml) sea salt 1 cup (230 ml) cornstarch ------------------------- Bug Off! Mosquitoes and other insects are repelled by many natural substances. They Include: HOMEOPATHIC STAPHYSAGRIA: Taking 4 pellets dissolved under the tongue 4 times daily a few days prior to an outing may discourage mosquitoes from biting you. ESSENTIAL OILS:A drop or two of cedarwood, citronella, lavender, and tea tree essential oils can be applied topically to pulse points such as the inside of the wrists, behind the knees, and behind the ears every hour or so to repel buzzing bombers. If you don't have essential oils, you may rub aromatic plants such as artemesia, lavender, or rosemary on your body. GARLIC:Taking a 500-mg garlic capsule 3 or 4 times a day will make you an unappetizing target for anything that bites. DIET:Avoid large amounts of sugars, alcohol, and tropical fruits and juices when you know you're going to be outdoors. Some people feel that these items attract bugs. AROMATHERAPY: Place a few drops of citronella, eucalyptus, geranium, lavender, rosemary, or tea tree essential oil in a diffuser to discourage flying insects. You can also mix a glass of water with about 30 drops of the oil to use as a room spray. TOMATOE LEAVES: Hang a bouquet of dried tomato plant leaves in the room to repel mosquitoes. TICKS AND DISEASE: Ticks have been a cause for special concern in the past few years due to their ability to transmit Lyme disease. The longer an infected tick remains attached, the greater the chance for infection. Symptoms of Lyme disease, which can take from two days to two weeks to manifest, include arthritis-like symptoms such as achy joints, chills, rashes, facial palsy, headaches, swollen glands, fatigue, numbness, irregular heart rhythms, and a bitemark that resembles a bull's-eye. The longer Lyme disease remains undiagnosed, the more difficult it is to treat. In addition, a tick pathogen, Rickettsia rickettii, is known to cause Rocky Mountain spotted fever. Symptoms of Rocky Mountain spotted fever, which may appear one week after a tick bite, include intense headache, itching, a rash on the ankles and wrists, and fever. As a precaution, if you are bitten by a tick, take 1 dropperful of echinacea or red root tincture 3 times daily for a few days to give the immune system a boost. You might also want to drink calendula and cleavers teas. Calendula is antiseptic and helps treat infections deep in the body, while cleavers reduces fever. If despite your precautions, you suspect you have contracted Lyme disease or spotted fever, visit a health-care professional. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.