How to Treat Poison Oak or Poison Ivy

Handling Poison Ivy and Poison Oak on Small Children

When your baby is old enough to start playing outside, you’ll probably be excited to take her to the park or even out to the woods. For the most part, this is great exposure to a new learning environment. As a first time mom, you’re probably quite cautious as it is. Even being cautious though, your child will eventually encounter poison ivy or poison oak.

For the most part, poison ivy and poison oak are simple to treat. But you need to keep certain things in mind as you provide treatment. Most of the time, your child will be fine, but in some cases, you may need a doctor’s assistance to treat your child.

Remove All Allergenic Products

Once your child gets poison ivy or poison oak, it’s important that you switch to non allergenic products to help prevent additional irritation. Babies can easily scratch the welts raw. Switch to sensitive diapers and clothes washed without fragrances until the rash has gone completely. Don’t wait until your child has an allergic reaction. Since your baby has not been exposed to poison ivy or poison oak before, you have no way of knowing how severe the reaction will be. It’s best to avoid adding anything that could make it worse.

Bathe the Welts in Baking Soda Water

A gentle natural treatment to handle poison ivy and poison oak on small children is to create a bath with baking soda and tepid water. Draw a small bath of lukewarm water. Then add half a cup of baking soda. Swish it around so that the baking soda dissolves thoroughly. Place the child in the bath and bathe the welts with the water. If the welts are seeping or particularly enflamed, make a paste of baking soda and water. Apply it to the welts and let it dry. Once it dries, rinse it off in the water thoroughly. Rinse the baby completely with tepid water and let her air dry. If you need to get her dressed quickly, pat her dry. Don’t rub the towel over the welts. You could unintentionally cause the rash to spread.

If the baby continues to scratch the welts, cover them with a light bandage. Do not bind it too tightly or else you could cut off the blood flow.

Watch for Signs of a Blood Infection

Poison ivy and poison oak don’t generally get infected. In some cases though, the rash can get into the blood stream. On those occasions, the rash will spread and the welts will intensify. A fever will often develop. The welts often seep and weep. The swelling around the affected area intensifies. When this happens, you must seek a doctor’s attention immediately. Do not attempt to medicate the child with Benadryl. She’ll probably cry and scratch a lot. Watch for the welts to spread across the majority of the body. If that happens, then get her to the emergency room. The symptoms will quickly worsen, and your child needs medical attention as soon possible.

It is best to watch small children around plants you are unsure of. A few weeks back, we were walking through a field that had these patches of green plants that ended up “biting” both my daughter and I, at least that is what it felt like. I was panicking thinking it was poison ivy but when I looked it up on my iPhone – the plant didn’t look like either poison oak or ivy. To this day, I am not sure which type of plant it was, but it was definitely poisonious – just glad it didn’t affect either one of us too bad and cleared up by that evening after putting baking soda on the rash. But boy did it hurt! Here’s to adventures in nature minus poisonous plants!

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