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Lansing's Advice Column

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Dear IMO,

My family and I love to walk outdoors and hike along the trails.  Recently, I have noticed skin rashes that have developed on our legs and arms.  These rashes seem to appear a day or so after our hike.  So far, we have treated them with hydrocortisone cream, and they eventually clear up.  Are we getting into poison ivy?  I thought you had to be allergic to it in order to get the rash?  What can we do to minimize our exposure to these plants?

Thanks,
Gina and family

Dear Gina,

Now that summer is well underway, there are a host of plants just waiting for you and your family just like the plant from “Little Shop of Horrors.” All kidding aside, there are plenty of real plants that can sting, burn and even blind if given the opportunity. 

Stinging nettles, poison ivy-oak-sumac, wild parsnip, and giant hogweed are a handful of plants that grow along trails, fields, and right in our own backyards.  All of these plants operate along the same lines.  An individual comes into contact with the oil or sap and allows the liquid to remain on the skin for a certain period of time.  The chemicals in the oil and sap interact with your skin and produce the allergic reaction ranging from a mild reddening of the skin to 2nd or 3rd degree burns. 

Although some people truly are immune to these plants, most people develop a rash after coming into contact with the plant.  If you think you are immune because you have never developed a rash before, keep in mind that it can sometimes take multiple exposures over several years before you finally begin to develop an allergic response to the chemical that triggers the rash. 

So what is your family to do?  You could remain inside, watch DVD’s and videos about nature and hiking, and avoid the dangers of the outdoors.  Of course, this is what we do in winter, which lasts from November to April.  A better option starts with some simple steps to avoid coming in contact with these plants. 

To start, you can sit down with your family and review some pictures of these plants so they really know what to look for.  For example, poison ivy is normally green and is easily identified by the little phrase, “leaf of three, leave it be.”  Except of course, when it is dry and the leaves take on a reddish hue.  Wild parsnip looks like Queen Anne’s lace only yellow and on steroids.  Now imagine a 15 foot weed that looks like Queen Anne’s lace but whose sap can cause 3rd degree burns and leave permanent scars-that is giant hogweed.
Once you have studied the plants on paper, take your family on an expedition and see if you can find any of these noxious weeds in your yard or along your favorite hiking trail.  Chances are you will find some if not most of these plants. 

Once you are able to identify these plants, you ought to take additional precautions especially when hiking.  Wear long pants and long sleeves and stay on the trails.  If you are gardening, wear gloves and eye protection to avoid serious contact.  If you do get some of the oil or sap on you, wash it off immediately with special soaps designed for these chemicals such as Zanfel, Ivy Cleanse Towelettes, and Tecnu Poison Ivy Scrub.  There are plenty of home remedies, but they might not be as effective as these over the counter ones. 
Above all, be sensible, be alert, and enjoy the hiking. 

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v4i31