Bleach for Poison Ivy
MF (NJ) on 03/18/2024:
I just caught some poison ivy from yard work and the rashes matted my entire arms and neck. It was miserable. Steroids were barely helping and the rash kept spreading, even after scrubbing the oils away. Someone on Quora posted their bleach remedy, which I tried. The results were unbelievable. It basically stopped the itch for the whole day and I did it once again before bedtime so I could sleep. It also quickly started the healing/drying process, where previously it seemed like there was no end in sight. Here is the remedy: -get a bowl or cup and fill with 1 part bleach and 10 parts water. Bring it in your shower with you. I used a bowl to make a large mixture because my rash was so widespread. -Get in the shower with the hottest water you can stand, and let it hit all of the rash for a minute (feels good) -take a washcloth and scrub all your rashes HARD. Get them as raw as possible. -turn the water off. Pour the bleach mix all over your rashes and let it sting/burn for a couple minutes. -turn the shower back on and rinse off quickly.
Bob (USA) on 05/10/2015:
I was digging in the yard and got a really bad case of poison ivy. It was all over my arms, legs , hands and chest. I was scratching myself to death-couldn't sleep and absolutely could not get any relief. A friend of mine's dad was in Viet Nam and he said when they would come back from a mission in the jungle the men would have all kinds of rashes and fungus on them from coming into contact with local vegetation. They used ordinary household laundry bleach to cure the rashes.. At that point I would have tried anything to get some relief from the itching. I put some on a paper towel and wiped it on the affected areas.---no burning, no skin reaction to the bleach. It stopped the rash and the itching almost immediately. It was incredible. It really worked. I was amazed. Thanks----------Bob
