- If you come into contact with poison ivy, wash the area with soap and water as soon as possible.
- Soaking in an oatmeal bath and applying anti-itch creams can provide relief from an itchy rash.
- If your poison ivy rash is coupled with difficulty breathing or a fever, you should see a doctor immediately.
The poison ivy plant contains an oil called urushiol, which causes an allergic reaction on your skin if you come into contact with it.
A poison ivy rash looks like a red blistering rash on exposed skin. The blisters can break and leak fluid, and they can also crust over and appear black or dark red.
You should learn how to spot poison ivy — the three-leafed, ground-dwelling, viney plant — and try to avoid contact with it as much as possible.
According to the American Skin Association, about 10% to 15% of people are extremely allergic to poison ivy and should see a doctor if they touch the plant. Other than this group, most people will not need medical attention.
If you come into contact with poison ivy and have a skin reaction, the rash will show up in 12 to 48 hours and last one to three weeks.
Luckily, there are many home remedies that can alleviate the itchiness of a poison ivy rash and help it heal faster. Try these eight home remedies if you have a poison ivy rash:
1. Wash the rash
You may not always realize that you've come into contact with poison ivy. However, once you suspect you might have touched poison ivy, you need to wash the area thoroughly with soap and water.
Dr. Noelani Gonzalez, a clinical instructor at Mount Sinai Hospital, recommends using cold or lukewarm water when washing the area, as hot water can irritate the rash and make it worse.
You should also use hand or dish soap to effectively get rid of the plant's oil, says Dr. Sonya Kenkare, an assistant professor of dermatology at Rush University Medical Center.
The combination of soap and water breaks down and washes away urushiol, which could reduce the chance of an allergic reaction.
Kenkare recommends washing the area for about thirty seconds to a minute — just long enough to get rid of the oils without further irritating the skin.
You can also use rubbing alcohol while washing to remove urushiol from the skin or other affected areas. Because urushiol can stick around on unwashed surfaces for long periods of time, it's important to wash anything that might have contacted the plant's oil, including:
- The affected area of your skin
- Your hands (and under your nails)
- Clothing
- Gear or equipment
- Pets
2. Soak in a bath
Taking short, lukewarm baths can help treat itchiness from a poison ivy rash, according to the American Academy of Dermatology. Just make sure you've rinsed thoroughly before getting in the bath.
"You shouldn't soak or take a bath if you've just come into contact with the plant, as some of the residual oil from the plant may not be washed off and can spread to other parts of your body or from person to person," Gonzalez says.
When you have a poison ivy rash, the body produces histamines as part of the allergic reaction, which causes itchiness and redness. Taking a bath in lukewarm water can help soothe your skin. But make sure you're careful not to bathe in water that's too hot, as it can cause further discomfort.
"I find that when people use very hot water, it tends to make them more itchy," says Kenkare. "That goes for showering, as well as washing."
Even showering with cool or lukewarm water for your normal duration every eight hours might help reduce itching — only hot water can make it worse.
3. Add oatmeal or baking soda to your bathwater
Taking an oatmeal bath can help dry leaky blisters and soothe redness and irritation. A 2007 review on colloidal oatmeal — or finely ground, boiled oats — found that it has anti-inflammatory properties and can soothe inflamed skin.
Soaking in an oatmeal bath for 15 to 30 minutes every eight hours may help relieve itchy, red skin. Other home remedies, like adding one cup of baking soda to a bath, can also help alleviate itchiness.
4. Apply a common anti-itch cream
You might have a few helpful creams lying around in your medicine cabinet. For example, over the counter hydrocortisone cream and calamine lotion can alleviate itching, Gonzalez says.
- Hydrocortisone creams contain topical steroids to reduce swelling, redness, and irritation.
- Calamine lotion contains zinc oxide and astringents, and a 2019 study found that these compounds can also soothe itchiness.
Both of these creams can be applied to the skin to help alleviate the discomfort of a poison ivy rash. However, calamine lotion should only be used in the first week, since it can dry out the skin, and if used for longer, it may cause further itchiness.
If you don't have hydrocortisone cream or calamine lotion on hand, you can use other alternatives that you may already have at home:
- Baking soda paste. Mix three teaspoons of baking soda with one teaspoon of water and apply the paste to the poison ivy rash. It should flake off naturally.
- Cold compress. "Cool compresses on itchy skin is a great at-home remedy," Gonzalez says. This can be as simple as wrapping a towel around a handful of ice cubes and holding it on your skin for 15 to 20 minutes. Don't put ice cubes directly on the skin — they may irritate the swollen, sensitive rash.
- Aloe vera. Aloe vera gels or creams can reduce the hot, swollen skin of a poison ivy rash (as with a sunburn). However, it won't be as directly effective at reducing the itchiness of a poison ivy rash, Kenkare says.
5. Try oral antihistamines
Oral antihistamines block the body's production of histamines, which will help stop the symptoms of your allergic reaction to poison ivy, such as swelling, redness, and itchiness.
Taking oral antihistamines can reduce itching, Gonzalez says. Non-drowsy oral antihistamines, like Zyrtec and Allegra, may be used throughout the day to relieve itching, redness, and swelling. Benadryl, which induces drowsiness, is more helpful for managing these symptoms at night and allowing you to get better sleep.
However, you should avoid antihistamine creams, because they can worsen the rash, according to National Capital Poison Control. You should also avoid creams that contain anesthetics, like benzocaine, or antibiotics like neomycin or bacitracin, as these can further irritate the skin.
6. Make an aluminum acetate soak
Aluminum acetate is an astringent, which means it causes the skin tissue to contract and dry out.
If your poison ivy rash is weeping (oozing liquid), aluminum acetate can help dry it out and provide relief.
You can find aluminum acetate at drugstores in ready-to-use packets from brands like Domeboro. Simply mix a packet with water, according to the package directions, and soak the rash directly or apply the mixture with a cloth for 15 to 30 minutes.
7. Smooth on a bentonite clay mask
Bentonite clay is a natural clay that is used to draw impurities out of the skin and body.
And, it may be helpful in treating an allergic reaction from poison ivy exposure. A 2017 review on bentonite as a natural remedy cites two older studies — one where a quaternium-18 bentonite lotion significantly reduced the allergic reaction caused by urushiol, and another where it improved chronic hand dermatitis. Though the studies used a form of bentonite clay made chemically into a lotion, using natural bentonite clay may still help with drying up the rash.
You can buy the dry clay from health food stores and some drugstores. Mix it with water and apply the paste to your rash. Let it dry, then rinse it away with water.
Some people recommend applying a bentonite clay paste after coming into contact with poison ivy. After you wash the area with soap and water, apply the paste and let it dry. It may help absorb any leftover urushiol oils on the skin.
8. Use apple cider vinegar
Gonzalez says the anti-inflammatory properties of apple cider vinegar can help soothe the rash and relieve pain and redness.
But Kenkare warns against applying apple cider vinegar to freshly inflamed skin. The vinegar's acidity could be painful if the skin is still raw, tender, or has open blisters. You should place a couple drops of diluted apple cider vinegar on unblistered skin first, to see if it causes irritation. If the vinegar doesn't inflame the area, it might provide some relief for the poison ivy rash.
Overall, vinegar has been used for centuries to treat common ailments, including poison ivy rashes, but there's no scientific evidence that apple cider vinegar is specifically effective at treating poison ivy.
If you decide to use apple cider vinegar to treat a poison ivy rash, dab a cotton ball dipped in the vinegar onto the affected area. You may want to dilute the apple cider vinegar with water if you have sensitive skin, or a particularly severe rash.
When to see a doctor
A poison ivy rash will usually clear up on its own, in as quickly as four hours or as long as three weeks.
You should see a doctor, though, if you exhibit symptoms of a severe poison ivy allergic reaction, which can include:
- Fever
- Difficulty breathing
- Severe swelling of the afflicted area
- A rash that covers more than a quarter of your body
- The rash occurs on your face, eyes, lips, or genitals
- The rash appears infected — the blisters form pus, ooze yellow fluid, or have an odd odor
Your doctor can then prescribe the best course of treatment to hinder the body's extreme allergic response or to control any infection in the skin or body.
Insider's takeaway
Poison ivy is a common rash that can be managed with home remedies and an understanding of how to prevent it.
"I think one of the most important parts of poison ivy is actually prevention," Kenkare says.
For example, wearing long pants and sleeves while doing yardwork or walking through a forest can help reduce the risk of urushiol oil coming into contact with your skin. You should also be able to recognize and avoid the poison ivy plant in the first place.
If you do accidentally touch the plant, try to rinse the area with water immediately, and wash the affected area with soap and water for about a minute to stop the oil from causing an allergic reaction on your skin.
If you still develop the itchy rash, use the home remedies above to relieve your symptoms until it heals.