You don’t have to be a superhero to have a nemesis. Everyone has one. Maybe it was that kid in second grade that put paint in your hair, or maybe it’s that guy at the office that likes to dip his grubby fingers into everyone’s lunch, but you do have one. The question is what to do about them. The only good thing about my own nemesis is that it’s perfectly legal to kill it.
Not that I don’t suffer consequences when I take action – family members exact revenge, causing me to suffer nearly unbearable discomfort. Yes, I’m talking about my old enemy, poison ivy.
There’s a reason that a super villain was named after this most evil of plants. It’s shrewd, excellent at blending in and taking you by surprise. It pops up in unlikely places, both geographically and physically.
Right now, I bear the unmistakable signs of a battle with poison ivy – an itchy rash on both ankles and arms. I do watch out for it, but a hectic few days of mowing, weeding flower beds, and blazing trails through the woods meant that the odds were against me.
To spare the rest of you the Rash of Doom, here are a few tips on recognizing poison ivy and fending off its oh-so-itchy attack.
Leaves of three, let it be
One of our daughters went hiking with a friend and came across a plant with three leaves. “That’s poison ivy,” the friend proclaimed.
“No, it isn’t,” replied our daughter.
“’Leaves of three, let it be,’” quoted the friend.
“Other plants have three leaves, you know,” said our daughter. “That is a berry bush.”
“Poison ivy!” argued the friend, adamant that anything with three leaves was bad.
“So,” my daughter said laughingly, in the retelling of this story, “I leaned over and licked the plant.”
Thankfully, she knew the difference and didn’t actually lick a poison ivy plant. Berry bushes and even maple leaves can look a bit like poison ivy to the untrained eye.
In fact, one can’t always rely on the old axiom of “leaves of three,” as poison ivy can have up to nine leaves.
Hairy is scary
Another adage to help identify poison ivy is “hair is scary,” indicating the hairy, ropelike vine that poison ivy often displays as it climbs trees.
However, older vines may not have as much “hair” and may even look more like tree trunks, with long woody branches reaching out for your tender skin.
Sometimes poison ivy grows in a more shrubby habit, or is on a vine along the ground, so it just looks like a lovely, green ground cover – with evil intentions.
Your best bet in identifying this villain is research and practice. There are plenty of pics and info available online, but always use a reliable source like CDC.gov or OSU.edu.
Urushiol
Urushiol is the secret weapon employed by poison ivy, poison oak, and poison sumac. It is an oil released when the plants are bruised, damaged, or even burned (so remember to never burn poison ivy).
The oil causes contact dermatitis in most people, resulting in a blistery, itchy rash.
Perhaps you are saying, “But I’m not allergic.” Then you should know that, as with most allergies, the effect is cumulative, which means you may need to be exposed a certain number of times to develop the allergy. For some people, it’s once or twice, but for others, it may be many more.
This video explains how it works.
How it spreads
When I was a kid, my pet dinosaur and I would wander through the woods and I’d always end up with poison ivy. I was told that scratching the itchy rash would spread it via the fluid from the blisters.
It sounds really gross, and the good news is that it’s not true. The rash is spread by the urushiol oil, and sometimes it just takes longer to penetrate skin in some areas than others.
Urushiol can remain active for up to ten years – yes, ten years- on clothes, tools, and anything not washed. Imagine you got poison ivy on your jeans, and you sat on the couch. The next time you sit there in shorts, you may get a lovely rash.
If you haven’t been outside, but your loving cat has, and the sweet feline twines around your ankles and you later break out – the mystery is solved. Animals can pick up the urushiol on their fur and spread it to their pet humans.
Save yourself
The best weapon in the War on Urushiol is good old soap and water. You don’t need any sort of special soap, just a thorough scrubbing with your average bath bar will do.
But suppose you are hiking, and soap and water are not handy. Then a spray bottle filled with rubbing alcohol could save the day. The alcohol more or less neutralizes the urushiol. It’s also handy for clothes and tools that have been exposed, and especially for things you can’t toss into the washing machine, like the couch or hiking boots. Just liberally spray the alcohol onto the surface and let dry. Easy as pie.
Don’t add insult to injury
Should you break out, don’t add insult to injury, or even injury to injury, by using bleach on your skin. (Yes, I’m talking to you. You know who you are.)
I’ve found that some breakouts can be halted immediately by a heavy spraying of rubbing alcohol. Failing that, good, old-fashion calamine lotion works wonders.
A bad case of the rash should be seen by your doctor.
Now, go forth, and watch out for my nemesis, won’t you?