[TheForge] Blacksmith medical cure

[Barking Crow]

A few years ago I heard a very informative report on NPR from a woman who
had done her dissertatation on poison Ivy and she said that hot soapy water
and a good scrub would work up to 30 min after exposure to the plant, but
that alcohol, good ole rubbing alcohol (isopropyl alcohol) would work best
for up to 4 hours after expose.  Flood the exposed area with the rubbing
alcohol and rub vigorously and flood again.  It works since the irritant is
an alcohol and is therefore dissolved from your skin by the rubbing alcohol,
as per the old "like dissolves like" chemical adage.  Since then I keep a
bottle in the shop and one in the kitchen and whenever I think I may have
been exposed I wash with the alcohol, sometimes even on my face which is
problematic as you don't want to inhale the fumes.  I haven't had any
problem and have urged a lot of folks to use it with no negative feedback.
Rubbing alcohol is quite cheap and gets rapidly more so when you think you
may be coming down with the ivy.

Try it you'll like it.

Jeff in Tallahassee where the temperature will actually hit the 50's in the
next 10 days or so if they ain't lying.