10 Effective Home Remedies for Hives

Hives, medically known as Urticaria, is a skin condition. During hives the skin develops red and ring-shaped patches on the skin. These patches are found all over the body and cause the skin to become inflamed and swollen. The swelling on one part may subside with time but will immediately appear on some other part.

So in effect the swelling never goes unless the condition is treated. The main reason for hives is the presence of histamine in the body. Histamines are chemicals produced by the body as a reaction to an allergen that has infected the body. The chemical histamine is produced to ward off the infection caused by the allergen; but this is not a rule.

Sometimes the body manufactures histamine even in the absence of an allergen or a foreign body. Hives requires treatment because it has rather uncomfortable symptoms. Some people find it difficult to breathe as a result of hives. A few people have also complained of difficulty in swallowing food when suffering from hives.

The skin condition often leads to unstable heartbeat and fainting spells caused due to feelings of dizziness. Due to the symptoms associated with hives, the sufferers often get panic and anxiety attacks as well.

Home Remedies For Treatment Of Hives

Medically, hives is treated by first diagnosing the reason for the condition. If hives is caused to the presence of an allergen in the body, the allergen needs to get rid of. However, if the cause of hives is not known then it can be treated using simple and effective home remedies.

Calamine Lotion For The Treatment Of Hives

Calamine lotion is good for treating hives and the symptoms associated with it. 

A thin layer of calamine lotion on the affected skin takes care of the redness, itching and swelling. The treatment can be used as many number of times during the day as you want. Keep re-applying calamine lotion on the affected skin areas whenever you feel the need to itch or if the swelling causes pain.

Aloe Vera Gel For The Treatment If Hives

Gather fresh aloe vera gel in a small bowl by removing the green skin of the aloe vera leaf. Mash the gel and mix a little cold water in the gel to make a paste of spreadable consistency. Apply the aloe vera gel on the skin affected with hives.

Aloe vera gel is excellent for soothing the irritated skin. It also helps bring down the inflammation. For best results, use aloe vera gel that has been refrigerated for over a couple of hours. Chilled aloe vera gel will considerably bring down the swelling and redness.

Oatmeal Bath For The Treatment Of Hives

Fill the bath tub with lukewarm water. Add three cups of finely powdered oatmeal in the tub and mix it well in the water. Soak yourself in the oatmeal bath. You will feel tiny particles of oatmeal on your skin. Massage the affected areas of the skin using these tiny particles.

Soak your skin in the oatmeal bath for 15-20 minutes. This bath should be done at night before retiring to bed. The reason is that the symptoms of hives are felt most at night when the body is at rest. To get a peaceful and undisturbed sleep take oatmeal bath at night. This will bring down the inflammation and reduce redness and itching as well.

Cold Compress For The Treatment Of Hives

Take a clean towel or a zip lock bag. Fill the plastic bag with ice and apply it on the skin affected with hives. The cold compress will help decrease the swelling and inflammation of the skin.

10 Effective Home Remedies For Hives

Alternatively, you could soak a clean cloth in ice cold water, squeeze the extra water from the cloth and apply it on the area under attack from hives. It will have the same effect as cold compress.

Vitamin E For The Treatment Of Hives

Take a small bowl and put it in the microwave for 1-2 minutes. Take the bowl out from the microwave and immediately pour an ounce of Vitamin E oil in it. 

The oil will warm up a bit. Apply this warmed vitamin E oil on the hives affected skin. Massage the oil well on your skin to remove inflammation and redness.

Milk Of Magnesia For The Treatment Of Hives

The alkaline properties of milk of magnesia are very beneficial in the treatment of hives. It soothes the irritated skin by effectively getting rid of inflammation, itching and rashes caused by hives. The treatment with milk of magnesia should be repeated twice every day.

Cornstarch Powder For The Treatment Of Hives

Buy cornstarch powder from any local pharmacy. Sprinkle the powder on the inflamed and irritated skin. Lightly rub the powder over the skin. Use the powder every time you feel the need to itch the skin. Cornstarch powder greatly reduces the discomfort of the skin associated with hives.

Warm Water For The Treatment Of Hives

Pour warm water in a bath tub and soak yourself in the warm water bath for 15 minutes. The treatment can be done every time you experience attack of hives. 

The warmth of the water will soothe the skin and decrease the need to itch the skin vigorously. This treatment comes in handy when you cannot perform any other treatment due to the intensity of the attack.

Herbal Teas For The Treatment Of Hives

Prepare a cup of chamomile tea or peppermint tea and drink the herbal tea concoction first thing in the morning. Herbal teas will calm your nerves and reduce the anxiety and panic you feel when under attack of hives. Herbal teas also help regulate the pace of breathing making it easier to breathe during hives. Four cups of herbal tea during the day will see you through the condition.

Cayenne Pepper For The Treatment Of Hives

Many sufferers have experienced an improvement in the condition of hives after adding cayenne pepper to their daily diet. Cayenne pepper can be included in almost all the dishes; simply sprinkle the powder over your vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes.

It can also be added to your soups and salads. Cayenne pepper also comes in supplement form and capsules are available with pharmacists and at health food stores. Two capsules of cayenne pepper will help deal with the condition.

10 Effective Home Remedies for Boils

Skin infections affect all of us all at some point of our lives. Boils are the result of infections on the skin, especially the hair follicles which are caused due to the action of bacteria. They appear as red bumps on the skin surface with pus. Boils cause a lot of itching on the skin and can sometimes be chronic when the skin becomes rough due to the scratching and dark due to the continuous infection.

Boils that appear rarely are not a serious condition and will resolve on their own. 

However frequent appearance of boils on the body need to taken seriously as it could be the result of other serious internal infections. At times, it could even be the onset of a disease that could be contagious like chicken pox.

What Are The Reasons For Boils?

There are many simple as well as complicated reasons that can result in boils on your body. Anxiety attacks and stress can cause the skin to break out into boils. 

Similarly, ill nutrition and unhealthy habits too are causes that can be blamed for initiating the appearance of boils in the body. Boils can also be something more serious like a cancerous growth in the body. This is why chronic boils need to be checked.

Solutions That You Can Try At Home

Home remedies for boils will treat the symptoms naturally without causing any ill effects on the body. If the boils do not dry up after treatment with home remedies, you must seek the advice of a doctor to rule out other diseases of the body.

Treatment Of Boils With Turmeric

The simplest of all solutions, grind fresh turmeric to form a powder and mix it with water for applying on the boil. Turmeric can remove the bacteria that have caused the boils and remove the inflammation, slowly causing the boils to shrink and vanish completely.

Apply turmeric paste continuously, replacing with a fresh coat every few hours. 

This treatment can be continued until the boils fall off naturally.

Treatment Of Boils With Cornmeal

Cornmeal has a drying action on the boil and helps in healing it within hours of application. Take cornmeal powder and mix it with hot water to form a paste. 

This can be applied on the boils and allowed to dry. Every 2 hours remove the dry paste and apply a fresh coat of cornmeal paste. This treatment will help remove the boils in a day.

Treatment Of Boils With Egg White

For boils that are big and painful with a ripe bud, the best way to relieve it is to allow it to burst and drain. For this take a hardboiled egg and remove a small piece of the egg white from it. Put it on the boil and keep it in place with a duct tape.

10 Effective Home Remedies For Boils

In an hour or so, the boil would have burst and the pus gets drained completely. 

Remove the tape and using a wet cotton ball soaked in turmeric water, wipe away the drain and apply some corn starch or turmeric paste over it. Leave it to dry and wash it off the next day. The boil would have completely healed with this treatment.

Treatment Of Boils With Onions

The bacterial action in the boils can be treated with an antibacterial agent like onion. Take a slice of onion and leave it on the boil, sealing it with a duct tape. 

Continue applying fresh onion slices every hour until the boil bursts due to the action of onion.  Clear the pus with a wet cotton ball and apply turmeric for the healing of the skin and also for removing the scar.

Treatment Of Boils With Nutmeg

Proper circulation of blood can remove boils from your skin. For this nutmeg can be used. Grind nut meg to form a powder and drink it after mixing it with a glass of water. The blood circulation in your body will be immediately increased and the bacteria will be removed from the skin surface. This is a good treatment method if you cannot leave pastes or masks on your skin when you are at work.

Treatment Of Boils With Bitter Gourd

Yet another wonderful solution for those of you who are not at home; take a bitter gourd and grate it. Squeeze the juice out of it. Add a tablespoon of lemon juice and drink this first thing in the morning. Bitter gourd and lemon juice will remove all the bacterial action in your skin by making the skin acidic.

Treatment Of Boils With Garlic

Garlic can be used for destroying the bacteria from the skin and removing the bursting ripe boils. Take a sliced garlic clove and keep it on the boil, sealing it with a bandage. The boils will soon burst due to the heat. Remove the pus and apply turmeric.

Treatment Of Boils With Betel Leaves

Betel leaves too are hot and will rupture the boils when applied on the skin along with a coat of castor oil. Make the betel leaf soft by warming it over a flame before doing this. You can also squeeze the juice and mix with a few drops of castor oil to get the same benefit.

Treatment Of Boils With Cumin

Crush cumin seeds until they for a paste. Apply on the boils and leave it until it dries. Remove it with a cotton ball once dry. The boils would have dried off by now and your skin would have healed as well.

Treatment Of Boils With Milk Cream

This treatment can be done at the onset of boils when you see them. Mix milk cream with turmeric and a little vinegar. Apply on the boil. This will burst the boil and bust the bacteria as well, clearing away any chance of infection. 

Turmeric can be applied for a couple of day more to prevent recurrence and also to leave your skin clear and glowing.

Boils that do not go away with these simple treatments must not be continued to treat at home. Consult a doctor for further proceedings.

9 Healing Remedies for Urticaria

Urticaria is commonly known as hives. It generally appears as ring like manifestations with red swollen patches of skin in different parts of your body. 

Urticaria symptoms are such that they keep appearing and disappearing on various locations.

This means that the symptoms are ongoing and appear even on the face which makes it difficult to conceal. People who have different kinds of allergies are susceptible to urticaria. The symptoms start appearing when the body releases histamines as a result of exposure to allergens.

Once the swelling in one part of the body recedes, it will appear elsewhere which creates a chain reaction. Symptoms associated with urticaria can be very traumatising including difficulty in breathing and swallowing, palpitations of the heart, dizziness, panic attacks etc. among others.

Urticaria can also be hereditary.Extreme weather conditions too can sometimes trigger urticaria. Even if it is not a life threatening conditions, the symptoms can be very harrowing and therefore reason enough to be treated and controlled.

People who are susceptible to urticaria attacks must try and keep away from allergens to prevent frequent attacks. Along with that, there are home remedies that you can try to reduce its severity and prevent urticaria attacks.

Natural Methods To Treat Urticaria

Eliminate The Allergen To Treat Urticaria

Identifying the allergen is the first step towards effectively controlling urticaria symptoms. However, this could be a very difficult thing to do as you could be allergic to not just one substance but many. However there would be a pattern that you can keep a watch on.

Substances that you are allergic to can immediately trigger an urticaria attack. 

So you can stop the allergen you suspect has caused the urticaria and watch your symptoms. If the symptoms recede, you have identified the allergen.

The allergen could also be a new substance that you have recently added to your diet or lifestyle. Check for such substances and see their effect on your body to see if they are the triggers. Identifying and eliminating the allergen is very essential to treat urticaria.

Soak In Apple Cider Vinegar To Treat Urticaria

An attack of urticaria can damage your skin greatly, making it red and bumpy. 

To reduce and regain your skin’s natural texture and glow, take two tablespoon of apple cider vinegar and add 1/4th teaspoon of baking soda to it. Add one cup of water to this mixture and using a cotton ball, apply this mixture on the affected skin. Leave it for 10 minutes and wipe it off with warm water.

To make a soak, add one cup of apple cider vinegar and 1/4th cup of baking soda in a tub of warm water and soak your body in it for 15 minutes. This is effective when you have red patches all over the body.

Milk Of Magnesia To Treat Urticaria

Milk of magnesia is very alkaline in nature which will help in treating urticaria symptoms.  An alkaline solution helps in soothing the skin that is irritated and also reduces inflammation associated with urticaria.

9 Healing Remedies For Urticaria

Apply the milk on the areas affected and leave it on for some time before washing it off. Repeat two times a day for relief.

Cold Compress To Treat Urticaria

For skin that is inflamed and irritated, a cold compress comes as cool relief. 

Application of an ice or an ice pack on the area affected will immediately help recede the inflammation and redness and offer relief to the patient.  Make a cold compress by soaking a towel in ice cold water and applying it on the rashes for great relief.

Calamine Lotions To Treat Urticaria

Calamine lotion can sooth the irritated skin a great deal. If you have severe itching on the area, apply calamine lotion on the surface where the rashes are and leave it on until it dries. The drying action will stop the itchy sensation on the skin and reduce the swelling as well. This being a simple treatment, you can apply it whenever the itch is not bearable anymore and you need some instant relief.

Use Aloe Vera To Treat Urticaria

Aloe vera is one of the best natural treatments available for many skin infections and disorders. Use the purest form of aloe gel for treating skin infections. The gels in the market could be chemical treated and can therefore irritate your skin. Take the stalk of aloe vera and cut it to extract the gel. Add a little water and mix to form a smoother gel.

Apply on the skin for its cooling action to offer great relief from itching and inflammation. Frequent application will relieve the symptoms completely and clears and repairs the damaged skin as well.

Baking Soda And Cornstarch Bath To Treat Urticaria

A soak prepared with baking soda and cornstarch can be used for treating urticaria. Take baking soda and cornstarch in equal proportions and add it to a tub filled with warm water.  Soak for 15 minutes two times every day to relieve the swelling and redness of the skin.

A soak at night just before you head to sleep will help you attain sound sleep. In the absence of these ingredients, a plain warm water soak too can help you control the symptoms and reduce the swelling a great deal.

Cayenne Pepper To Treat Urticaria

Cayenne pepper is very potent and can be used for controlling as well as treating a variety of ailments and allergies. Every day morning add half a teaspoon of cayenne pepper to a glass to water and consume this. This is a great remedy that can even prevent a heart attack. You can also include cayenne pepper liberally in your diet if you are susceptible to allergies.

Chamomile Tea To Treat Urticaria

Herbal teas like chamomile help in soothing the skin as well as the nerves. 

Stress can lead to outbreaks on the skin by releasing stress hormones. Take chamomile tea several times a day to prevent stress attacks and keep the symptoms under check. Chamomile tea will also ease your breathing difficulty associated with urticaria.

8 Natural Treatments for Removing Stretch Marks

Smooth and glowing skin is a luxury that many of us are not blessed with. A majority of us are left with skin that is blemished, scarred and flawed with stretch marks. Stretch marks are caused when our skin stretches beyond the point of its elasticity and as a result lead to breakages in the collages fibres, leading to long, silvery streaks of line on the skin surface.

Definitely not a disturbing skin problem that requires immediate attention. But considering the mental trauma and the social impact that a stretch marked skin can cause you, they are surely a serious issue. Women especially are very sensitive to the problem of stretch marks as they prevent them from wearing clothes that they would otherwise love to wear.

How Are Stretch Marks Formed?

Stretch marks initially appear as red or purple streaks of lines on the skin surface, mainly on the thighs, breasts, buttocks, stomach etc. These shades appear when the tissues stretch over their limit and bleeding occurs on the dermal layer of the skin. As time passes, the redness disappears and silvery streaks appear which never fade away completely.

Why Do Stretch Marks Appear?

The reasons for developing stretch marks could be many. The most common reasons however are being overweight and the expansion of skin due to pregnancy in women. Deficiencies of certain vitamins too can cause stretch marks. Sometimes, certain medications that you take for various ailments could lead to damage of skin tissues, leading to stretch marks.

Adolescence is the time when many youngsters develop hormonal imbalances in their body and resultant stretch marks. Finally, stretch marks can be caused simply because you are genetically disposed too.

Natural Remedies For Stretch Marks

Home remedies can sometimes be the best treatment option for stretch marks, especially when the stretch marks are new. They can be repaired at this stage with results which are very satisfactory and irreversible.

Cocoa Butter

Cocoa butter is known to be one of the best home remedies available for the treatment and prevention of stretch marks. Most of the creams for stretch marks that are available in the market contain cocoa butter as the main ingredient. Massaging pure cocoa butter right on to the skin will help in preventing the formation of stretch marks, especially when you are pregnant.

For making a cream with cocoa butter, fill half a cup with cocoa butter. Add a tablespoon of wheat germ oil and one teaspoon each of apricot kernel paste and vitamin E. Take two teaspoons of bees wax and melt it. Add this to the mixture and mix well. This nourishing cream can be used every day for massaging into your body.

Aloe Vera And Olive Oil

Olive oil is a great remedy for removing stretch marks. But if you are looking at something which is stronger, aloe vera is here to serve you as well. Take half a cup of pure olive oil and add a quarter cup of freshly extracted aloe vera gel to it. Mix to form a smooth paste.

8 Natural Treatments For Removing Stretch Marks

Take 4 vitamin E capsules and two vitamin A capsules and add it to the mixture by bursting the capsules. Mix the contents well and use it for massaging on the stretch marks every day. Store this cream in air tight jars to retain its freshness.

Almond, Chamomile And Lavender

Massaging the stretch marked skin with any oil will in fact do a lot of good by reducing the severity of the damage. The improved blood circulation and the plumping up of skin will eventually lighten the stretch marks to a great deal with a massage every day.

For preparing a massage oil, take equivalent amounts of lavender and almond oil and add a teaspoon of chamomile oil to it. This can be massaged into the skin in gentle circular strokes. Do it every day and see the stretch marks getting flattened and lightened with time.

Wheat Germ Oil And Calendula

Wheat germ oil is a common ingredient in cosmetic creams as wheat germ is rich in vitamin A and E which are necessary for beautiful skin. Wheat germ helps in repairing and regenerating the skin. Calendula has great healing properties and help in reviving scarred skin. Mix calendula and wheat germ in equal proportions and massage every day for 15-20 minutes. With every passing day, your stretch marks will reduce considerably.

Vitamin E

The application of vitamin E must be started immediately after the arrival of red streaks of lines on your skin. This is the time when the stretch marks can be completely removed with great care. Massage the skin thoroughly with vitamin E for twenty minutes. Massaging vitamin E before the appearance of stretch marks will prevent its occurrence greatly.

Jojoba, Sweet Almond And Avocado

Mix jojoba, avocado and sweet almond and add 2-3 drops of chamomile and lavender oil to it. Work it into a smooth paste and apply on the stretch marks every day. Avocado is a natural moisturiser as it has natural oils present in it. 

With constant application of this mixture, the skin will be smoother and lighter in days.

Coffee

Freshly ground coffee has to be made to form a paste with a cream or lotion of your choice. This can be rubbed on the skin for 10 minutes every day. The slightly abrasive nature of coffee will act as an exfoliant and help in flattening the stretch marks greatly. Rub twice a day for 15 minutes.

Vitamin K

Vitamin K creams are known to remove stretch marks. Massage onto the skin every day for its action to heal stretch marks. Food rich in vitamin K should also be consumed while you treat stretch marks to maximise the gains.

With all these treatment methods, one must be aware of the limitations. Stretch marks are difficult to fade or remove completely once they are silvery grey in colour. The best treatment therefore is to prevent the stretch marks from appearing on your skin. All the treatment methods mentioned above are good for preventing the occurrence of stretch marks as well.

8 Home Treatment for Ingrown Toenail

Many people have the habit of cutting their nails way too close to the skin, sometimes damaging the underlying skin as well. Before you know, you are faced with a painful and distressing situation called ingrown toenails.

As the name suggests, the toenail that has been trimmed off rather too close to the skin starts growing right through your skin and causes dense pain and creates all kinds of infections of the toenail.

Dust and grime start accumulating in this area and you will have difficulty cleaning the nail as well. Before it turns to a severe case of infection and loss of the toenail itself, let’s explore the wonder remedies that are available naturally.

Alcohol

Before you take any treatment for the infection, the toenail has to be successfully evacuated from the flesh which is not an easy task, considering the pain and the thickness of your nails. To make the nails soft, take a cotton ball and soak in alcohol. Apply on the nails and leave it for a few minutes. Once it is soft, it is easy to pull it up from the skin and trim it into an adequate length, not too close this time please!

Water

Water that is hot may also be used for making the nails soft and removing the inflammation and bacterial action. Soak your toes in a high temperature that your skin can withstand. After 20 minutes, extract the soft nail out from the flesh and trim it off. It is now ready for treatment.

Salt

Epsom salt is a remedy for softening the toenail as well as healing and busting the infection on the toenail.  Take a shallow basin and fill it with warm water. 

Soak your leg for 15 minutes for the softening and healing action to take place. 

Wipe with a dry towel and remove the nail edge from the flesh for trimming. 

Continue soaking every day until the infection subsides and your nails grow back naturally.

Hydrogen Peroxide

Hydrogen peroxide is a bleaching agent and is used for removing the infection from the skin. After trimming the ingrown toenail, wash legs well and pat dry before applying hydrogen peroxide solution. Using a cotton swab, apply hydrogen peroxide on the nail. Continue until the infection starts retracting and your nails are removed from the inflammation as well.

A Slice of Lemon

Lemon is another way to remove the infection and inflammation from your toenail. This too has to be done after you soften the toenail and trim it to prevent further growth into the skin. Now cut a lemon into two pieces and rub one piece on the toenail.

Squeeze the juice out and allow it to flow on the infected toenail. Allow the lemon juice to dry. Apply frequently throughout the day and every day until the toenail is completely cured and the infection no longer leaves you with pain and inflammation.

Apple Cider Vinegar

Using a cotton ball, apply apple cider vinegar for the healing action to take place and also remove the infection and leave the skin clear and well taken care of.