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New Choices in Natural Healing: Bites and Stings

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Bites and Stings

Meandering through a meadow? Waltzing through the woods? “Bee” careful! There’s a whole battalion of bugs out there waiting to sting, bite, chomp and clamp your tender skin.

The best way to handle bites and stings is to avoid them in the first place. Experts say that when venturing into the outdoors, you should wear white or khaki-colored clothing (including socks and long pants), use insect repellent, avoid sweet-scented fragrances, never mess around with a beehive and always check yourself for hangers-on such as ticks after you go back inside. But even when that doesn’t work, most insect bites are just minor annoyances. You’ll get an itch, a bump and maybe a burning sensation. The natural remedies in this chapter, used with the approval of your doctor, may provide relief, according to some health professionals.

See Your Medical Doctor When...

You’re bitten by an animal.
You develop a fever after being bitten.
You have difficulty breathing or feel severe pain after a bite or sting.

Aromatherapy

For quick relief from insect bites, apply one drop of pure lavender, tea tree, helichrysum (also called immortelle or everlast) or blue chamomile essential oil directly to the affected area, suggests Los Angeles aromatic consultant John Steele. The oil can be reapplied every ten minutes until you feel better, he says.

For information on preparing and administering essential oils, including cautions about their use, see page19. For information on purchasing essential oils, refer to the resource list on page 633.

Ayurveda

Neem powder, made from extracts from India’s neem tree and available from Ayurvedic practitioners, can be applied as a plaster to soothe insect bites, according to Vasant Lad, B.A.M.S., M.A.Sc., director of the Ayurvedic Institute in Albuquerque, New Mexico. To make the plaster, Dr. Lad says to take enough neem powder to just cover the area of the bite, then add warm water to make a thick paste. He suggests applying the plaster to the skin twice a day, letting it dry for 10 to 20 minutes each time.

But you can keep the bugs from biting in the first place, says Dr. Lad, by rubbing neem oil (also available from Ayurvedic practitioners) on exposed skin before going outside. According to Dr. Lad, neem contains a compound called salannin that repels insects as effectively as the synthetic chemical DEET—but without DEET’s toxic effects on humans. Do not use pure neem tree oil, he cautions, since it’s too strong for this use.

You can also soothe insect bites by drinking fresh cilantro juice and applying the cilantro pulp to the skin, says Dr. Lad. Here’s how he says to prepare the juice and pulp: Chop 1 cup of fresh cilantro leaves and mix with 1/3 cup of water in a blender. Strain this mixture through cheesecloth, saving the pulp to apply directly to the affected area of the skin. Dr. Lad suggests spreading the pulp on the bite once or twice a day and to drink the juice two tablespoons at a time, three times a day. Keep the juice refrigerated; you should have enough for three to four days.

Flower Remedy/Essence Therapy

Try the emergency stress relief formula, sold under brand names such as Calming Essence, Rescue Remedy and Five-Flower Formula, says Leslie J. Kaslof, an herbalist and author of The Traditional Flower Remedies of Dr. Edward Bach. He suggests using the formula topically on minor insect bites to relieve pain, swelling and itching. Also, he says, the formula may be helpful in relieving mild allergic reactions to insect bites and stings. He recommends taking four drops under the tongue as needed to calm and relax.

Kaslof cautions, however, that the formula is not a replacement for emergency medical intervention or doctor-recommended treatment for allergic reactions. If you have a history of allergic reactions to insect bites and stings, he says, you must consult your doctor before using the emergency stress relief formula.

The emergency stress relief formula is available in most health food stores and through mail order (refer to the resource list on page 635). For more information on preparing and administering the formula, see page 40.

Food Therapy

“A compress made from meat tenderizer breaks down the venom and can take the sting out of bites and stings,” says Elson Haas, M.D., director of the Preventive Medical Center of Marin in San Rafael, California, and author of Staying Healthy with Nutrition. That’s because most insect bites and stings, as well as jellyfish stings, are protein-based, and meat tenderizer breaks down protein—as long as the tenderizer contains either papain or bromelain, the active protein-busting ingredients. Dr. Haas says to mix a thick paste of water and powdered meat tenderizer and apply it directly on the skin; relief will come within a minute. (Bromelain can cause dermatitis in some people, so don’t apply any more if the skin begins to look red and inflamed.)

Herbal Therapy

Here’s a natural insect repellent from Barre, Vermont, herbalist Rosemary Gladstar, author of Herbal Healing for Women and several other books on herbs: Combine one part bay leaf, four parts pennyroyal, two parts rosemary and one part eucalyptus in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Add enough olive oil to cover the herbs, then top off with another inch or two. Close the jar and place it on a sunny windowsill or in a sunny spot outside for two weeks. (You can do this even during colder months, says Gladstar, since oil usually won’t freeze.) Then strain the mixture so that there’s only liquid left. (For extra scent, add a drop or two of eucalyptus essential oil to the liquid.)

Gladstar recommends using this herbal repellent just as you would a store-bought product, spreading it evenly and lightly on your skin (but avoiding the eyes). And she says that this herbal repellent is safe to use even on children’s skin and that it works as well as store-bought chemical varieties.

All of these herbs and oils are available in most health food stores.

Homeopathy

To reduce the swelling and pain of bites that have the sensation of coldness and that are better when you apply cold, take a 6C or 12C dose of Ledum or apply Ledum tincture on the bite with a cotton swab every two to three hours as needed until you feel relief, says Mitchell Fleisher, M.D., a family practice physician and homeopath in Colleen, Virginia. Taking Apis mellifica in 6C or 12C potency is another good remedy, he says, particularly for bites that are burning or stinging, are worse with heat and better with ice packs and cause hivelike reactions on the skin.

Dr. Fleisher suggests taking one dose of Ledum or Apis mellifica every 15 minutes for up to four doses. If you’re still experiencing pain, he says, take one 30C dose. If there is still no improvement, consult a medical doctor or homeopath, he says.

Ledum and Apis mellifica can be purchased in many health food stores. To purchase homeopathic remedies by mail, refer to the resource list on page 637.

Hydrotherapy

To relieve the discomfort of insect bites, make up a thin paste of water, apple cider vinegar and fuller’s earth (available in most health food stores) and apply to the bite for a few minutes, suggests Agatha Thrash, M.D., a medical pathologist and co-founder and co-director of Uchee Pines Institute, a natural healing center in Seale, Alabama. Rinse with warm water.