My SIL was lamenting being unable to stop the itch from a bug bite a few weeks ago, so I went online and looked up a listing for "home remedies" for such things. One site I came across listed several that the blogger had actually tested for themselves, including if it worked at all, to what degree it worked and how soon the bite needed re-treatment. Well, I unknowingly stepping in an ant bed on Saturday. 6 ant bites on one foot. Lovely. I came inside and ran cold water over my foot, and hubby brought me some benadryl (he couldn't locate the stingeze or the after-bite tubes, and I was sitting on the side of the bathtub, so I went with the Benadryl). It didn't help much. I tossed and turned during the night, rubbed the itchiness, etc. Applied (probably too late) the ammonia after bite stuff... etc.
Well LAST night (Sunday) the itchiness woke me up. I don't know why, but it seemed worse after 36 hours than when it first happened. Anyway... at 3:00 a.m. I remembered what I read on that site a few weeks ago...guess what (after ice) the number one remedy was... Does anybody know? I got up, went into the bathroom and rummaged around in the drawers until I found it:
plain toothpaste. Crest, actually is what I found (I usually use Toms Sensitive, so didn't know if it would work the same, hence the digging around in the bathroom drawers). I applied a bit onto the bites and it was A-MAzING. I reapplied it a few times through the course of today and it works surprisingly well. Better than the benadryl.
So, how many of you ladies have ever heard of, or USED the toothpaste treatment for bug bites? Did it work for you, too?
While on the home remedy kick, I have heard of using roll on antipersperant (though we don't have any in the house), but not tried it. But I have heard of using egg whites for burns. Haven't tried that as haven't gotten burned since I heard about it, but no, I hadn't heard of using them for bug bites.
But yes, I thought it was cool that toothpaste is an obviously safe "non-medicinal" item that you can carry. And even if you are camping somewhere and forget bug stuff (or run out), everyone usually has toothpaste, or you can pick up a travel sized tube for $1 which is much cheaper than any medicinal ones (afterbite, benadryl, etc).
When I was younger, we would use a baking soda and water paste on ant bites and it worked. Sometimes when we had extra paste, we'd store it and use it as toothpaste.
Never heard of toothpaste, but antiperspirants will work, too! My mom had told me how our pediatrician had recommended it to her (my brother liked to find stinging insects, although managed to never get stung). Then, when I was being stupid one day, I got bitten by a wolf spider. (They don't usually bite, I deserved it.) Mom wasn't home, but I remembered what she had said (I think the roll-on kind works the best) and put some roll-on Mitchum on my spider bite. Sure enough, it was all better (no swelling or itching or ANYTHING) after an hour or so.
I am so happy to hear that toothpaste works for bug bites (wish I would have known that last week when MT foot got bitten up by a couple of nasty ants!). When I was little, I burned my hand pretty bad and my grandmother immediately put toothpaste on it and it helped - ever since then I have used toothpaste to sooth burns and it works, although I'm not sure a doctor would agree with doing that to a burn. :-)
A flower for you for recommending that remedy. Last year we found out that my daughter inherited my insane reaction to bug bites. I will try anything to help the itching and swelling - now if she gets a bite at school and doesn't have her prescription strength cream, I can ask the school to rub toothpaste since it's not medicine! (need to keep the tube at home).
Awesome to know - I recently came across the toothpaste as relief, but usually use Vick's VapoRub - something about the mentholatum. Benadryl doesn't do anything for the itch. And you are right! It's always in the middle of the night 2 or 3 nights later that the darn bites are the most aggravating! Try not to scratch, you don't want to scar -
I had never heard of the toothpaste trick, but I will share the remedy that has always worked for me. When you get a bug bite, crack an egg and use the "skin" inside the shell. Put it wet side down on the bite and let it dry. It draws the poison right out of the skin... of course, you waste an egg!
My son just stepped in an ant pile today getting about 20 bites and he was screaming so I applied toothpaste and he stopped itching and crying, well I thought I was supposed to wipe the paste off after awhile but soon as I did he went right back to crying and itching so I reapplied and he's been fine since!
