Best way to stop mosquito bite itch1/12/2024 OTC antihistamines are widely available at your local drugstore. With antihistamines, your goal should be to take one as early as possible once you know you've been bitten (if not even before then, for example, if you're going on a long hike in a buggy locale). Strachan adds that antihistamines are better at preventing inflammation than they are at treating the itchiness and swelling after the damage is already done. "If you know you'll get bitten, take an antihistamine to reduce the reaction."ĭr. "Treat bug bites as you might treat any other allergy," Dr. Because antihistamines block the effects of histamines, they can cut down on some of these familiar bug-bite-related symptoms. Remember that your body also releases histamine when you get a bug bite-and that's the chemical that causes your skin to swell, itch, and turn red. And since scratching can cause the area to become more inflamed, it may take even longer for your bug bites to clear up if you're touching the area a lot.Īntihistamines are medications that aid in relieving allergy symptoms by blocking the effects of histamine, the chemical your body releases during an immune response. In other words, it takes a few days for your body to recover from the bug bite-and from fighting off the foreign substance. Unfortunately, this triggers an inflammatory response-causing the location of your bite to swell and itch.īut why do they remain swollen, red, and itchy for days? Simply put: "The histamine released by the white blood cells in our body takes time to clear up," says Sunitha Posina, MD, a New York City-based board-certified internist. This makes it easier for your white blood cells (your immune system cells) to make their way to the site of the bug bite, so they can "fight off" the saliva or venom. This mosquito saliva is a foreign substance, and your immune system knows that, so it releases histamine-a chemical that makes your capillaries more permeable. Spiders inject a combination of saliva and venom into your skin when they bite you.) When a mosquito bites you, it doesn't just suck out some of your blood-it actually releases some of its saliva into your skin. But most of the time when you're dealing with an itchy bug bite, you're dealing with a mosquito bite. But what about once you have a bug bite? Is there anything you can do to get it to stop itching? We talked to a few experts to find out.īug bites can range from unpleasant to painful. Thankfully, we all know how to avoid bug bites (wear bug spray!). And though bug bites tend to be pretty small, they can be itchy, pesky, and sometimes even painful. While outdoor mosquito repellents can greatly reduce the chances of getting bitten, nearly everyone has experienced a bug bite at one point.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply.AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |