It won’t be long now until we experience the summer heat again. And when we head for our back gardens, we often find ourselves enjoying the sunshine but sharing it with some unwanted guests. These guests usually come in the stinging insect variety.
I’m sure most of us have suffered from a bee or wasp sting before, and some have even needed to get an expert like Catch-it Pest Control in to deal with the problem. and it really does hurt! So for those of us who don’t have an allergy to insect stings, we wanted to know some great home remedies to ease the swelling, pain and irritating itch. Remember though, if you are allergic to insect stings, you must to the hospital straight away.
Here are our Top 10 home remedies for insect stings.
1. Ice – Insect stings usually swell up, and you can reduce the swelling using ice which slows down the blood flow to the area. Take an ice cube or an ice pack and place it on the sting for around 20 minutes to reduce the pain and swelling.
2. Garlic – A great pain reliever for insect stings. Crush a clove of garlic and slather it on the sting. The juices from the garlic work magic on insect stings, even if it is a little smelly. Garlic also has other applications too.
3. Onion – Another smelly remedy, but a great vegetable for insect stings. Cut an onion in half and place it flesh side down onto the sting to reduce pain.
4. Cucumber – Not only are cucumbers great for wrinkles, they also treat stings too. Cucumber is a natural astringent, so rubbing it on an insect sting will help to reduce the pain and keep the area cool.
5. Baking soda – This is a great treatment for bee stings. Create a thick paste from baking soda and water and apply it to your sting.
6. Salt – Salt works the same way as baking soda for bee stings. Mix it into a paste and apply.
7. Lemon juice – Squeeze as much juice out of a fresh lemon as you can, and then apply it to a wasp sting with a cotton swab or cloth. You can use bottled lemon juice, but fresh always works best.
8. Lemon – If you don’t want to use lemon juice, you can use a fresh lemon instead. Slice it in half and pop the flesh side down onto your wasp sting.
9. Apple cider vinegar – Soak some cotton wool in apple cider vinegar and apply it to a wasp sting to neutralise the acidity from the venom.
10. Vinegar – Vinegar works in the same way, applying it to a wasp sting will take the acidity out of the area and help neutralise the pain.