Tecnu Skin Cleanser
Tecnu Skin Cleanser is a specially-designed product for the removal of urushiol – the toxic oil contained in poison oak and poison ivy, which causes an allergic reaction if absorbed by the skin. Exposure to poison oak and poison ivy transfers this oil on to skin, or on to anything else that touches it. This includes clothing, tools, pet fur, and footwear. Even if you haven't got any of the urushiol on your skin, you can still end up with a poison ivy rash if one of these secondary carriers eventually transfers it to you – so it's important that after poison oak or poison ivy exposure, you thoroughly clean anything that you think might have been touched by the plant.
Urushiol doesn't start to do its damage until it is absorbed into the skin. While it is still on the surface, you have a good chance of being able to get it all off before it has a chance to get to work. The sooner you respond, the better! Tecnu Skin Cleanser is perhaps the best known treatment for poison oak and poison ivy exposure. If you notice the plants too late, and think there's a chance that you may have touched them, then you need to take immediate action if you're going to prevent urushiol-induced contact dermatitis – better known as poison ivy rash or poison oak rash. That's why if you live in an area where these plants thrive, it's sensible to have a treatment like Tecnu already in your house, so that you can treat yourself as soon as exposure occurs.
Most importantly, don't touch your skin until you've applied the treatment. Touching it will have the effect of rubbing the oil into your skin, and helping it to absorb more quickly – perhaps before you've even had the chance to apply Tecnu. Once it has absorbed, the chances of being able to successfully remove it are much, much slimmer. Not only that, but touching will transfer the urushiol to your hands, and you're very likely to then spread it around to other parts of your body through touch. So keep your hands off the affected area, and try to keep the exposure contained as best you can.
As soon as possible after exposure (up to eight hours, but sooner is better), apply Tecnu to the skin and leave it for two minutes. Then, simply rinse it off with cool water. You should then wash thoroughly with soap and water.
Don't forget to clean all other items that you think may have come into contact with poison ivy or poison oak, to prevent becoming re-exposed to urushiol through one of them. To clean tools, soak a cloth in Tecnu and, wearing gloves, clean the equipment with the cloth. This should kill and remove any urushiol present, and you can then wash the tools with soap and water. Likewise, make sure that your pets aren't carrying the oil on their fur by wiping them thoroughly with a Tecnu-soaked cloth, and following this up with pet shampoo in a bath. To wash urushiol from your clothing, soak the clothes in Tecnu (without pre-wetting them) for a few minutes before laundering them as normal using hot water and detergent. You can buy it online here.
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