A common skin problem in adults and children alike, hives can be cured and managed with the help of both medicine and natural treatment. The latter includes a series of home remedies for hives which are compiled here. From baking soda and vinegar to yoga and relaxation, hives can become a thing of the past before you even know it. Explore the list and delve into your pantry now because that’s where the home remedies for hives lie!
Hives are also known by another name – urticaria. It’s actually an outbreak of the skin, characterized by pale red but swollen bumps which may or may not be accompanied by plaques. In regards to hives, these are called wheals.
The disease usually causes a lot of itching in the patient, who also feels mild discomfort. However, in some cases, hives can also sting and even burn, which turns the symptoms painful. The spots appear all over the body, including the lips, tongue, ears, and throat. Their size varies, and patients have been known to experience all kinds of spots, from penny sized ones to some the size of a dinner plate. Spots may even join. That’s when they form the plaques, which are actually vast portions of the body covered in the same hive spot. They can be seen for a few hours or even a day prior to fading away.
Simply put, hives are an allergic reaction. When histamine is introduced to the body, via an agent the system is allergic to, the blood vessels react and let plasma leak out. It manages to get to the skin, and it produces the red patches you can see with the naked eye.
The release of histamine and, consequently, hives as an allergic reaction, can be caused by a number of things, all varying from one person to another. People are usually allergic to nuts, different fruits, seeds, animal hair, mites or dander, house dust, and pollen. Apart from that, hives can also be triggered by special foods, animal or insect bites, and internal diseases.
There are a few different types of hives one can distinguish.
This type is called acute mainly because it lasts for less or more weeks. It’s usually caused by food, but it can also be triggered by all the other factors mentioned above in causes. Typically, the foods that start it up are chocolate, fish, eggs, berries, milk, and tomatoes. One thing you should know here is that fresh food usually causes hives a lot more than cooked meals. Apart from that, there are also certain additives and preservatives often found in store bought foods that can trigger the allergy.
The medicine that causes hives includes the very common aspirin, painkillers the likes of codeine, drugs for high blood pressure, and ibuprofen.
This type of hives lasts for more than six weeks and is caused by the exact same things. We can also add animal and insect bites to the list of causes. It’s a lot harder to identify than acute hives mainly because, for most people, it’s almost impossible to know what triggered it.
Chronic urticaria also brings to the table an entirely new set of causes – internal diseases. In this regard, it may be linked to cancer, infections, thyroid problems, and hepatitis. Apart from this, chronic hives affect the internal organs as well as the derma. Its symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea, muscle soreness, and asphyxiation sensations.
This type of the disease has been dubbed ‘physical’ mainly because it acts up when the skin is directly exposed to allergenic factors, such as sunlight, cold, heat, pressure, sweat, vibrations, and even exercise. It manifests itself via rashes that occur strictly where the derma was exposed to the outside factor and nowhere else. The spots usually appear within one hour of the skin’s exposure.
This is a branch of the physical type of hives, which acts up after the skin was rubbed, firmly stroked or scratched. Its distinctive trait is that it can happen alongside other forms of hives as well, which means it can be more than a standalone disease.
When it comes to home remedies for hives, there are a number of things you can try. Curing hives goes hand in hand with relieving its symptoms and finding the cause. This is the reason why most doctors will recommend you pay a lot of attention to what you eat, drink, and the places where you spend your time. There is no point in taking medication and making use of home remedies for hives if you don’t remove the source of the problem. It will keep on bursting on the surface of the skin. Apart from that, here are the main remedies.
It’s crucial when suffering from hives that you do not wear tight clothes made from synthetic materials. Go for organic fabrics, such as cotton and silk, to allow the skin to breathe and keep it cool and breezy. Your clothes also have to be sufficiently loose so as not to damage your skin further or flare up your hives even more. If possible, try to wear loose-fitting underwear as well. Men should wear boxers and ladies should steer clear of bikinis and wear a sports bra instead of a regular one.
Although this might sound weird, our list of home remedies for hives does include diary keeping. Your days will have to be filled with ‘dear diary’ moments, as this is the only way you can determine the underlining cause of your allergic reaction and remove it.
Studies show how people don’t usually know what ailed them in the first place when it comes to urticaria, so it’s almost impossible to determine that. This impossibility is also the reason why hives are a recurrent disease. Patients don’t pay attention to their environment, so the cause of the rash persists and makes the disease flare up again and again.
Here is where the diary comes in. It doesn’t have to be a detailed account of your life that will take up too much of your time. As far as home remedies for hives go, a few entries in a notebook every day will suffice. Write down everything you eat every day, the clothes you wear and the fabrics they are made of and all the places you went through. You can also make a simple schematic sequence of all these things.
At the end of a month or so, look back on all your notes and try to figure out the recurring things. You will discover one item of clothing, one place you went to or one type of food you’ve repeatedly been including in your schedule more than others. If that item can be the cause of an allergy, then it probably is. For example, if you go through the park every day on your way to work, you might not even notice or think about it anymore. But that is, probably, what is causing your hives, as you might be allergic to pollen.
A diary will help bring to life things so mundane you do not see, such as the clothes you wear or your neighbor’s cat with which you play every day.
Probably the simplest treatment when it comes to home remedies for hives, cold water is available everywhere. Take a cool shower or soak a washcloth in cold water and apply it to your sore areas.
The science behind this says that the cold water shrinks the blood vessels as much as possible, which, in turn, doesn’t allow them to release any more histamine. In laymen’s terms, no more histamine means no more hives. To relieve your itching as well, add a couple of handfuls of finely –ground oatmeal to the bath.
Here are two things you need to be aware of in regards to this treatment. First of all, before applying cold water in any form to your skin, make sure you don’t have the type of hives produced by the cold itself. Secondly, be careful when stepping out of the bathtub, because the ground oatmeal will turn slippery after sitting in water so long.
Here are a few excellent ingredients to make a paste out of and smear all over you red and itchy zones. The best part is that you, probably, already have all these ingredients in your kitchen cabinet.
Pastes are not the only things you can dab onto your skin for fast and easy release from the torment that is urticaria. You can also try concoctions, such as the following.
Supplements make great home remedies for hives. You can try taking fish oil capsules, for example. You need to take 1000 milligrams three times a day for them to start working and relieve your ailments. They are chock-full of healthy fatty acids, such as omega-3, also found in salmon, which have anti-inflammatory characteristics. Apart from salmon, you may also eat albacore tuna and bluefish. They too are rich in omega-3 fatty acids which will help reduce the rash and redness.
Apart from fish oil, you can also try nettle capsules. Herbalists swear by these tablets, and they use them to replace antihistamine medication. If you decide on this course of treatment, you will need to take 400-milligram capsules six times a day.
Nettle can also be introduced into your system fresh. This means you can go out and buy or even pick yourself a few plants and boil or steam them. You can consume them on their own or as a garnish to main courses, instead of your regular garden salad.
Nettles grow absolutely anywhere, especially around human settlements, because they thrive in the fertile soils produced by human garbage and waste. This is why they’re a great indicator of where human settlements used to be. However, be careful not to pick nettles that grow on the side of the roads. They have been sprayed, most likely. Apart from that, they grew exposed to gasses from exhaust pipes and animals urinated on them, probably. Look for nettles in clean places, such as gardens.
Vitamin C boosts the immune system. It also acts as a natural antihistamine.Vitamin C aids in the treatment of allergies. Because it’s a powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory.High doses of intravenous vitamin C reduces allergy symptoms. Taking 2 grams of vitamin C daily can act as an antihistamine.Vitamins C supplements present in many fruits and vegetables.red bell peppersbroccolicantaloupe meloncauliflowercitrus fruitskiwifruitstrawberriestomatoes and tomato juicewinter squashVitamin C supplementsButterburButterbur is a plant extract from a shrub that grows in Asia, Europe, and some parts of North America. People often use butterbur to treat migraines and hay fever, also known as allergic rhinitis.Butterbur is better a placebo or as an active antihistamine medication for relieving allergy symptoms.Most people tolerate butterbur well, but it may cause side effects such as:breathing difficultiesdiarrheadrowsinessfatiguea headacheitchy eyesWatch for these side effects while taking Oral supplementation of bromelain it may cause adverse reactions in some people.change in menstruationdigestive upsetincreased heart ratePeople who are allergic to acidic fruits should not use bromelainProbioticsProbiotics are microorganisms which offer health benefits by helping the body maintain a healthy bacteria balance in the stomach.Probiotics boost a person’s immune system.Probiotics help the body fight off allergies.QuercetinQuercetin is an antioxidant flavonoid present in many plants also foods. By adding quercetin to the diet, it may help to relieve allergy symptoms.Quercetin can have anti-allergic and antihistamine properties.Quercetin can reduce respiratory effects of allergies by lowering airway inflammation.Quercetin is present in many foods and herbs such as:applesberriesblack teabroccoligrapesGinkgo bilobagreen teapeppersred onionsred wineSupplements of quercetin will work better in treatment.Because foods contain significantly lower levels of flavonoid.
It’s a known thing that stress can either cause or worsen hives. Therefore, removing this important factor will help prevent further outbreaks of the disease or cure it. The remedy calls for you to try and master one or more of the following relaxation techniques, such as yoga, meditation or progressive relaxation.
There is no need for you to join a class or get a private tutor if you don’t feel like it. There are great tutorials online, free of charge, that teach you simple things, such as how to empty your mind of the daily worries and problems, how to breathe, and how to simply sit back, relax, and enjoy your life and the people and things in it. Not only will these techniques help with your hives to a great extent, but they will also improve your general well-being, your relationship with yourself and with those who surround you.
It’s difficult to link a particular factor to what causes hives. Luckily for all of us, it’s not difficult to treat these ailments, especially if you follow these astounding home remedies for hives we have listed here for you.
