[pct-l] Poison Oak

[dsaufley at sprynet.com (dsaufley@sprynet.com)]

Jeff came down with a good case after bushwacking through the local hills on one of his cross-crountry runs.  We were advised to get him to the doctor right away.  I don't remember the medications he was given (it was something taken orally as well as topically), but I do remember the doctor's advice -- if you get PO, you want to get on the medications immediately -- it cuts down significantly on the duration and severity of the outbreak.  

Unfortunately, me poor mum got the dreaded rash in the least desirable of places while heeding nature's call in the woods.  Back then, there were no medications other than calamine.  It's part of our family lore now, but it took a long time for her to laugh about it.   So, be careful out there! 

-=Donna Saufley=-

-----Original Message-----
From: Wayne Kraft <waynekraft@verizon.net>
Sent: Mar 2, 2005 10:15 PM
To: pct-l@mailman.backcountry.net
Subject: [pct-l] Poison Oak

This stuff puzzles me.  I spent my entire childhood crawling through it,  cutting the bushes and stacking it in piles to burn.  Burning it and breathing the smoke. I never got a rash or any other reaction. My father,working beside me, had it all the time. Forty years later I went into a little wooded area near my home looking for my son, Alex.  I didn't find Alex, but I did find Charley, the neighbor kid.  He and Alex used to hang out in these woods a lot.  Charley told me Alex was there, but left already.  On the way out of the woods I encountered Charley's mom (a doctor) looking for Charley.  I directed her to Charley's hiding spot.  In a couple of days Alex, Charley, Charley's mom and I all came down with horrible poison oak outbreaks. None of us had ever had reactions in the past.   I was off work for a couple of weeks and it really put a dent in the kids' summer.  I have tried to be careful since, but I know I must have had some contact with the stuff since then, and I haven't had a single outbreak in the last several years and neither has Alex. Don't know about Charley and his mom.  If you google "poison oak" you'll find  a wealth of information.  The experts say that repeated exposure has a cumulative effect, that initial exposure may not cause a reaction, but repeated exposures may.  

Apparently Zanfel works for some people and has no effect at all on others. The manufacturer  does not make a money back guarentee and seems to have lots of explanation why it might not be working.  www.zanfel.com  

It takes only a microscopic amount of the offending urishiol oil to cause a rash.  The oil rapidly binds with the skin. If you can wash it off within 15 minutes of exposure, theres a chance of preventing an outbreak.  Tecnu is a soap that is allegedly more effective than ordinary soap in getting the oil off your skin.  So, if you realize you've been exposed all you need to do is duck into one of those shower stalls they've installed every quarter mile or so along the PCT and get washed off. Zanfel claims to be able to remove urishiol that has already bonded to the skin.  Wonder what else it does?

Wayne Kraft
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