Subject: Poison Ivy News Group?

From: rodrigt <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 31 Jul 1996 05:52:44 -0400

Start Poison Ivy News Group?

Does anyone reading this know how to start a new User group 
to focus on poison ivy?  This is a running thread in ten current
News Groups (see above cc-list).  Sure seems like poison ivy
is a common concern to many people, in various News Groups!

Previously thinking of myself immune, I’ve been humbled and write 
this while quite incapacitated by poison ivy!  As I’m crawling the 
walls with my new found source of unrelenting itching, I first 
thought of how burn victims must feel.  Then I reached out to
the WWW (InfoSeek & AltaVista) and NewsGroups (DejaNews)
for information on poison ivy.  My new found wisdom is described
below.

Knowing that a poison ivy reaction is like the common cold, I was
aware no magical cure existed - It "needs to run it’s course…."
Much of the information I found was akin to "abstention WAS the 
best way to have avoided the pregnancy"!  My priority is, now that 
I’ve got the poison ivy reaction, what can I do to stop the itch? Next,
what can I do differently "next time", followed with specific advice
on how to I kill the damn stuff.  Immunizations would be a plus.

For relieving itching symptoms, I’ve been disappointed in the lack 
of information available!  I was hoping for easy-over-the-counter
topical skin anesthetic capable of soothing a wounded elephant; no 
such luck.  My third pharmacist was correct in that Lanacane 
(Benzocaine 6%) was better than Hydrocortisone. The later was 
described by someone as "attempting to put out a forest fire by 
pissing on it" - I agree.  Possibly the best advice I read about for 
treating symptoms came from [email-masked] ( Jennifer Boggess): 
She reminded me of the curative powers of the aloe plant.  With 
such plant in my household, I promptly severed a leaf and began 
application.  Being an engineer, I wanted to do an experiment and
used it only on half of my afflicted areas (including my nose and
one ear!) Three hours later it is perhaps too soon to tell, but there 
may be a favorable case to be made for an aloe plant Vs Lanacane!
Another interesting  possibility is bathing in manganese sulfate
solution, as described in "Taking the itch out of poison ivy":
http://www.derm-infonet.com/comm/Nov95/terezakis.html

Advice for next-best from abstention to poison ivy seems to be 
IMMEDIATE treatment.  In the wild: "jewel weed", which appears in 
the vicinity of poison ivy, gets a lot of consensus - I have no data.  
Upon contamination from poison ivy, my Doctor and what I’ve 
read seem to concur: Upon exposure, you have a few minutes (3 to 10)
to wash it off!  Thereafter you have a delayed effect equivalent 
to a chemical burn.  Contamination will not stop until you wash all 
contaminated body parts, clothing and equipment.  (Views on appropriate 
washing differ, i.e. soap Vs which soap/no soap, etc.)

For general information I found these two web sites most useful:
Common myths about poison ivy, etc:
                   http:/www.derm-infonet.com/PoisonIvy.html
Info: http://www.family.internet.com/peds/scr/000027sc.htm#FIRST AID:

For getting rid of poison ivy I found three sources to offer the most 
meaningful thoughts on which chemicals to use (Roundup, etc):
Univ. of Georgia:  http://www.ces.uga.edu/cobb/ivy.html
Mich. State Univ.:  http://www.msue.msu.edu/msue/imp/moduf/07189502.html
News Group input: Gasoline works great, why use other worse/expensive
chemicals?

Looking forward to your comments and wisdom, happy scratching and best
regards,

Tom Rodriguez ([email-masked])

---

From: Ron Esposito <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 31 Jul 1996 19:19:18 -0700

> Tom Rodriguez ([email-masked])

Some additional info and relief. The irritant in poison ivy is an oil, 
common hand soap is not adequate for removal. After possible exposure, 
the best soap is one that is fomulated to cut grease, such as dishwashing 
soap.

For temporiry relief, hold the affected area under as hot of water you 
can stand until the iching stops. This opens the pores and flushes out 
the histamines. This can releave the iching for up to a few hours.

Ron Esposito

---

From: Peter Hernes <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 1 Aug 1996 12:57:14 -0700

I spent a summer in Woods Hole, MA in 1986 and we used to play soccer in a
field surrounded by poison ivy.  I'm very susceptible to poison ivy
rashes.  However, someone suggested to me that Jewel Weed can be used as
a cure.  She brought me some foliage (the flowers were orange, but that's
all I remember), I steeped it, and used the liquid on the rashes.  They
disappeared overnight.  Anybody know anything more about Jewel Weed?  I
seem to recall that it grew near water.  Please e-mail me directly as I
don't have time to monitor these newsgroups.  Thanks!

Peter Hernes

---

From: [email-masked] (Suzan)
Date: Thu, 01 Aug 1996 23:01:13 -0500

In article
<[email-masked]>, Peter
Hernes <[email-masked]> wrote:

||I spent a summer in Woods Hole, MA in 1986 and we used to play soccer in a
||field surrounded by poison ivy.  I'm very susceptible to poison ivy
||rashes.  However, someone suggested to me that Jewel Weed can be used as
||a cure. 

Jewel weed tend to grow next to stinging nettles as well for which it also
acts as an antedote.

Suzan

*************************************************
"Live never to be ashamed if anything you do 
or say is published around the world...
even if what is published is not true." 
Richard Bach
************************************************

---

From: [email-masked] (Lee Rudolph)
Date: 1 Aug 1996 17:24:44 -0400

Peter Hernes <[email-masked]> posted the following
to misc.health.alternative, sci.bio.botany, misc.survivalism, and
alt.folklore.urban.  Guess which group it's least suitable to?

>don't have time to monitor these newsgroups.  Thanks!

His penultimate sentence suggests that he's a deliberately provocative
wanker (and in any case that he's a boor).  In any case: jewel weed
is a form of impatiens, and impatience is what readers of AFU are
beginning to feel about this thread.  Followup to whichever group
in the Newsgroups: header you please, but don't followup in AFU.
Thanks!! 

Lee Rudolph

---

From: [email-masked] (MMedi13720)
Date: 1 Aug 1996 23:56:35 -0400

In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] (Shawn
Bodmann) writes:

>There's also corticosteroid ointments available by prescription.
>	Anyone allergic to poison ivy should stock up on it as much
>	as they can (like ask for lots of ointment when you go see
>	your doctor) to put in your packs.

Hydrocortizone, anyone? No prescription required (I've got a tube in my
first-aid kit in the truck), not all that expensive, and it works
reasonably well.

Note about steroids-we used some on my cousin's dog to treat a few hot
spots. The five-pound Shih Tzu bulked up to nine pounds and became fairly
aggressive. These drugs are not something you want to go wild with, IMHO.

Mike S. Medintz, |"I hunt, therefore I am. 
                          | We harvest the land, taking the fallen lamb"
http://falcon.cc.ukans.edu/~medintz      -Metallica (Of Wolf and Man)

---

From: [email-masked] (Robert Harris Stoertz)
Date: Thu, 01 Aug 1996 18:25:17 GMT

>Start Poison Ivy News Group?

How about a mosquito news group, too?
The only real relief I've ever gotten for poison ivy (and I've had
some pretty bad cases!) is hot water. I had noticed that it helped,
and the doctor suggested it, too. Just stick the effected areas under
the hottest water you can stand. You may end up with a little bit of a
burn, but the relief lasts a couple of hours. It's kind of weird,
standing in the steaming shower with the itching and the heat so bad
you can hardly stand it (the heat makes the itch worse at first), yet
somehow the heat is such a relief that you can hardly force yourself
to get out from under the water. You'll know when to get out,
though---as soon as the almost convulsive itching suddenly dies down
and you notice mainly just the heat, get out before you get cooked!

I had P.I. all over my body once---really bad. I never saw the stuff,
but I think I was pulling up the roots in a new garden bed, with my
brothers and sisters. Everytime someone came upon a tough root, they
called me over. I had to go home like that from Martha's Vineyard,
Massachusetts to Santa Barbara, California. Imagine that day from
hell---car, ferry, a long bus ride to Boston, plane (with a
change-over) to Los Angeles, then another long bus ride, and a taxi.
All with such a hideous rash that I felt like a leper! Imagine being
jammed in next to someone on the airplane, and they're all oozing and
flaking and sweating. When I finally got home late at night, I turned
right around and went to the emergency room, where all they could do
was give me a shot of something.

But, on a different occassion, I crashed my motorcycle into an
extensive and lush patch of poison ivy in Virginia. It was about 5
feet high. I went in head first, and my shirt was torn completely open
as I went. I landed on my bare chest and stomach, right in the middle
of the poison ivy. I figured I was done for, but all I got was a
little spot of rash the size of a dime on my wrist. And I had no
injuries at all, because going into the stuff was like landing on a
mattress. Maybe it saved my life!

So now I'm real careful about the stuff. It's too unpredictable.
Hope you feel better by now. The reason there's no newsgroup is
because by the time someone gets worked up enough to do something,
they have recovered from it and then they don't even want to talk
about it any more!

Regards, Robert

---

From: [email-masked] (Shawn Bodmann)
Date: 1 Aug 1996 20:16:57 GMT

rodrigt ([email-masked]) wrote:
: Start Poison Ivy News Group?

: Does anyone reading this know how to start a new User group 
: to focus on poison ivy?  This is a running thread in ten current
: News Groups (see above cc-list).  Sure seems like poison ivy
: is a common concern to many people, in various News Groups!

	I'd be interested.  I get a bad case everytime I head
	into the woods... :(

: Knowing that a poison ivy reaction is like the common cold, I was
: aware no magical cure existed - It "needs to run its course."

	Actually, the poison ivy reaction is an allergic reaction.
	While avoidance _is_ the best option, there is something
	you can take that wipes the stuff out in a couple of days.
	Corticosteroids.  You'll need a prescription, and you'll
	probably get a 10-14 day dosage, but it's not too expensive
	if you get generic brand.

	The ointments are much preferred to the oral corticosteroids.
	Doctors don't know exactly how they work, which is bad enough,
	but they take out your whole immune system while you're on
	them.  They knock out your immune response.  For the short
	times you'd be on them for a severe case once every couple
	of years, that's probably not a big deal, but extended 
	dosages can permantly damage your immune system.

	You can also get corticosteroids in a shot, though I haven't
	ever gotten one.  I got real close when I had mono -
	my throat was almost swollen shut...ouch!!  It would have
	to be pretty severe for you to get one though...I get PI
	worse than anyone else I know.

: Much of the information I found was akin to "abstention WAS the 
: best way to have avoided the pregnancy"!  My priority is, now that 
: Ive got the poison ivy reaction, what can I do to stop the itch? Next,
: what can I do differently "next time", followed with specific advice
: on how to I kill the damn stuff.  Immunizations would be a plus.

	I have yet to find a way to get rid of the itch for any
	duration longer than a half hour.  The best thing is to
	learn how to ignore it.  When you get as much practice as
	me, it starts to get pretty easy.

	The itching is caused by hystemines being released by the
	enflamed cells.  Taking an anti hystemine might help, but
	I've never found over the counter strength stuff to dent
	the itch.  Taking a shower and running very hot water on
	the infected area offers temporary relief.  The heat makes
	the cells release their hystemines, which makes the itch
	increase at first, but after long enough, the cells use up
	all their stores of hystemines and it takes them some time
	to build any more (only 30 minutes or so for me) so the itching
	stops for a while.  Be careful not to damage the skin any more
	than it is though!

	As far as "next time," there's a couple of great new products
	out.  I've seen them at REI and my drugstore and grocery store,
	so you shouldn't have any problem finding them.  I forget the
	brand names, but I've seen at least two different brands of this
	stuff.  There's a poison-ivy-guard ointment, and a poison-ivy-
	oil-soap.  The ivy guard is supposed to repel the oil - keep it
	off your skin.  I've used it once, and didn't get PI that time,
	but that's inconclusive cause there was another guy in the party
	as susceptible as me who didn't get any either.  It went on a
	lot like elmer's white glue.  After I rubbed it in, I could tell
	it was there, but after I started running around a little I forgot
	about it.  The soap isn't anything unusual.  It's supposed to be
	specially formulated to dissolve PI oils and the guard stuff.  I
	buy the two in sets.  I'd also recommend putting some of this stuff
	in packs.

	Leave as little exposed skin as possible.  Sure it's hot, but I'd
	rather sweat a little than get PI.  Wear long sleeves.
	Wear long pants, and tape your boots to them, or tape them closed.
	Wash all clothes 3 times with lots of soap after you suspect they've
	been infected. 

	There's other things you can do if you suspect you've been infected.
	Take a shower as soon as possible!  Wash everywhere at least 3 times,
	and lather very well.  I also use a head to toe technique so any
	runoff oil mixed in with the soap and water gets soaped up rather
	than sitting on my skin.  Soap like lava that's designed to get
	off motor oil and engine grime is a good idea to use.  That stuff
	breaks down oil like you wouldn't believe.

	Learn to spot the stuff and avoid it like the plague!

: IMMEDIATE treatment.  In the wild: "jewel weed", which appears in 
: the vicinity of poison ivy, gets a lot of consensus - I have no data.  

	I'd be careful about this.  If you've got the oil on you,
	you want to get it off.  I'd at least wash up the area you
	suspect before I put jewel weed on it...

: Upon contamination from poison ivy, my Doctor and what Ive 
: read seem to concur: Upon exposure, you have a few minutes (3 to 10)
: to wash it off!  Thereafter you have a delayed effect equivalent 
: to a chemical burn.  Contamination will not stop until you wash all 
: contaminated body parts, clothing and equipment.  (Views on appropriate 
: washing differ, i.e. soap Vs which soap/no soap, etc.)

	You definitely need soap, preferably a grease cutting soap.
	That stuff does not come off with water alone.  Wash everything
	at least three times.

: For general information I found these two web sites most useful:
: Common myths about poison ivy, etc:
:                    http:/www.derm-infonet.com/PoisonIvy.html
: Info: http://www.family.internet.com/peds/scr/000027sc.htm#FIRST AID:

: For getting rid of poison ivy I found three sources to offer the most 
: meaningful thoughts on which chemicals to use (Roundup, etc):
: Univ. of Georgia:  http://www.ces.uga.edu/cobb/ivy.html
: Mich. State Univ.:  http://www.msue.msu.edu/msue/imp/moduf/07189502.html
: News Group input: Gasoline works great, why use other worse/expensive
: chemicals?

	We used to pour old motor oil on PI in the backyard and it
	didn't phase it.  I think Agent Orange is the power level
	of herbicide you need.  I also wouldn't burn it unless you're
	upwind - PI in your lungs would SUCK!

	However petroleum products put on plants is going to find its
	way into the water supply, so you should avoid using them this
	way.

: Looking forward to your comments and wisdom, happy scratching and best
: regards,

: Tom Rodriguez ([email-masked])

Happy itching,

shawn

From  Sat Aug  3 10:26:53 EDT 1996
Article: 2717 of sci.bio.botany
Path: newz.oit.unc.edu!news_server.cs.unc.edu!news-server.ncren.net!interpath!news.sprintlink.net!news-fw-22.sprintlink.net!news.sgi.com!news-res.gsl.net!news.gsl.net!news.mathworks.com!hookup!news.nstn.ca!bignews.cycor.ca!usenet
From: (BIG cross-post! Don't Reply. RHS)
Newsgroups: misc.consumers.house,rec.gardens,misc.kids.pregnancy,misc.health.alternative,sci.bio.botany,alt,skincare,alt.folklore.urban,misc.survivalism,rec.backcountry,alt.cuddle
Subject: Re: Poison Ivy News Group?
Date: Fri, 02 Aug 1996 14:46:51 GMT
Organization: Cycor Communications Inc., Coast to Coast Internet Services
Lines: 2
Message-ID: <[email-masked]>
References: <[email-masked]>
NNTP-Posting-Host: pet-as25.microvar.com
X-Newsreader: Forte Free Agent 1.0.82
Xref: newz.oit.unc.edu misc.consumers.house:127632 rec.gardens:144037 misc.kids.pregnancy:84507 misc.health.alternative:79920 sci.bio.botany:2717 alt:3160 alt.folklore.urban:289660 misc.survivalism:28059 rec.backcountry:133323 alt.cuddle:57205

I replied unwittingly. Sorry. Robert Harris Stoertz

---

From: [email-masked] (Kirk Kerekes)
Date: Fri, 02 Aug 1996 18:25:22 -0500

In article

 - I spent a summer in Woods Hole, MA in 1986 and we used to play soccer in a
 - field surrounded by poison ivy.  I'm very susceptible to poison ivy
 - rashes.  However, someone suggested to me that Jewel Weed can be used as
 - a cure.  She brought me some foliage (the flowers were orange, but that's
 - all I remember), I steeped it, and used the liquid on the rashes.  They
 - disappeared overnight.  Anybody know anything more about Jewel Weed?  I
 - seem to recall that it grew near water.  Please e-mail me directly as I
 - don't have time to monitor these newsgroups.  Thanks!

Jewel Weed: Impatiens capensis 

A search of Alta Vista with the key [jewel;weed] results in 28 hits,
including two with images of several forms of "jewel weed".

I'd tell you more, but I don't have time to do your research.

-- 
Kirk Kerekes
------------------------
___  ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ___ _ ____ _  _ 
|__] |___ |__/ |___ |___ |     |  | |  | |\ | 
|    |___ |  \ |    |___ |___  |  | |__| | \| 
                   is Not an Available Option
-----------------------------------------------------------

---

From: "Charles Wm. Dimmick" <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 14:28:29 -0700

Tom E. wrote:

> Whoa!!! If you have a possibility of an allergic reaction to poision
> ivy and eat some, you'll get it inside and can cause some really bad
> reactions. This from Dr. Crampton to me way back in the 1960's when I
> got a really bad case of poision ivy. Don't eat the stuff!!!! It's one
> of those urban legands things.

While I would not encourage anyone to eat poison ivy, I took the Ewell
Gibbons cure about 20 years ago (one dormant bud a day for two weeks in
the middle of the winter) and have not been sensitive to poison ivy since
then except for one small patch on the inside of my right wrist. So for
me it worked.

> If you are looking for a "natural" remedy, use the juice from a small
> wild flowyer called a "touch-me-not." It has small orange flowyers and
> grows in the same area as poision ivy. In the late summer or early
> fall it produces seed pods which pop when they are touched. Hence, the
> name. Anyhow, the juice from the plant does relieve the irritation
> caused by poision ivy.

Another name for this plant is jewel weed. It belongs to the genus
_Impatiens_ .  Yes, it works. It is what I formerly used for poison ivy
rash before taking the cure.  

Charles Wm. Dimmick  
> To dry up the plisters, use Chlorox bleach.
> 
> just don't eat the stuff!!!! please
> 
> Regards,
> Tom
> --------------------------------------
> 
> "If ye love wealth greater than liberty, the tranquility of servitude
> greater than the animating contest for freedom, go home from us in
> peace. We seek not your counsel, nor your arms. Crouch down and lick
> the hand that feeds you; and may posterity forget that ye were
> our countrymen"    SAMUEL ADAMS

---

From: [email-masked]
Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 17:22:01 -0500

> rash before taking the cure.

Jewel weed also has yellow flowers.

susan
pgh, pa

---

From: [email-masked] (Lehman)
Date: 21 Aug 1996 07:40:50 GMT

In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] says...

>I just learned that what I had thought was "poision ivy" all my life
>was really an allergy to dust, mold, and cat hair!!  I learned this
>after breaking out with the same rash I had always attributed to
>"poison ivy" after cleaning out a dusty part of my cellar.  I haven't
>been near poison ivy for several months and an allergist has confirmed
>it is *not* poison ivy. Anyone who develops "poison ivy" should think
>back on whether poison ivy really is the culprit.
>
>Now I have to figure out how to avoid this - could be difficult with
>cats around!  Do I need shots, or does someone know of a readily
>available antidote?
>Len.

-- 
One or two shots per cat is about right!  Depends on the caliber though.  
Before I get flamed it is JUST A JOKE!  I can sympathize with you some.  My 
wife loves cats and I am allergic to them.  We compromise and only have one 
and it is NEVER allowed in the bedroom.  At least I can sleep without the 
cat allergies!
------------------------------------------
x-no-archive: yes
[email-masked]
Life Member NRA and Texas State Rifle Association

---

From: [email-masked](Leonard M. Keane)
Date: 22 Aug 1996 17:16:22 GMT

>>cats around!  Do I need shots, or does someone know of a readily
Nah!  She won't let me do that!  I have been isolating myself as much
as posssible from the nice little critters, their hair, dust, etc. and
it IS going away, after about 1-1/2 weeks.
Len.

---

From: [email-masked] (Larry Margolis)
Date: 23 Aug 1996 06:01:56 GMT

In <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] (Mark Zen) writes:
>Previously Rusty Mase [[email-masked]] wrote this:
>:> On 14 Aug 1996 00:38:52 -0400, [email-masked] (MMedi13720) wrote:
>
>:> >In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] (Ted Borck)
>:> >writes:
>:> >>I've read that the American Indians would eat a *very*small* poison ivy
>:> >>leaf, to immunize themselves, when the poison ivy first started re-growing
>:> >>in the early spring.
>
>:> >Where did you read that?
>
>:> As I recall, Euel Gibbons but I am not sure whether in one of his
>:> books or whether on TV.

He mentions it in is book Stalking the Wild Asparagus; says it
worked for him.

(Since it's not an urban legend, a.f.u removed from followups.)

--
Larry Margolis, [email-masked]

---

From: [email-masked] (Tanya Tapingkae)
Date: 26 Aug 1996 10:16:35 GMT

Leonard M. Keane ([email-masked]) wrote:
: In <[email-masked]> [email-masked] (Lehman) writes: 
: >
: >In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked]
: says...
: >>
: >
: >>I just learned that what I had thought was "poision ivy" all my life
: >>was really an allergy to dust, mold, and cat hair!!  I learned this
: >>after breaking out with the same rash I had always attributed to
: >>"poison ivy" after cleaning out a dusty part of my cellar.  I haven't
: >>been near poison ivy for several months and an allergist has
: confirmed
: >>it is *not* poison ivy. Anyone who develops "poison ivy" should think
: >>back on whether poison ivy really is the culprit.
: >>
: >>Now I have to figure out how to avoid this - could be difficult with
: >>cats around!  Do I need shots, or does someone know of a readily
: >>available antidote?
: >>Len.
: >
: >-- 
: >One or two shots per cat is about right!  Depends on the caliber
: though.  
: >Before I get flamed it is JUST A JOKE!  I can sympathize with you
: some.  My 
: >wife loves cats and I am allergic to them.  We compromise and only
: have one 
: >and it is NEVER allowed in the bedroom.  At least I can sleep without
: the 
: >cat allergies!
: >------------------------------------------
: >x-no-archive: yes
: >[email-masked]
: >Life Member NRA and Texas State Rifle Association
: >
: Nah!  She won't let me do that!  I have been isolating myself as much
: as posssible from the nice little critters, their hair, dust, etc. and
: it IS going away, after about 1-1/2 weeks.
: Len.

---

From: [email-masked] (Ron Snow)
Date: Sat, 31 Aug 1996 14:40:09 GMT

[email-masked] (Larry Margolis) wrote:

>>:> >I remember my doctor telling me this as I was suffering through yet another poison ivy mess one summer.  However, he also mentioned that some Indians would apparently take too much, their throats would swell up, and they would die.  So, before  you consider this alternative, think it over.  BTW, I've been off this post for several weeks, but I remember someone mentioning tablets for desensitizing oneself from poison ivy---I thnk It was called "Aqua Ivy".  I took this myself, and then could never find it again---I always wondered, since it may have been along the lines of eating a small bit of ivy (only more dose controlled), if it was pulled because somebody got seriously ill from it.

---

From: [email-masked](X Marks The Spot)
Date: 31 Aug 1996 21:13:12 GMT

Just announced yesterday:  Within a year a product will be available,
over the counter, that works much like sunscreen- only for poison ivy,
sumac,etc.  I have no other details.  Does anyone else?

---

From: nrichard <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 01 Sep 1996 09:05:12 -0700

I have seen several tv news blurbs about a prerscription version that is 
available now - which I am sure is very expensive.  When an over the 
counter version comes out, it probably will be "water-downed" and not 
nearly as effective.  But we can always hope.

---

From: [email-masked] (David Hinds)
Date: 2 Sep 1996 04:52:44 GMT

nrichard ([email-masked]) wrote:
: I have seen several tv news blurbs about a prerscription version that is 
: available now - which I am sure is very expensive.  When an over the 
: counter version comes out, it probably will be "water-downed" and not 
: nearly as effective.  But we can always hope.

Perscription version?  Maybe that's something else.  The "active"
component of the new spray is an inert material that is used as
filler in many cosmetics and deodorants.  Some kind of clay, that
absorbs the poison oak/ivy oil.  So it should be cheap.

-- Dave Hinds

---

From: [email-masked](X Marks The Spot)
Date: 2 Sep 1996 21:47:21 GMT

Thanks for response.  The new product will be called Ivy Block.  It is
to be released in a few months.

---

From: [email-masked] (Tinan)
Date: Wed, 04 Sep 1996 18:19:15 GMT

>sumac,etc.  I have no other details.  Does anyone else?

Don't know about that stuff, but this summer I found a great herbal
medicine for Poisin Ivy and bug bites, and cuts.

It is called  Wounded Warrier, and is from some company in Boone,
North Carolina.  It is sld by The Mast General Store in Boone. 

This stuff works great.... and lasts a long time.

It costs about $8.95 for a 4 oz bottle.  We have used it alot since we
purchased it, but the stuff really lasts a long time and we haven't
put a dent in the bottle yet.

Good luck and God Bless,
Tinpan

---

From: Rork Kuick <[email-masked]>
Date: 6 Sep 1996 19:23:16 GMT

In article <[email-masked]> thrasher,  writes:
> I'm a pharmacist and am not aware of such. However I do know of an
excellent 
> product called Rhus Tox that is a homeopathic remedy for poison ivy.
What it
> does is dose you with a minutely small (nobody said I wuz great in
english)
> amount of the poison ivy oil with the result that your body doesn't
recognize it
> as being a harmful substance, hence it reverses its allergic response. 

I'd like the low down.  I get two stories here in Michigan.  First is
that a person
acquires resistance via exposure.  I seem to become more resistant during
the 
year, and notice that folks who are rarely exposed have worse reactions. 
Also
DNR rangers here used to ingest ever increasing doses to acquire
resistance.
Second story is that a person will become sensitized (as for epoxies) by
repeated
exposures - that I may one day expect horrible reactions due to my near
constant
exposure to poison ivy.   I wonder if this is just a "sympathetic theory"
based 
on analogy to allegic reactions though.  Additional non-anecdotes
appreciated.

---

From: [email-masked] (Joyce)
Date: 7 Sep 1996 20:30:34 GMT

IN THE MEANTIME, there is a plant called jewel-weed, that grows where poison ivy
grows.  It is about 1-3 feet high, with leaves sort of like goosfoot, and it 
has little orange, snapdragon-like flowers. The stems are very watery, and 
easily crushed.  Rubbing this liquid all over before possible exposure, or 
and ESPECIALLY after, even the most sensitive folks won't get it. It is a 
great antidote used by downstate Illinois farmers.

[email-masked]
HERB HOMEPAGE at http://www.mcs.net/~joyce

>on analogy to allegic reactions though.  Additional non-anecdotes

From Scott Brogan Sat Sep 14 11:33:37 EDT 1996
Article: 2986 of sci.bio.botany
Path: newz.oit.unc.edu!news_server.cs.unc.edu!news-server.ncren.net!newsgate.duke.edu!agate!howland.erols.net!www.nntp.primenet.com!nntp.primenet.com!news.sgi.com!enews.sgi.com!super.zippo.com!zdc!zippo!drn
From: Scott Brogan
Newsgroups: sci.bio.botany
Subject: Seed germination
Date: 7 Sep 1996 19:53:01 -0700
Organization: Laboratório de Biofisica, UnB, Brasília, D.F., Brasil
Lines: 3
Message-ID: <[email-masked]>
NNTP-Posting-Host: maq24.tba.com.br

Anyone know anything (or have any references) about how the metabolism of a
seed changes when it germinates? I´m not a botanist but I´m interested in
this, as there may be analogies to the transition from dormancy in animals.

---

From: Brenda Anna <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 08 Sep 1996 00:27:25 -0700

> HERB HOMEPAGE at http://www.mcs.net/~joyce

That's very interesting! I"ve only heard of using jewelweed for nettle 
stings. Thanks for the tip! :)

---

From: cyli <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 08 Sep 1996 03:23:31 -0700

Nettleweed is no real problem.  If you leave it alone, it'll stop itching 
in about 20 minutes.  I've found it useful when playing Splattball.  
Nobody believes anyone'll hide in a nettle patch.  Until I stand up and 
shoot them.  If I don't have to stand, they'll be completely baffled for 
long enough for up to 3 shots (hand pumped gun.).

-- 
"If I die of curiosity, who will entertain you with naive questions?"
 
 I only answer my mail on an average of once every two months.  Be 
patient.

 http://www.visi.com/~cyli/

---

From: [email-masked] (Ed Melo)
Date: Mon, 09 Sep 96 02:36:39 GMT

>sumac,etc.  I have no other details.  Does anyone else?

I believe that what you are referring to is a series of products made by 
Tec Laboratories .  They have a brand name of "Oak and Ivy".  You can call 
TEC at 1-800-ITCHING for more info. 

They have three products 

1.  A pre-exposure skin shield like you described,
2.  A skin cleanser  to be used after possible contact and 
3.  A product for drying out the blisters if you already have them

I bought all of the products this summer.  As I remember they ran between 
$5 - $8 each.  I got them over the counter at the drugstore.  I can't vouch 
fully for them with my limited experience.  I am not overly suseptible to 
poison ivy, though I have gotten it at times, so it may be more a matter of 
luck rather than of these products that has prevented my getting any "PI" 
so far.  The really suseptible members of my family are too gun shy to put 
themselves in harm's way (weeding, gardening) even with these new products. 

Hope this helps

Ed Melo

---

From: [email-masked]. (bill paton)
Date: 14 Sep 1996 14:52:58 GMT

> >> as being a harmful substance, hence it reverses its allergic response. 

I have used Rhus Tox and all it does is take the itch away-which it does
extremely effectively. There is another naturopathic stuff which if you
take it beforehand it will keep you from getting it.

Believe me, I take Poison Ivy very seriously.

---

From: Rick Bowen <[email-masked]>
Date: Sat, 14 Sep 1996 23:23:49 -0500

> on analogy to allegic reactions though.  Additional non-anecdotes

  FWIW, IMHO anyone who says repeated exposure increases resistance is 
full of shit! I have had it four times this year BEFORE the 4th of July.
I have had it at least 3 times a year since I was in the Boy Scouts. 
I am 33 yrs. old and have had it at least 30 times in my short life. I 
have caught it as late as Deceember and January in St.Louis, Mo. with 
snow, (1 to 2 ft.), on the ground. 
  If someone wants to ingest it, be my guest. The oil that causes the 
reaction, doesn't care whether it is your hand, arm, leg, private parts, 
(yes, very painful), or the INSIDE of your mouth and 
throat/trachyea,(sp?). That can get very dangerous. I have developed a 
very healthy respect for PI.
Rick
-- 
An untrue statement, left unchallenged,
to be accepted as fact, is still a lie.
A lie repeated often enough, is still a lie.
Eat healthy, Exercise regularly, Die anyway.   
NRA & TSRA Life Member
TIP #1822

---

From: [email-masked] (Dan O'Brien)
Date: 14 Sep 1996 23:36:27 -0700

i think poson ivy exposure, and the severity of the symptoms depends on 
the particular person. I've been exposed several times, and have never 
gotten the rash...go figure, now that i've said that, i'll get exposed 
and get a nasty rash tomorrow...  :(

--dan--

---

From: "Bruno, Thomas A." <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 16 Sep 1996 05:47:24 +0100

The only product I have ever found marketed to PREVENT poison ivy is 
STOKOGARD, available over the counter, but you may have to ask your 
pharmacist to order it.

Its a cream you apply to your skin which may come into contact with 
poison ivy.

-- 
Thomas A. Bruno;  Champaign/Urbana, Illinois
Voice:217.328.6000; Fax 217.328.6765
Visit my web page at http://www.shout.net/~tombruno/

---

From: [email-masked] (Larry Margolis)
Date: 17 Sep 1996 04:12:27 GMT

In <[email-masked]>, Rick Bowen <[email-masked]> writes:
|Rork Kuick wrote:
|>
|> I'd like the low down.  I get two stories here in Michigan.  First is
|> that a person acquires resistance via exposure.  I seem to become more
|> resistant during the year, and notice that folks who are rarely exposed
|> have worse reactions.  Also DNR rangers here used to ingest ever
|> increasing doses to acquire resistance.  Second story is that a person
|> will become sensitized (as for epoxies) by repeated exposures - that I
|> may one day expect horrible reactions due to my near constant exposure
|> to poison ivy.  I wonder if this is just a "sympathetic theory" based
|> on analogy to allegic reactions though.  Additional non-anecdotes
|> appreciated.
|
|  FWIW, IMHO anyone who says repeated exposure increases resistance is
|full of shit! I have had it four times this year BEFORE the 4th of July.
|I have had it at least 3 times a year since I was in the Boy Scouts.

I think much more frequent exposure than that is necessary.  Our
surveyor, the guy who put in our pool, and the guy who took down
a few trees for us all told us that they had acquired immunity
>from  frequent exposure.  These are folks who are constantly being
exposed in the course of their day-to-day work.

---

From: [email-masked]
Date: Mon, 16 Sep 1996 13:36:05 -0700

I am deathly allergic to poison ivy - have to take steroids and such when 
I get it.  TECHNU makes a lotion that seems to work for me - it's at 
drugstores over the counter.  It can be put on before or after exposure.

---

From: Gina Lindley <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 17 Sep 1996 11:23:35 -0700

There are very few products on the market that work well to alleviate 
the symptoms of poison ivy.  Skin Biology is currently test marketing a 
product called Protect & Restore which help repair damaged skin caused  
by eczema, acne, minor burns, minor wounds, and poison ivy.  It is a 
natural copper peptone based product that is very different from most 
products on the market. Visit Skin Biology's website at 
http://www.skinbiology.com or call for more information (800) 405-1912.

---

From: [email-masked] (Tracy L. Gordon)
Date: 18 Sep 1996 20:37:26 GMT

In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] says...
>
> TECHNU makes a lotion that seems to work for me - it's at 
>drugstores over the counter.  

both of these products are used by our family.  A natural remedy when you run 
out is Jewel-weed, a tall sparsely-leafed plant that most often times grows 
right next to poison ivy.  

when smashed to a pulp and placed directly on the poison ivy (also oak and 
sumac) it has the same texture as an aloe plant and relieves poison within a 
matter of days.  

for the longest time i would acquire poison ivy from pulling the Jewelweed 
out of the garden and chucking it over the fence.  Then an herbalist clued me 
in.  

Best of luck,

Red Fox

---

From: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 19 Sep 1996 17:20:31 -0800

Can you describe Jewelweed more in detail, please?

In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] (Tracy

-- 
Katherine

"If you want to save the world and stuff, you've got to sing LOUD!"

---

From: Dwight Sipler <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 20 Sep 1996 08:00:34 -0400

> Can you describe Jewelweed more in detail, please?

Jewelweed is a moderately tall (2-4 feet) sparsely leaved plant that 
likes moist areas such as stream banks or drainage ditches. The stem is 
light green and weak (as I recall, it's hollow) so it breaks easily. It 
develops small (1/2 inch) yellow flowers in mid to late august. The 
flowers develop into seeds that are twisted together and which spring 
apart with some force when they develop sufficiently or when disturbed, 
>from  which comes another name for the plant, "touch-me-not".

---

From: [email-masked] (Les Jones)
Date: 20 Sep 1996 03:46:24 GMT

> > both of these products are used by our family.  A natural remedy when you 
> > run out is Jewel-weed, a tall sparsely-leafed plant that most often times 
> > grows right next to poison ivy.

The idea that poison ivy and jewel weed grow together is a new one on me.
It's also included in the rec.backcountry distilled wisdom panel on poison
ivy as an email from a reader. 

Though I have occasionally seen jewel weed along what I considered dry
trails, it normally grows in very moist areas with generous amounts of
sunlight, and is most often seen along streams. Poison ivy, on the other
hand, grows in a wide variety of forest habitats and seems to get by with
a standard ration of water and sunlight.

If I had to name a cohabitant of jewel weed, I'd be more likely to say
stinging nettle, another plant that grows in moist areas and along
streams. The one time I was on a trail overgrown with stinging nettle I
used jewel weed juice to ease the sting.

Granted, it's a big world, and what I've observed is only in my little
corner of it (Southern Appalachians). I'd be interested to know if anyone
has references or observations that link the habitats of jewel weed and
poison ivy.

-- 
          | The Good Times Virus: still a hoax after all these years |
Les Jones |     http://www.public.usit.net/lesjones/goodtimes.html   |

---

From: [email-masked] (Tracy L. Gordon)
Date: 20 Sep 1996 17:29:01 GMT

in response to alot of email requests for more info.... here are some cool 
sites:

http://www.mtnlaurel.com/mtherbs.html

and 

http://www.ncnatural.com/wildflower/obnoxious.html

We use many Native American remedies in our house, and have found it to be 
very effective on stinging nettles, etc. as well.  

If I recall correctly, (and i'm guessing here) references were also made to 
the use of Jewelweed in the Fox Fire series and in a book entitled "Delaware 
Indian Folk Medicine"

Not positive, but fairly sure...

Best of Luck,

Red Fox

---

From: [email-masked]
Date: Fri, 20 Sep 1996 13:22:30 UNDEFINED

>http://www.ncnatural.com/wildflower/obnoxious.html

Neither of these sites seems to work--and I slurped the URL's right out of 
your message and got Error 404--site not found-- for both.

Double check?
Monique Reed

---

From: [email-masked] (Robert Beer)
Date: 20 Sep 1996 20:04:51 GMT

In article <[email-masked]>,
>exposed in the course of their day-to-day work.

Allergies tend to get stronger with increased exposure.  Nobody reacts to 
poison ivy the first time they touch it; they have to be sensitized.  

I have heard of indians on the west coast ingesting small bits of it to 
increase resistance.  Evidently taking it internally is different, or the 
small amount?  My mom ate poison ivy as a kid (on a dare...she didn't get 
it on the first two dares, to roll in it and to rub it on herself).  When 
she ate it, she got it, everywhere, cost her a couple weeks in the 
hospital.  She's still allergic.  I think she ate quite a bit.

I know homeopathic people recommend taking honey saying that the pollen in 
it reduces sensitivity to pollen in the air.  This doesn't make a whole 
lot of sense to me, as pollen allergies tend to be to specific plants, and 
the pollen in honey comes from bee pollinated plants, not wind-pollinated 
plants that are the cause of most allergies.  And besides, it didn't work 
for me.  So I'm not going to rush out and eat any poison oak any time 
soon.

bob
-- 
 /========================================================================\
| Bob Beer         		      \   "A troubled mind                 |
| [email-masked]                \    is a troublemaker."           | 
| http://weber.u.washington.edu/~bbeer    \     - Edna St. Vincent Millay  |

---

From: [email-masked] (Suzan)
Date: Fri, 20 Sep 1996 21:02:33 -0500

In article <[email-masked]>, Dwight Sipler
<[email-masked]> wrote:

[email-masked] wrote:
||> 
||> Can you describe Jewelweed more in detail, please?
||> 
||
||
||Jewelweed is a moderately tall (2-4 feet) sparsely leaved plant that 
||likes moist areas such as stream banks or drainage ditches. 

It is also the antedote for stinging nettles which it usually grows along
side of in many places.

Suzan

---

From: [email-masked] (Cody Armstrong)
Date: Sat, 21 Sep 1996 12:16:19 GMT

Larry Margolis ([email-masked]) wrote:
: In <[email-masked]>, Rick Bowen <[email-masked]> writes:
: |Rork Kuick wrote:
: |>
: |> I'd like the low down.  I get two stories here in Michigan.  First is
: |> that a person acquires resistance via exposure.  

not so!

: |> have worse reactions.  Also DNR rangers here used to ingest ever
: |> increasing doses to acquire resistance. 

A dangerous myth!

 Second story is that a person
: |> will become sensitized (as for epoxies) by repeated exposures - that I
: |> may one day expect horrible reactions due to my near constant exposure
: |> to poison ivy.  

: I think much more frequent exposure than that is necessary.  Our
: surveyor, the guy who put in our pool, and the guy who took down
: a few trees for us all told us that they had acquired immunity
: from frequent exposure.  These are folks who are constantly being
: exposed in the course of their day-to-day work.

Don't believe 'em Larry, they's bin out in the sun too long!

There are 5 types of allergies, 2 important to know in the poison ivy 
discussion.

Type 1- increased/developed sensitivity to allergen.eg: poison ivy
Most people will be non-allergic but can become allergic with repeated 
contact with the allergen. 
I used to completely immune (non-allergic) to poison ivy. I could handle 
it and show this talent off to my friends! One summer I was shocked to 
discover that I had became allergic....been allergic to it ever since.

Taber's Medical dictionary says:
" The oily resin urushiol (found on the of the leaves of poison ivy, oak 
and sumac) may be a potent sensitizer since in many cases subsequent 
contacts produce increasingly severe reactions..." 

quote from a med. report  "...It is suggested that this adverse host 
response and multiple symptomatology develop after prolonged 
environmental exposure. Once such "sensitivity" has occurred, individuals 
become sensitive to multiple other environmental exposures..."

Type 2- increased/developed resistance to allergen. Poison ivy is not in 
this class however many allergens are. Using the body's ability to 
develop resistance to allergens is the method in use in allergy shot 
treatments. (Small doses of allergens are injected regularily to build up 
the body's immunity to them)

Types 3-5   real allergy doctors can best describe.

Bottom line...if you are allergic, don't try to build up your resistance 
to poison ivy by coming in contact with it. Don't eat it, don't burn it 
either (PI smoke can be harmful).

If you're not allergic, don't push your luck or you too may loose this 
talent!

Urushiol has a very long "shelf life " too. One year I got some of the 
poison ivy stuff on a back pack. I put the pack away for the winter and 
didn't use it again for 6 months...and when I did use it I a got poison ivy 
rash on my back! Since urushiol is easily removed with soap and water, 
whenever I come in contact with PI I wash everything immediately, specially 
boots. 

This is quite a long post already so I guess I shouldn't add to it by 
telling you the story 'bout the kids I took camping, who had to take a 
squat in the woods, who didn't have any T.P. so they used leaves...
maybe next time I'll tell y'all what happened.

Cody
--

---

From: [email-masked] (John Obrien)
Date: 23 Sep 1996 12:25:43 GMT

Suzan ([email-masked]) wrote:
: ||Jewelweed is a moderately tall (2-4 feet) sparsely leaved plant that 
: ||likes moist areas such as stream banks or drainage ditches. 

: It is also the antedote for stinging nettles which it usually grows along
: side of in many places.  : Suzan

I hadn't heard about that use of Jewelweed, but I have read that it is an
antidote for Poison Ivy, which it often grows close to.

--
   ,o888b,`?~~~~~                                           ~~~~~P',d888o,
 ,8888 888   ?~~~     John D. O'Brien  [email-masked]    ~~~P   888 8888,
 8888888P'    ~~~                                           ~~~     ?8888888
 888P'        ~~~     "When all the World recognizes        ~~~        `?888
 `88   O     d~~~       good as good, This in itself        ~~~b     O   88'
   `?._  _.o~~~~~       is Evil." Lao Tsu                   ~~~~~o._  _.P'

---

From: elfont <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 22 Sep 1996 08:37:43 -0400

HELP! I understand that this plant has laytex in its structure that
helps it survive on the beaches of the Great Lakes.  I'd like to know
where in the plant the laytex is located and how it helps the plant
survive.

Thanks much in advance - EE/[email-masked]

---

From: [email-masked] (QRA)
Date: 23 Sep 1996 16:06:16 -0400

Jewel Weed (impatiens pallida) is also called touch-me-not and is closely
related to Spotted Jewel weed (I. capensis) and Balsam (I. balsamina). 
Both species of Jewel weed enjoy relatively damp, well drained areas. 
Balsam is commononly cultivated.

---

From: [email-masked] (Crazy)
Date: Tue, 24 Sep 1996 00:09:38 GMT

[email-masked] (Robert Beer) wrote:

>>|full of shit! 

	As kids, we spent a lot of time in the backcountry. running in the
forest in shorts and whatever not. Poison ivy was a daily experience:
something unpleasant, but hardly viewed as dangerous, much less
tragic. You got burnt a little bit so you say "Ouch!" and you keep
running. Then you do exactly the same thing next day. Hospitals?? :-))
That's a new one for me. It was treated in the same manner as falling
down and loosing some skin on your knee, or something like that. When
a six years old would get in the bush and get in poision ivy, he'd be
running back to his momma, crying and carrying on. She'd look at him,
say something like: "You shoulda known better than running in the
bush. Be a man now and shut up! It won't kill you, you know." and
leave him with that. :-))
	We ate it too - on a regular basis. You pick it with gloves, of
course, and you boil it well. It is very tasty with rice, or as a
cream soup. I haven't heard anyone doing it in the States though.

				-= Ivan =-

---

From: [email-masked] (Tracy L. Gordon)
Date: 23 Sep 1996 21:41:46 GMT

In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] says...
>your message and got Error 404--site not found-- for both.

not sure why, both worked for me using Netscape.  there was oodles of others 
when i used Excite engine.  Maybe just a search would do...

Best of luck,

RedFox

---

From: DanielleTreadwell <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 23 Sep 1996 20:33:33 +0100

Greetings folks,
Correct URL for the NCNatural Poison Ivy page is
"http://NCNatural.com/wildflwr/obnxious.html".

There is also a photo of jewelweed on the page, as well as one of
stinging nettles. There are two varieties of jewelweed that I know of.
Impatiens capensis is an orange variety, Impatiens pallida is a yellow
variety. The flowers and general appearance are very similar except for
color.

We also have a Bulletin board set up which has had a lot of PI
discussion on it over the summer. The FDA has recently approved a
topical drug for prevention of PI. Should be ready by next summer.

---

From: [email-masked] (Shaun Patrick Darragh)
Date: Tue, 24 Sep 1996 02:41:19 GMT

>>>|  FWIW, IMHO anyone who says repeated exposure increases resistance is

Hey Robert,

	Sorry that you have trouble with poison ivy but, as with most allergic
reactions, peoples resistance varies and can increase, decrease, or
stay the same over one's lifetime.  Some people do report a decreasing
reaction over time.  Unfortunately this does not seem to be the case
for you.  Some folks like me are apparently lucky enough not to be
allergic at all....

Shaun 
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

If Bill Clinton were to walk across the Potomac tomorrow, right wingers would 
accuse him of refusing to bathe.....

"The way to see by Faith is to shut the eyes of Reason."
Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard 1758

---

From: "Ernest J. Klein" <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 23 Sep 1996 23:21:40 -0700

Crazy wrote:
>                                 -= Ivan =-From Traute Klein, the Bio-Gardener:
The Indians living by Lake Winnipeg in Manitoba have the only guaranteed 
cure for poison ivy which I know of and I have used it many times with 
complete overnight cure.  Dig some clay up in your garden, and we have 
lots of it in the prairies, or buy some at a craft supply store.  Spread 
a paste of wet clay it on the affected area.  Cover with plastic.  
Bandage.  If it's on your feet, just put the foot in a plastic bag and 
then in a sock.  If you do it right after the exposure, the blisters will 
disappear overnight.  If they return the next year, repeat the treatment. 
 The wet clay will also heal burns and draw out other poisons or 
infections.

---

From: "Steve Johnson" <[email-masked]>
Date: 24 Sep 1996 09:41:20 GMT

Ivan -

In my experience, poison ivy does not give an immediate, burning reaction. 
The
plant that has done that to me and my acquaintances is the burning nettle. 
For
me, my family and acquaintances who have had reactions to poison ivy (we
have
large amounts of poison ivy in the woods near our house), the reactions
start 
several hours to a day after contact.  They last up to several weeks.  I
have heard
that burning nettle can be cooked and eaten.  I bet that is what you have
eaten,
not poison ivy.

I have it on what I consider very reliable authority that burning or eating
poison ivy 
are very foolish; if it gets into your blood stream through inhalation or
ingestion, you 
can start breaking out everywhere, and have a much longer and more severe
reaction.
Hospitalization?  I can believe it.  Also, I have heard that repeated
exposure 
decreases resistance, so I agree with the original post from Robert Beer.

Round Up can be sprayed on poison ivy growing on the ground, with pretty
good
results.  Ortho sells a chemical equivalent.  For the stuff climbing up
tree trunks,
cut them off and paint brush killer on the stump.  We had some growing 20
feet
up in trees on the back of our yard, nice bright green, leaves 6" across,
pretty
berries hanging down.

If you are exposed, wash immediately and thoroughly with Fels Naptha soap. 
It
cuts the oils that cause the reaction.  An old technique that we have had
some
success with.  Once you have the reaction, about all you can do is *not*
wash
the area for at least a couple days, and use your favorite form of relief. 
Hope you
didn't use poison ivy for toilet paper!

All the above is just my opinion.  Go Vikings (4-0 after beating Green
Bay)!

Steve Johnson
A Minnesotan transplanted to Michigan

Crazy <[email-masked]> wrote in article
<[email-masked]>...

---

From: [email-masked] (Crazy)
Date: Tue, 24 Sep 1996 16:43:07 GMT

>The plant that has done that to me and my acquaintances is the burning nettle. 
>For me, my family and acquaintances who have had reactions to poison ivy (we
>have large amounts of poison ivy in the woods near our house), the reactions
>start  several hours to a day after contact.  They last up to several weeks.  I
>have heard that burning nettle can be cooked and eaten.  I bet that is what you have
>eaten, not poison ivy.

	Maybe so. I have read some of the posts on this and it doesn't look
like anything that I've experienced. So we're either just very
different people, either the poison ivy's potency varies from place to
place, either we're talking about different plants altogether.

				-= Ivan =-

---

From: [email-masked]
Date: Tue, 24 Sep 1996 10:58:01 -0700

Steve Johnson wrote:
> Poison ivy,sumac, oak, whatever - is slow and relentless.  I scraped my 
knee and was exposed at the same time.  A few days later I had the rash, 
and then my leg started to swell.  The rash grew into big blisters and my 
leg kept swelling.  I had to get a steroid shot and take a course of 
steroids to stop the immune response.  I've been exposed again since then 
 on my legs, and, since I got it into my bloodstream, it came up on my 
face, neck and back.  Once again I had to take steroids.  I haven't 
gotten it since but I have been around these plants.  Don't ever burn 
these plants as they can get into the respiratory tract via the little 
particles in the smoke.

---

From: [email-masked] (Steven J. Kroeger)
Date: Tue, 24 Sep 1996 16:39:36 GMT

In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] (Crazy) writes:
|> [email-masked] (Robert Beer) wrote:
|> 
|> >>|  FWIW, IMHO anyone who says repeated exposure increases resistance is
|> >>|full of shit! 
|> 
|> 	As kids, we spent a lot of time in the backcountry. running in the
|> forest in shorts and whatever not. Poison ivy was a daily experience:
|> something unpleasant, but hardly viewed as dangerous, much less
|> tragic. You got burnt a little bit so you say "Ouch!" and you keep
|> running. Then you do exactly the same thing next day. Hospitals?? :-))
|> That's a new one for me. It was treated in the same manner as falling
|> down and loosing some skin on your knee, or something like that. When
|> a six years old would get in the bush and get in poision ivy, he'd be
|> running back to his momma, crying and carrying on. She'd look at him,
|> say something like: "You shoulda known better than running in the
|> bush. Be a man now and shut up! It won't kill you, you know." and
|> leave him with that. :-))
|> 	We ate it too - on a regular basis. You pick it with gloves, of
|> course, and you boil it well. It is very tasty with rice, or as a
|> cream soup. I haven't heard anyone doing it in the States though.
|> 
|> 				-= Ivan =-
|> 
|> 
    Some folks have good immunity to poisonous plants, others merely have to look at
   a poisonous plant and they break out, my daughter for one. When she comes in contact
   with any of the common variety poisonous plants ends up looking like the young man
   who played in the movie with Cher called "Mask" I believe, not a pretty sight and it
   takes heavy meds and weeks to go away. Myself and my son on the other hand can just
   about take a bath in it without any real affects, a little itching is about it.

    Just my 2 cents
    Have a great day
    Steve Kroeger

---

From: Your Name <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 22 Sep 1996 17:44:52 -0400

Hi,

My friend and I were walking through the arboretum in Golden Gate park.
We were intriged by a plant called Agave Ferox and also known as the
Century Plant.  Could someone point us toward more information about
this plant on the Web, or tell us what it's common name refers to?

Another question:  We were told that the longest-lived organism is a
plant in the Arizona desert which spends most of it's life cycle in
dormancy.  Our source, a friendly forest ranger in Big Basin State Park,
didn't know the name of this plant.  Any guesses?

Any guesses with citations?

Thanks in advance,

Sloan and Sau-Ling

---

From: maclin <[email-masked]>
Date: 24 Sep 1996 23:38:32 GMT

I think that I have come into the Poison Ivy discussion a bit late, so 
forgive me if this has already been mentioned.  I have found that one of 
the best solutions to a poison ivy rash is the application of the juice 
>from  the stems of jewelweed (Impatiens capensis).  Jewelweed grows in 
moist locations and has orange or yellow spotted flowers in the fall.  
Once you have seen it it is fairly easy to recognise in the wild and is 
common in the eastern US.  If you make an infusion of jewelweed stems 
and mix it with corn starch to make a thick paste, the effects are nice 
also.  Just my 2 cents.

Ted Maclin

______________

Each man, one way
Each horse, one stance
Each church, one Buddha
Each master, to his own technique.

---

From: [email-masked]
Date: 24 Sep 1996 11:06:36 GMT

The reason this plant is called 'jewelweed' is because when you place a leaf 
underwater it takes on a metallic sheen and reflects back in either gold or 
silver.  
				WyldRose

---

From: [email-masked] (Larry Margolis)
Date: 25 Sep 1996 01:56:06 GMT

In <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] (Les Jones) writes:
>I'd be interested to know if anyone

Euell Gibbons, in "Stalking the Wild Asparagus", wrote:
   Jewelweed grows in the same kind of habitat as poison ivy,
   and the two plants are often found growing close together.

---

From: DSparrow <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 25 Sep 1996 02:25:10 -0700

> In my experience, poison ivy does not give an immediate, burning reaction.
snip
> Hospitalization?  I can believe it.  
> 
snip
> <[email-masked]>...
snip

> > cream soup. I haven't heard anyone doing it in the States though.
	I don't know where Ivan grew up but I would put eating poison ivy in
the category of evolution in action - bound to weed out most of the
stupid. Sensitive people can get a severe reaction from bathing in a
stream that poison ivy grows beside, and people have died from breathing
the smoke from burning poison ivy.  It does sound like he's thinking of
nettles.
	A severe case may certainly require hospitalization - the allergic
reaction destroys tissue much like a chemical burn. If 20% of the body
surface is involved shock is possible.  If 40% is involved shock is
likely (numbers are from memory from advanced first aid 30 years ago so
not exact).  A girlfriend was once hospitalized for 5 days after we
rolled in some unclothed (I have never reacted, knock wood).  A
physician can prescribe steroids that greatly shorten the course of the
reaction.  A friend recently had it from his ankle to mid-thigh on both
legs - a solid mass of the usual oozing crusty sores. Oral steroids had
the rash nearly healed in 4 days.  So if you get it don't suffer
needlessly - see a doctor.
	  
-- 
		D Sparrow

"Taxes are not levied for the benefit of the taxed." -Robert Heinlein
To send me mail use [email-masked], not the phony address above

---

From: Dwight Sipler <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 25 Sep 1996 06:16:08 -0400

>    and the two plants are often found growing close together.

In my experience, Jewelweed is found only in moist areas, while PI 
is *EVERYWHERE*. I would say that PI is likely to be found where 
Jewelweed is found, but the converse is not true.

---

From: [email-masked] (Dan O'Brien)
Date: 14 Sep 1996 23:36:27 -0700

--dan--

---

From: "Bruno, Thomas A." <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 16 Sep 1996 05:47:24 +0100

---

From: [email-masked] (Larry Margolis)
Date: 17 Sep 1996 04:12:27 GMT

---

From: [email-masked]
Date: Mon, 16 Sep 1996 13:36:05 -0700

---

From: Gina Lindley <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 17 Sep 1996 11:23:35 -0700

---

From: [email-masked] (Tracy L. Gordon)
Date: 18 Sep 1996 20:37:26 GMT

Best of luck,

Red Fox

---

From: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 19 Sep 1996 17:20:31 -0800

-- 
Katherine

---

From: Dwight Sipler <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 20 Sep 1996 08:00:34 -0400

---

From: [email-masked] (Les Jones)
Date: 20 Sep 1996 03:46:24 GMT

---

From: [email-masked] (Tracy L. Gordon)
Date: 20 Sep 1996 17:29:01 GMT

and 

Best of Luck,

Red Fox

---

From: [email-masked]
Date: Fri, 20 Sep 1996 13:22:30 UNDEFINED

Double check?
Monique Reed

---

From: [email-masked] (Robert Beer)
Date: 20 Sep 1996 20:04:51 GMT

bob

---

From: [email-masked] (Suzan)
Date: Fri, 20 Sep 1996 21:02:33 -0500

[email-masked] wrote:
||> 

Suzan

---

From: [email-masked] (Cody Armstrong)
Date: Sat, 21 Sep 1996 12:16:19 GMT

not so!

A dangerous myth!

Cody
--

---

From: [email-masked] (John Obrien)
Date: 23 Sep 1996 12:25:43 GMT

---

From: elfont <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 22 Sep 1996 08:37:43 -0400

---

From: [email-masked] (QRA)
Date: 23 Sep 1996 16:06:16 -0400

---

From: [email-masked] (Crazy)
Date: Tue, 24 Sep 1996 00:09:38 GMT

-= Ivan =-

---

From: [email-masked] (Tracy L. Gordon)
Date: 23 Sep 1996 21:41:46 GMT

Best of luck,

RedFox

---

From: DanielleTreadwell <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 23 Sep 1996 20:33:33 +0100

Greetings folks,

---

From: [email-masked] (Shaun Patrick Darragh)
Date: Tue, 24 Sep 1996 02:41:19 GMT

Hey Robert,

Shaun

---

From: "Ernest J. Klein" <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 23 Sep 1996 23:21:40 -0700

---

From: "Steve Johnson" <[email-masked]>
Date: 24 Sep 1996 09:41:20 GMT

Ivan -

Steve Johnson

---

From: [email-masked] (Crazy)
Date: Tue, 24 Sep 1996 16:43:07 GMT

-= Ivan =-

---

From: [email-masked]
Date: Tue, 24 Sep 1996 10:58:01 -0700

---

From: [email-masked] (Steven J. Kroeger)
Date: Tue, 24 Sep 1996 16:39:36 GMT

Just my 2 cents
    Have a great day
    Steve Kroeger

---

From: Your Name <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 22 Sep 1996 17:44:52 -0400

Hi,

Thanks in advance,

Sloan and Sau-Ling

---

From: maclin <[email-masked]>
Date: 24 Sep 1996 23:38:32 GMT

Ted Maclin

______________

Each man, one way
Each horse, one stance
Each church, one Buddha

---

From: [email-masked]
Date: 24 Sep 1996 11:06:36 GMT

---

From: [email-masked] (Larry Margolis)
Date: 25 Sep 1996 01:56:06 GMT

---

From: DSparrow <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 25 Sep 1996 02:25:10 -0700

snip
snip
snip

-- 
		D Sparrow

---

From: Dwight Sipler <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 25 Sep 1996 06:16:08 -0400

---

From: [email-masked] (Clinton Morse)
Date: Wed, 25 Sep 96 17:09:12 GMT

>didn't know the name of this plant.  Any guesses?

Probably the Bristlecone Pine
P. aristata - to 2000 years
P. longaeva - to 5000 years known and extarpolated/carbon dating specimens to 
8200 years.

Info from Mabberly, the plant book but any good text on southwest plants 
should cover them.

------------------------------------------------------------------
Clinton Morse - Greenhouse Manager
Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
75 North Eagleville Rd., Box U-42
University of Connecticut, Storrs CT 06269
E-Mail to: [email-masked]
WWW Server(s):
  Greenhouse: http://florawww.eeb.uconn.edu/
  Rogaining:  http://florawww.eeb.uconn.edu/rogaine/rogaine.htm
  Pack Goats: http://florawww.eeb.uconn.edu/packgoat/packgoat.htm
------------------------------------------------------------------

---

From: Marcus Hoberg <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 25 Sep 1996 14:20:12 -0700

Sloan and Sau-Ling wrote:
> [...]
> didn't know the name of this plant.  Any guesses? Any guesses with 
> citations? Thanks in advance, Sloan and Sau-Ling

Hei,

the longest-living plants are trees, because they are able to renew their 
active cells livelong. Sequoiadendron giganteum e.g. might get 4000 years 
old! But the oldest plant known is a Pinus longaeva (= P. aristata p.p.), 
that is about 4844 years old {Strasburger (1991) Lehrbuch der Botanik, 33. 
Aufl., Gustav Fischer Verlag, Stuttgart, Jena, New York, 1030 S..}

Hope that helps,
Marcus.

---

From: [email-masked] (CraigBoardman)
Date: Thu, 26 Sep 96 10:07:08 GMT

In article <[email-masked]>,
>Jewelweed is found, but the converse is not true.

Before you step in PI again, stock up on Catalyst Altered Water which will 
take away the rash and the itch for a fraction of the cost of the creams or 
sprays. Check it out...it's good for sunburn, wounds, and crotch rot, too.

====================================
Craig Boardman
[email-masked]
http://www.nethomes.com/alter.health
====================================

---

From: [email-masked] (Alfred Falk)
Date: Wed, 02 Oct 96 18:57:47 GMT

In article <[email-masked]>, [email-masked] (John or Sonja Hoxeng) wrote:
>In article <[email-masked]>, Sue Hohman <[email-masked]> says:
>>
>>Dwight Sipler wrote:
>>> 
>>> [email-masked] wrote:
>>> >

>Maybe someone knows what I have in my yard.  The woman who gave it to me
>called it the poor man's orchid.  It is about six or seven feet tall and
>has purple flowers that look exactly like the flowers on my orange jewel
>weed only larger.  The seed pods also explode like the jewel weed but of
>course they are also larger.  I am certain it is closely related but I
>don't know exactly what it is.  Anyone out there know?

Sounds like Himalayan Impatiens, a.k.a. "Policeman's Helmet".  Same genus 
(Impatiens) as Jewelweed and garden impatiens.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alfred Falk                       [email-masked]              A L B E R T A
Information Systems Dept          (403) 450-5185            R E S E A R C H
Box 8330, Station F                                           C O U N C I L 
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
T6H 5X2
http://saturn.arc.ab.ca/~falk/                     http://www.arc.ab.ca/

---

From: [email-masked] (BRateaver)
Date: 7 Oct 1996 03:31:42 -0400

I have read and heard that black people are not susceptible to it, so are
hired to get rid of that plant. Also, some people take shots which I think
are a week dose of the poison, over weeks, and thus get some kind of
immunity to it.

I cannot bear the itch, so I just stay away from the woody areas. How
crazy to live here. In the Madagascar rain forest I never had to worry
about anything horrible like poison oak.

B. Rateaver

---

From: [email-masked](Susan H. Buckholz )
Date: 7 Oct 1996 23:50:50 GMT

In <[email-masked]> [email-masked] (BRateaver)
>about anything horrible like poison oak.
you had something to worry about..BIG FAT KILLER MOSQUITOES!!!
AAAAAAAHHH!!!!!!
             --tom

---

From: [email-masked] (Lorne Gutz)
Date: 9 Oct 1996 17:01:13 GMT

In article <[email-masked]>,
>are a week dose of the poison, over weeks, and thus get some kind of

	Its not the color of your skin that makes one immune.  I'm
blonde and have walked through it for years in my bare feet.  My wife
is immune and so are my two daughters.  My oldest has given to her SO
on more than one occasion though.  All she has to do is walk through
it and touch him and he gets it.
>about anything horrible like poison oak.

	Every part of the world has its vices, mennises, or horrors.
There is no poison oak on the artic islands of Canada.  They have
polar bears...now they will actually stock a two legged critter for
days just to get a tasty snack.

Lorne

---

From: Salt <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 09 Oct 1996 16:39:03 -0500

BRateaver wrote:
> hired to get rid of that plant. 

Cuts-----------------------

Ehhh?!?  Some of us black people may not catch it easily, but probably
no higher a percentage of us than other colors of people, including the
beigy/pink ones.  

Anne "I have the keloid scars to prove it" Taylor