Preventing Illness and Injury
Poison Oak
Background
About 50% of us are extremely sensitive; we will have a reaction upon slightest contact with the oil of the poison oak plant and the rash will spread to non-contact areas of our bodies, perhaps even internally. Another 35% need higher concentrations of the oil to have a reaction. It takes varying amounts of time for a reaction to show up after contact, 2 to 3 days is typical.
Cause
The culprit is a resin, urushiol, found in the plants leaves, branches, berries, stems and roots - all equally virulent. The potency of the resin does not vary with the season and the resin is long-lived. Even smoke from the burning plants carries the resin.
Prevention
The first and best prevention is to know what the poison oak plant looks like and then avoid it. There are three leaves on a stem; the middle leaf extends beyond the other two. They are shiny in spring/summer, red in the fall and hard to spot lying around on the ground in winter. Avoid any contact. Especially, do not urinate in or near poison oak and avoid the smoke of a campfire that might be burning poison oak plants.
The second prevention is to block skin contact. There are two ways to do this. The first is through the barrier of clothing; wear long pants and a long-sleeved shirt. Be sure both are tucked in, especially your pants tucked into your socks. Several products, non-prescription, are available in drug stores as skin protectants/barriers against urushiol: "Ivy Armor", "Ivy Block" and "Work Shield". Applied to skin prior to exposure, these barrier creams trap the urushiol allowing you to wash off the cream and resin after exposure.
The third prevention is to wash as soon as possible after you realize you might have touched the plant. The most sensitive of us have about fifteen minutes to do this. Use lots and lots of cold water; go jump in a stream or lake if possible. Do not rub your eyes, if you have, wash them immediately. Don't forget to wash or change your clothes. "Technu" is a product made by the same company that makes "Ivy Armor". It too is available in drug stores. It cleans and decontaminates the skin by removing the invisible urushiol. Apply this as soon as possible after suspected contact.
If you are one of the 50% who are very sensitive you should carry both the urushiol skin block and urushiol decontaminant with you on outings that could expose you to poison oak.