Paper cuts are quite frustrating. As a writing tutor, I’ve handled several papers and experienced many paper cuts over the years. Often it’s the minor injuries that hurt the most. Whether thumbing through a stack of papers or a book, paper cuts are inevitable.

A paper cut doesn’t necessarily need to be caused by paper. Other thin, stiff materials can slice your skin similarly—blades of grass, aluminum foil and so on.

Although similar to a cut from a razor blade, paper cuts leave behind chemical material (the substance that coats the paper) such as bleach that can sting. This material as well as bacteria and other particles stay in the wound and stimulate the skin’s pain receptors. The cut is normally shallow and doesn’t bleed much, but that means the pain receptors are exposed to air which only adds to the pain.

Paper Cut Symptoms

A paper cut can easily become red, infected, swollen and may throb if not properly treated.

Home remedies for Paper Cuts

Here’s the initial course of action for paper cuts:

1. Wash the area thoroughly with water and antibacterial soap
2. Apply antibiotic ointment—reapply 3 times daily
3. Bandage

Use iodine to cut down the pain and help heal the wound.

Try a slice of raw potatoe—hold it on the cut for a while to draw out the inflammation and reduce your discomfort.

Some dermatologists think that Krazy Glue is safe to use for small cuts (and in small quantities) for a limited amount of time. There is however, the obvious downfall to this method—don’t get yourself stuck to something!

Despite my strange addiction to Chapstick, I’ve only recently heard of people rubbing Chapstick on their paper cuts to heal them right away. Seem like it might work, but I probably wouldn’t use one with a lot of chemicals or fragrances.

—Nolan

Do you have any home remedies for a paper cuts? Comment and tell us!

Feet feeling weird when you run? Think that maybe it’s your shoes? Check for bone spurs.

Bone spurs, or osteophytes, are little bony bumps that grow along the edges of bone, commonly along the spine and neck but can also occur on the hands and feet. Weirdly enough, bone spurs in themselves are not painful. It’s the pressure and inflammation that causes pain. Bone spurs do however imply a more serious concern, like bone degeneration. As we age bone spurs get more common.

How do bone spurs form?

Bone spurs commonly form in people with bone degeneration due to aging, wear from joint inflammation, injury and disease. As bones suffer from wear or trauma, the body naturally thickens ligaments in your body to hold loose joints together. Over time these thick ligaments calcify into hardened flecks of bone, creating a bone spur.

Factors that can influence bone spur growth

• Heredity
• Poor nutrition
• Poor posture
• Sports injuries
• Other bone trauma

Home remedies for bone spurs

If the area around the bone spur is suffering from inflammation, ice it down to reduce swelling. Apply an ice pack or a zipper bag filled with ice and wrapped with a towel to the afflicted area 3 times a day. If you don’t like using ice, a warm heating pad will work too.

If you have a heel spur, don’t walk around barefoot. This stretches the ligaments in your foot further and makes a heel spur worse.

Take 500mg of Curcumin three to four times a day on an empty stomach. Curcumin is the yellow pigment that gives turmeric its color. Continue this for about 60 days. You should then see an improvement.

Dip a clean cloth in warm linseed oil and apply to the affected area. Cover the cloth with a piece of plastic and secure. Repeat this every two hours or until the cloth dries. If you don’t have linseed oil, you can try apple cider vinegar in lieu of it.

Try alternating hot and cold foot baths. Many people with bone spurs have said that this one treatment alone works wonders. Continue for a couple weeks

Treat yourself to a massage. This especially helps with those who suffer from heel spurs. But don’t just focus on the heel; be sure to massage the entire foot.

–Magdalena

Do you have a home remedy for bone spurs? Comment and tell us about it!

Dark underarms have you down?

Now that the weather is getting nicer, don’t be afraid to go sleeveless, even if you have fair skin. There are some very simple things you can do right at home to lighten your underarms, and it won’t break the bank to do it either.

Word of caution.  If you know for a fact that any of the ingredients in these home remedies irritate your skin, do not try it or consult your physician before trying.

What causes dark underarms?

The most typical causes of dark underarms include:
• Excessive sweating
• Regular shaving
• Improper skin washing
• Dead skin cell buildup
• Friction from adjacent skin or tight clothing
• Daily use of antiperspirants

Home remedies for dark underarms

The best and most frequently used home remedy for dark underarms is lemon. Simply cut large circles of lemon and rub them against your armpits for a couple minutes. Citrus acts as a natural skin bleaching chemical to lighten your skin.

Make a paste from a pinch of turmeric, lime juice and cucumber juice. Apply the paste to the skin of your armpit and rinse after 15 minutes.

Also try using alum powder, cornstarch or baking soda in lieu of an antiperspirant. It’s the aluminum in antiperspirants that can turn your underarms dark.

Apply a paste of rose water and sandalwood powder under your arm. Let dry and then rinse off. Continue to wash your armpits with coconut oil afterward.

Drop the razor and reach for the wax. Waxing your armpits removes not only unwanted hair, but dead skin cell buildup that can be turning your armpits dark.

Don’t wear clothes made from synthetic materials. Choosing shirts that are made of 100% cotton will keep your underarm skin from chafing and turning dark. It will also cut down on excessive sweating.

If your skin is rubbing and chafing in the area around your armpits, losing weight may help. Trimming fat will reduce the rubbing and in turn reduce the darkness under your arms.

–Magdalena

Do you have a home remedy for dark underarms? Comment and tell us about it!

I was about 6 years old or so when my oldest brother was bit by my neighbor’s dachshund. I don’t think he provoked Heidi, the dachshund, other than we were playing tag in my neighbor’s yard and she may not have liked her owner being chased after. There was no warning bark, surprising for these incessant yelpers, and so came as a big surprise to my brother when she took a bite at his leg as he ran across the yard. I know it scared the heck outta me, I can’t tell you how it affected my then 12 year old brother.

I don’t know how he got to the hospital, one of my parents must have been home, but I do remember him lying miserably on the couch later that evening telling us about the shots he had to get in his stomach. That sounded more painful than the dog bite. I avoided going over to my neighbor’s as much as possible, and avoided Heidi even more. She was just one of three ankle-biting steady-yelping dachshunds. I had no desire to tempt Gabby and Gretchen to try their luck at “tag.”

About Dog Bites

More than 4 million Americans are bitten by dogs each year, and about 800,000 of these people, of which 44% are younger than 14 years old, seek medical attention. One dozen or more dog bite related fatalities occur each year in the US, and most of these are children. Most dog bites aren’t provoked, but there are still some precautions adults and children can take to reduce the likelihood of being bitten. In the case of a dog bite, your family physician must know what to do to treat the bites effectively.

In 1994, an estimated 34 million American families had a dog as a family pet, making the canine population in the United States in excess of 55 million. There are some dogs that are considered more aggressive than others like Rottweilers, German Shepherds, Pitt Bulls, Doberman Pincers, Chows, Malamutes and Wolf hybrid breeds. Even though most dogs never bite a human, any dog is capable of inflicting harm under certain circumstances. Children are the most common victims of dog bite, especially those proving to be fatal. Most reported cases of dog bite involve the dog owned by the victim’s family or neighbors, and are from unprovoked attacks. For example, neonatal deaths from dog bite most frequently happen to sleeping babies.

Steps to Prevent Dog Bite

• Never leave a young child alone with a pet.

• Do not try to separate fighting animals.

• Avoid sick animals and animals that you don’t know.

• Leave animals alone while they’re eating.

• Keep pets on a leash when in public.

• Select your family pet carefully, and be sure to keep your pet’s vaccinations up-to-date.

How to Treat a Dog Bite

Knowing first aid procedures for dog bite can help you or your family member avoid a more serious wound, or at the very least, help to prevent infection or serious lasting damage. If an animal bites you or a friend or family member, follow these guidelines:
For minor wounds:

• If the bite barely breaks the skin and there is no danger of rabies, treat it as a minor wound. Wash the wound thoroughly with soap and water. Apply an antibiotic cream to prevent infection and cover the bite with a clean bandage. Keep the injury elevated above the level of the heart to slow swelling and prevent infection. Apply antibiotic ointment to the area 2 times every day until it heals.

For deep wounds:

• If the animal bite creates a deep puncture of the skin or the skin is badly torn and bleeding, apply pressure with a clean, dry cloth to stop the bleeding and see your doctor.

For infection:

• If you notice signs of infection, such as swelling, redness, increased pain or oozing, see your doctor immediately.

For suspected rabies:

• If you suspect the bite was caused by an animal that might carry rabies — including any wild or domestic animal of unknown immunization status — see your doctor immediately.

Make sure you report the incident to the appropriate official in your community (e.g. police or animal control).

What to expect from your Physician in the case of Dog Bite

• Examine the wound for possible nerve or tendon damage, or bone injury. He or she will also check for signs of infection.

• Clean the wound with a special solution and remove any damaged tissue.

• May use stitches to close a bite wound, but often the wound is left open to heal, so the risk of infection is lowered.

• May prescribe an antibiotic to prevent infection.

• May give you a tetanus shot if you had your last shot more than 5 years ago.

• May ask you to schedule an office visit to check your wound again in 1 to 2 days.

• If your injury is severe, or if the infection has not gotten better even though you’re taking antibiotics, your doctor may suggest that you see a specialist and/or go to the hospital, where you can get special medicine given directly in your veins (intravenous antibiotics) and further treatment if necessary.

-Anne

Do you have any home remedies for Dog Bite? Comment and share them with us!

Retained water has a name? I should have known. Edema I’ve heard of—dropsy, not so much. I think I associated edema with anemia, and thought it was a blood disorder. My uncle, while battling esophageal cancer, swelled up like a balloon. He was dehydrated from lack of food and water, it being too painful for him to eat. My cousin brought him some ice chips from his automatic ice maker, not realizing the amount of salt in the water due to the water softener. His feet swelled to the size of a football. I also didn’t know how painful it could be, and hopefully I’ll never have to experience it.

What is Edema?

Edema, formerly known as dropsy or hydropsy, is swelling due to an increase of fluid in the body tissues or organs, a non-inflammatory condition. It can occur in any part of the body, but is most common in the ankles, feet and legs (peripheral edema).

Swelling occurs when excess fluid accumulates under the skin in the spaces within the body tissues. All body tissues are made up of cells and connective tissues that hold the cells together. The interstitium is the connective tissue around the cells and blood vessels. There are two spaces outside of the cells where most of the body’s fluid is normally stored; the blood vessels (the serum part of the blood), and the interstitial spaces (not within the cells). A surplus of fluid can build up in either one or both of these sections. (Brief biology lesson is officially over!)

In addition to the ankles, feet and legs, edema can occur in organs of the body. The organs of the body also have interstitial spaces. An accrual in the alveoli (interstitial air spaces) in the lungs is a disorder called pulmonary edema. The so-called third space can also accumulate excess fluid, and includes the area in the abdomen (peritoneal cavity called “ascites”) or the chest (lung or pleural cavity called “pleural effusion”). Widespread accumulation of fluid in all the tissues and cavities of the body at the same time is called anasarca.

Symptoms of Edema

• Skin over the swollen area may be stretched and shiny

• Applying pressure may leave an indentation

• Swelling is worst at the end of the day or after sitting or standing for extended periods

• Increased size of abdomen (with ascites)

• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing (pulmonary edema)

Causes of Edema

There are two main types of edema: pitting edema and non-pitting edema, pitting edema being the most common form. The difference is as the titles sound. In pitting edema, an indentation will form and remain for some time when applying pressure with a finger to the swollen area. Sock band elastic can cause this type of pitting. Non-pitting edema doesn’t cause the same type of indentation when applying the same sort of pressure. It usually affects the legs or arms. Certain disorders of the lymphatic system such as lymphedema (a disturbance of the lymphatic circulation which may occur after a mastectomy, lymph node surgery, or congenitally) can cause non-pitting edema. Hyperthyroidism can cause swelling over the shins which is another cause of non-pitting edema of the legs.

The most common causes of edema include:

• Eating too much salt

• Sunburn

• Heart failure

• Kidney disease

• Liver problems from cirrhosis

• Pregnancy

• Problems with lymph nodes, especially after mastectomy

• Some medicines

• Standing or walking a lot, especially when the weather is hot

Home Remedies for Edema

Edema can’t be cured; the underlying condition needs to be treated. Consult with a physician to find the root cause of the swelling. However, there are some things you can do to help keep down the swelling and make yourself more comfortable.

• Place a pillow under your legs when you are lying down.

• Wear support stockings. These can be found at most drug stores. They work by putting pressure on your legs, and keep the water from collecting in your legs and ankles.

• Don’t sit or stand too long without moving around.

• Limit the amount of salt you eat.

• Eat brown rice daily for a couple of weeks while symptoms in legs and ankles persist.

• Eat only apple sauce and plain (whole grain) rice once a week. Drink only water or herbal tea while symptoms persist.

• For topical ointment: Soak 2 teaspoons of mustard seeds in warm water. Rub the solution on the affected area(s). Or you can buy mustard oil from your local health food store.

If you think you have edema, consult with your physician as soon as possible. This is especially true for pregnant women. Edema left untreated will continue to stretch your skin which will lead to more problems. In dealing with edema also:

• Protect any swollen areas from additional pressure, injury, and extreme temperatures. Injury to the skin over swollen areas takes longer to heal and is more likely to become infected.

• Call your doctor immediately if you experience any pain, redness, or heat in a swollen area; have an open sore; or experience shortness of breath or swelling of only one limb.

-Anne

Do you have any home remedies for Edema? Comment and share them with us!