When the temperature begins to soar into the higher digits, do you find yourself breaking out in an itchy rash that look like little red dots? The probability is that you are suffering from a heat rash, otherwise known as prickly heat, which is due to sweat duct blockage. It normally happens when your skin gets overheated and appears on places on your body, like the chest, stomach, armpits, groin, neck and, in some women, under the breasts. Though it can be aggravating, heat rashes tend to go away on their own after just a short duration, but there are some cases where the condition is more chronic.
There are some things you can do to reduce the physical discomfort associated with heat rash.
Get rid of sweat
It’s hot, so, of course, you are going to sweat. If you are susceptible to getting a heat rash, however, sweat triggers this condition. You need to make sure that , when you get too sweaty, you get cleaned up as soon as you can. Hit the shower and wash off with soap and water and then make sure that you dry yourself off, thoroughly, so that moisture doesn’t exacerbate the problem.
Moisturize correctly
Because you want to combat the itchiness and scaly feeling you get with a heat rash, you may tend to saturate your skin with heavy lotions and moisturizers, but that may worsen the problem instead of helping it. Use the right kinds of moisturizers- ones that are water-based, rather than the oil-based ones.
My grandmother always kept cornstarch around her house and used it for practically everything. During the summers, when it got extremely hot where she lived, she put cornstarch in areas of her body where a heat rash was most likely to occur and it actually worked as a preventative for getting the rash and kept her skin dry and cool.
There are all kinds of practical uses for apple cider vinegar. It can aid you in relieving heat rash by helping to balance the pH of your skin. Just put a teaspoon of it into a glass of distilled water and soak the areas where your skin is affected. It stops the itching and can aid in clearing up your condition.
Save that watermelon rind!
When you cut up that delicious watermelon, don’t throw away the watermelon rind, because it can be used to help sooth your heat rash. Just rub the inside of the rind on the places where the rash is present.
The power of oatmeal
Create an soothing bath by adding oatmeal to your bath water. Aveeno has a special oatmeal Bath Treatment product for just this purpose and you can pour it into lukewarm water and take a short soak to rid yourself of itching.
Find help at the drugstore
There are products at your local drugstore that can offer you help in reducing the irritation that accompanies a heat rash. Hydrocortisone creams are a safe solution and can help heal your rash. Use the creams that have at least 1% hydrocortisone and apply just as the directions tell you to.. There are also some medicated powders, such as Gold Bond Powder, that help to stop itching and keep your skin dry. You can even use an over-the-counter antihistamine that you can take orally. Products like Benadryl can help, if you are in dire discomfort, but you should not give it to children under a certain age, so read directions to see who the product is most appropriate for. If you have a medical condition, such as high blood pressure or diabetes, etc., check with your doctor before taking Benadryl or any other over-the-counter antihistamine.
