Mosquitoes, lice and skin conditions
That itching will drive you crazy! And nothing seems to work against it. Plus Health answers 7 questions about itching and home remedies that do help.
What is itching?
If you have itching, itching sensors are stimulated. These are special cells in the skin. The main substance to which itching sensors are sensitive is histamine, an amino acid-like substance that we produce ourselves. When the itch sensor is stimulated, a signal is sent to the brain via an itch nerve.
People with certain skin diseases can suffer a lot from itching, while diseases that have nothing to do with the skin can also cause itching. And we all know itching as a reaction to something outside, like a mosquito bite or a wool sweater. There are also plants that can cause a rash and itching after touching: for example, rue, nettles, ivy or giant hogweed.
What is the function of itching?
That is not clear, it could be an alarm signal, but usually the disaster has already happened when you are itching. And bugs like mosquitoes, fleas and ticks need your blood for food, so they have no use in making you itch.
Why does scratching help?
Scratching is helpful if itching is caused by critters that are still your guest, such as head and… pubic lice. This way you can scrape them off. Moreover, by scratching you suppress the transport of stimuli through the itch nerve for a short time. You will feel pain, but the itching will go away for a while. Annoyingly, scratching can irritate the skin, releasing histamine and causing itching again.
What else can you do?
You can eliminate the cause, such as not wearing wool, fighting head or pubic lice, using anti-mosquito oil. It may help to put something cooling or numbing on the skin. Cooling are for example cold water, water with some vinegar, menthol powder and certain creams, for example with camphor or zinc. Ointment with lidocaine or pramocaine numbs the skin locally. These ointments are freely available at drugstores and pharmacies. Only apply it to small areas that itch briefly, such as mosquito bites. If the home remedies don’t help within a few weeks, see your doctor. It can have a different cause, such as a fungal infection.
What can you do about itching due to dry skin?
If you just feel itchy, for example all over your face or on your arms, your skin may be too dry. With age comes a dry skin more common. You can relieve itching due to dry skin by rubbing something on it. This may be a lotion, ointment or cream, but it must contain fat.
Why do some chronically ill people itch?
That is not exactly known. In skin diseases such as psoriasis and eczema, the itching could be because the skin is damaged. People with eczema also often have dry skin. When the rash is gone, the itching usually goes away as well. Some patients with kidney disease, cancer, impaired bile flow or diabetes also suffer from itching. Why is not yet clear.
What’s the point of itching from illness?
Sometimes the itching is less when something is done about the disease. There are various anti-itch medicines, but they do not always help. There is a special itching consultation hour at the University Medical Center Utrecht. Patients can go there after referral from their skin doctor. One of the measures is a training to scratch less.
