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Poison Ivy Soap Company Soap made in the hills of Northern Arkansas

Remove the urushiol, Remove the itch, Prevent the rash

Educational Information about Poison Ivy and Jewelweed

Q: I just purchased some of your soap yesterday. It seems to be working. I don't have any new patches of poison ivy. Yeah!! Do you know of any way to get poison ivy off of cats? I have a cat that keeps bringing it home and climbing in my bed. Thank you, Katie

A: Katie, The urushiol (oil from the plants of Poison Ivy) is sticky and can attach to almost anything, even pet fur. This could be one of the ways you are getting the rash. Our soap can be used on animal fur to remove the urushiol. (Be sure to keep it out of the animal's eyes.) However, if your cat is like ours, they tend to grow extra legs when washed. Thanks for asking and thanks for using our soap! Charles Baker, President Poison Ivy Soap Co.

According to the American Academy of Dermatology, rashes from poison ivy, poison oak or poison sumac "are the single most common cause of allergic reactions in the United States. Each year 10 to 50 million Americans develop an allergic rash after contact with these poisonous plants." In fact, 85% of people who come into contact with one of these plants WILL have an allergic reaction.

Identifying Poison Ivy, Poison Oak, Poison Sumac

Poison Ivy: Leaves of three, Let it be! Posin ivy can grow in the form of vines that climb fences or exterior walls or shrubs that can be up to 4 feet tall. Often, it is the smaller over-looked plants that cause people the most trouble. Posion ivy, oak and sumac can each be found wild throughout most of the northern America as well as parts of Europe and Asia, although Poison Ivy is by far the most common.

Poison Oak: Although it looks very much like poisin ivy, poison oak is found is in less places that posion ivy and tends to grow more often in bushes, whereas poison ivy often grows in vines or stalks. Both plants turn red in later summer and fall, and both plants grow berries that are eaten by as many as 50 or more different species of birds.

Poison Sumac: The main difference between Poison Sumac and its relatives above is that Poison Sumach has 7 to 13 leaves on each stem. As the picture here indicates, it can also grow something resembling a flower, making it harder to keep curious children away.

Nearly every state in the US has at least one of these poisonous plants growing wild.

What causes these plants to be poisonous?

It was once believed that the plants themselves caused an allergic rash and the rash could spread over a person's body or from one person to another. It is now known that allergic reactions from these plants are actually caused by Urushiol, a sticky laquer-like substance found in the sap of the plants. When this substance is spread, the rash will spread. If this substance can be removed (it is water-proof), the rash will quit spreading. Urishol is extremly toxic. Only 1 nanogram (or one billionth of a gram) is needed to cause a reaction. To put it even simpler, 500 people could get a rash from the amount of urushoil that would cover the head of a pin. This means that just 1/2 oz of urushiol could cause a rash in every person alive today. Interestingly, the word "urushiol" is derived from the Japanese word urushi, which means laquer. Urushiol is said to have once been used to restore the gold leaf on the Temple of Kyoto. The purpose was to perserve and maintain the gold leaf, but it would seem some potential thieves would be caught "red-handed", making it a natural security device.

Prevention & Treatment

Remove the urushiol, Remove the itch, Prevent the rash

Prevention is of course the best cure, but this is often more easily said than done. To prevent a reaction from taking place, try to identify these plants and remove them promptly. Be especially careful not to bruise these plants, as this can cause the release of airborne Urushiol. DO NOT BURN the plants, as this also causes airborne contamination. Because the urushiol is a sticky substance, it can stick to any surface it touches. It is important to properly and immediatly clean anything that could have come in contact with it. This includes clothing, gloves, shoes, lawn and sports equipment, and even animal fur (such as pets). Urushiol can stay active, even on dead plants, for as long as 5 years. Some sites proclaim that dead plants remaining on rooftops for 18 months still caused reactions to the person removing it. Amazingly, one site even states that highly sensitive people have been known to have a reaction after coming in contact with items that were contaminated centuries ago!

The most recommended natural ingredient for completely removing urushiol is jewelweed.

Where can you find Jewelweed? Most soaps contain oils or cold cream, which can actually spread rather than remove urushiol. Because urushiol is sticky and virtually invisible, the key to total removal is the soap. Jewelweed is one of the most effective ingredients against Urushiol, and our Poison Ivy Soap contains no oils, cold creams, or fragrances. Click here to order some soap today.

One of the most recommended ingredients in soap for eliminating Urushiol, Native Americans used jewelweed plants to cure everything from Poisonivy rashes to stomach cramps. Our Poison Ivy Soap is the only soap available today that does not contain harsh or harmful ingredients. Unlike some poison ivy treatments, our soap can be used anywhere you would normally use soap. Though it sounds bizarre, we have been asked if our soap is safe to use in discrete areas where the rash has spread before soap could be located or used. While it is best to prevent the rash by keeping some Poison Ivy Soap on hand at all times, it is safe to use anywhere you would use regular soap. It is important to keep in mind that there are other "poison ivy" products on the market that, aside from costing far more than our Poison Ivy Soap, can cause extreme irritation due to the chemical ingredients or the manners of directed use of the product. Granny women of the Ozarks used jewelweed in their soaps for various kinds of allergic reactions on the skin for generations, yet most people today can't identify the plant even in their own backyards. Because of its unique healing properties, those who can identify the plant often won't tell you where to find it locally, protective of their own supply. At around $9 per bar, our soap is something every household should have. (Compare the price of our soap for prevention to the cost of a doctor's appointment should you breakout or have a rash spread!)

If our Poison Ivy Soap fails to remove the urushiol or fails to respond for you the way it has for countless other consumers (as stated on our Feedback page), We will refund 100% of your money!*

*Click here to see our Refund Policy.

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The above-stated information is based on testimonials and has not been fully evaluated by the FDA.