Summer is coming and it’s time for good weather, bare legs, barbecues and mosquito bites! Mosquito bites can make good weather unbearable and the scars they usually leave are even worse. Many of us have ignored the advice not to scratch mosquito bites (what else can you do for an itch?) and we have the mosquito bite scars to prove it.
This article will give you tips on how to deal with bug bites to minimize the risk of scarring and help you find products that will fade the old mosquito bite scars that have been bothering you for years.
To help reduce the chance of scarring when bitten by a mosquito, follow these tips to reduce swelling and irritation.
– Rub aloe vera on the bites. Either fresh aloe vera straight from inside one of the plant’s stems or store-bought 100% aloe vera gel will do. Aloe vera has natural anti-inflammatory properties and will help soothe the bite area.
– Moisten your skin and rub an aspirin tablet on the bite. This helps reduce any inflammation that can lead to scarring.
– Don’t scratch! Mosquito bites can be incredibly itchy, but try to resist the urge to scratch as this will make scarring more likely. Use antihistamines, chamomile lotions, and ice packs to soothe itching.
– One or two drops of tea tree oil applied directly to the bite will relieve itching and help the bite heal faster.
By not scratching your bug bites and following the tips above, they will heal faster and the risk of developing scars will be minimized.
This information is great for new mosquito bites, but what can you do about scars you have from mosquito bites years ago? To remove old bug bite scars, vitamin E oil and cocoa butter are often recommended and they work quite well. Vitamin E oil and cocoa butter tend to work best when applied regularly to scars that are not too deep or dark. They will fade very deep scars a bit, but are unlikely to remove them completely.
There are also treatments that are aimed at specifically removing scars, such as Mederma and Bio-Oil. Again, these work very well for superficial scars, but are not as effective for very deep scars. Fortunately, scars from bug bites are rarely very deep, so these products will work just fine as long as they’re used regularly, usually twice a day.