Can you become poison ivy proof?

[Spiveyman]

We had a family reunion on an old family farm over Labor Day weekend. While there I noticed tons of poison ivy all over the woods next to the fields they mowed so that we could camp out and stuff. I asked who did that and how they faired with all that poison ivy.

One of my uncles said he'd gotten poison ivy really bad earlier in the year and had to go to a specialist. The specialist told him to eat a handful of cashews every day and that would help him develop an immunity to poison ivy over time because the two plants are related and the oil in cashews is very similar to the urushiol found in poison ivy. Is that just crazy?

So the uncle who mowed and weed eated (weed ate? how do you say that past tense? ) said that he didn't get a single itchy spot and that he eats cashews all the time. My dad chimed in that he used to get it when he was a kid, but never gets it now and he weed eats a wooded stream on his land that is covered with it. He also eats lots of nuts, including cashews.

I did a quick google and found one site saying that's bunk, but also found some saying it's for real. Anyone had experience with this, or better yet actually know the medical facts? In the mean time, it's a small price to pay for the potential benefits. We bought two cans of cashews today.

 

[ultrarunner]

I'm not allergic to much... but I am allergic to Poison Oak and Cashews...

I know people who claim cashews lowered their sensitivity...

There used to be a product called immune-oak that was given to telephone company line men. It was poison oak extract that was taken orally for 30 days to build immunity...

I have a few ounces of the stuff and asked the company why they no longer make it. I was told that in order to continue selling it they would have needed to spend a lot of money on studies and they made an economic decision to discontinue...

So yes, I would say that immunity can be improved, at least in some....

 

[Slamfire]

In the late 1940s I had a series of desensitivation shots. I can remember having large blisters before, and tearing down vines and piling them on a fire to burn afterwards, didn't even get an itch in my nose. I assume these are no longer available, as nobody I've told has heard of them. An allergist would know for sure, as they do a lot of desensitiation.

 

[MossRoad]

Anyone remember Euell Gibbons? (many parts of a pine tree are edible, grape nuts?) He reported that you could make yourself immune to poison ivy by eating a bit of it in the spring (here's a link to a story in a 1972 Mother Earth News where they interviewed him. Open it and search for poison ivy and there is a discussion about it).
However, many folks warn against this as some folks have extreme allergies to the stuff. Anyhow, he talks about the poision ivy pills that you could get at the drugstores back then, too. Interesting article.

 

[WTA]

I'm no doctor and this may be a wivestail but when I was a kid poison ivy and poison oak would tear me up bad. For the past several years we've had goats on the farm and they eat that stuff like it's the best thing in the world. Occasionaly we drink milk from them too. I must have gotten their immunity because I can roll around in it now and not get a rash.

 

[SnowRidge]

Anyone remember Euell Gibbons? (many parts of a pine tree are edible, grape nuts?) He reported that you could make yourself immune to poison ivy by eating a bit of it in the spring (here's a link to a story in a 1972 Mother Earth News where they interviewed him. Open it and search for poison ivy and there is a discussion about it).
However, many folks warn against this as some folks have extreme allergies to the stuff. Anyhow, he talks about the poision ivy pills that you could get at the drugstores back then, too. Interesting article.

Didn't old Euell come down with ulcers, or some such? As I recall, comics like Carson really had a field day.

When I was a kid, I had poison oak a lot. Even took immune shots for it. Didn't do a thing.

I just got over a mild case of poison ivy. About a year ago, I got the equivalent from some Brazillian Peppers. None of the experts mention those things, but they also have urushiol, just like the poison oak, ivy, and sumac.

My favorite poison ivy story is the one about the guy who came down with a severe case after coming back from a business trip to Japan. He had a giant ring rash on his butt.

It seems that the Japanese make their traditional furniture lacquer from a relative of the posion ivy plant. In fact, urushiol is the Japanese word for lacquer. Their poison ivy equivalent is much milder than anything we have, so they don't become sensitized to it, and most Japanese don't come down with the rash. However, someone from North America is likely to be fairly well sensitized and can break out in a rash just from coming in contact with traditional Japanese lacquer.

The guy in question had sat on a lacquered toilet seat.

 

[Spiveyman]

I did some more research on the cashew deal and found lots of references where people who are badly allergic to poison ivy also had bad reactions to cashews. It certainly seems like that would confirm the link, but doesn't necessarily mean it will help those who can eat the cashews.

I never thought about the goat's milk deal. Now that would be the way to go. I guess that's kind of like how eating honey made locally can help with local allergies because the pollens are in the honey.

As for eating the poison ivy in the spring, my granny is serious old school. Every spring she will pick a small poison ivy leaf, grind it up, and make a batch of biscuits with that in there. It seems to work for her, but that still sounds kind of nuts, and I can see where that could be very bad if you were exceptionally allergic to the stuff.

Edit: SnowRidge, I was posting while you were, that is a great story about the Japanese toilet seat!!!

 

[tallyho8]

I can remember several times when I was much younger when I had itching rashes from poison ivy. I have not had any symptons in the last 20 years. I regularly pull down and cut up poison ivy vines without wearing any kind of protection. I always wash up well with soap and water within a couple of hours after handling poison ivy so I do not know if I am not allergic or if the washing prevents me from geting it.

 

[czechsonofagun]

I'm no doctor and this may be a wivestail but when I was a kid poison ivy and poison oak would tear me up bad. For the past several years we've had goats on the farm and they eat that stuff like it's the best thing in the world. Occasionaly we drink milk from them too. I must have gotten their immunity because I can roll around in it now and not get a rash.

I heard the same thing about goat milk, never had a chance to try it.

 

[dmccarty]

The pills are still available. My dad bought some when he was up here and the poison oak got him. Not sure why the druggest gave him the pills since it would not solve his outbreak.

A caller to the radio show I listen too, mentioned that her dad made her eat poison ivy/oak to make her immune. She had a severe reaction to it which made it hard for her to breathe and almost killed her. She was in the hospital for days.

Later,
Dan