Contrary to what most people believe, scabies is an infestation, not an infection, says WebMD. It happens when Sarcoptes scabiei mites burrow into your skin and lay eggs, which is what causes the intense itchiness and the angry rashes you often see. If you or a loved one has scabies, then here are some ways you can keep the infestation at bay:
- Seek out treatment. Scabies is a highly contagious but common skin infestation. So you won’t have a problem finding natural treatments. Remedies for scabies typically include soaps, creams and bathing solutions. Make sure people in your household seek out treatment as well. It’s highly contagious and so chances are, if you have one, then your sexual partner or people you live with might have scabies as well. If you don’t get treatment at the same time, then the infestation will only continue.
- Kill the mites. Treatments won’t mean a thing if you keep the mites alive in your clothes or beddings. So get all clothing you’ve used in the last few days and submerge everything in boiling water. Then let them dry at high heat to kill even more mites. This way, you’re pretty confident that every single last mite has been disposed of.
- Clean your home. Vacuuming your carpets and sofas also help a great deal in eliminating the mites from your house. Don’t forget to include the interiors of your car.
- Anything else that can’t be put in the washing machine for decontamination should be removed from body contact for at least 72 hours. Mites can’t survive long in non-animate objects so you can also try to put the infected items—such as toys or shoes, books—inside a bag and leave it there for two to three days. Dry cleaning them also works.
So seek out treatment, wash everything in hot water and clean your home to treat scabies and get rid of the mites once and for all.
