Poison oak and waders?

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

We had someone call last week with a question about poison oak in relationship to getting on waders.

We called Simms wader company and our Simms Rep and got this rely:

Put waders in a front loader washer (no top loaders) or in a bathtub or large tub with warm water, bleach and mild soap.

Hang to dry.

[Ed Wahl]

Just F.Y.I., as the husband of a long suffering fisherman's wife, I know for a fact that not only waders, but jeans, shorts, vests, hats, socks, etc,etc, will all transfer the oil from poison oak. So will the fur on your faithful fishing dog. The oil from both poison oak and ivy is water soluble so if you need to you can rinse clothes off in the water before you leave. Same for the dog, but sometimes that's easier said than done. Ed

[flyfshrmn]

Ed,

I don't think poison oak is all that soluble in water, which is a good thing. If it was, it would be much more likely to cause a reaction. The toxin is Urushiol or sometimes referred to as urushinol, and is oil soluble and readily emulsifies with soaps, which is why the best prevention is to wash with soap and water. It takes a while for the toxin to bind to your proteins and become an active irritant. Since it is an oil itself, it tends to float on water. I have seen several fishing buddies who are extremely sensitive to it, get rash lines on their arms from reaching into the water to retrieve fish or lures when fishing in the sloughs around here where there is a lot of poison oak. Many times the oak vine will dip into the water and if the wind isn't blowing, you can see the oil layer around the leaves. Best way to deal with it is to remove your outer layers and drop them right in the washer, then wash your hands immediately. If you throw the clothes in the hamper then whoever handles them can be contaminated without knowing it.

bg

[Ed Wahl]

Thanks for the education BG. I made the assumption about water solubility after getting in the habit of rinsing off my hands,arms, face and neck several times a day while quail hunting. Been years since I've gotten more than a small patch of it. Ed

[flyfshrmn]

Ed,

Rinsing off can't hurt and probably helps - if nothing else the oil floats off on the water as it runs away. I'm extremely sensitive to it; after years of being around and in it without effect I went deer hunting up by Berryessa one year and spent most of a day walking around in heavy brush in short sleeves and scratched up my arms, hands and neck. A lot of the brush was poison oak and ever since then I tend to react badly to it. But I've found that immediately getting out of clothes and a thorough shower with lots of soap alleviates most reactions. What's important is the time between exposure and removal. It takes several hours for the toxin to bind to your proteins and become immunologically active. Once that occurs, the only remedy is corticosteroids. Getting the toxin into cuts or abrasions speeds up the process considerably.

Bg

[Ed Wahl]

Very likely it's just floating off like you said, either way a rinsing off within about half an hour(about the time it takes for the dogs to get really hot) and I'm good. Making sure the dogs take a swim before heading home seems to have stopped that transfer too. I'm under permanent orders from the boss to load my hazardous clothes in the washer right when I walk in the door. Ed

[Rob]

I can't count the number of times that i have rubbed up against poison oak . I have brushed my legs against it so many times on days that I was wet wading. I am very allergic and all i have had to do , was go back into the cold water and rub the area like crazy. Daved Armosido was the one who told me about doing this. :shock: Works for me. The only time I have got poison Oak in a long time , was walking from the river to my car and i did not wash it off.

[DonCooksey]

Early rinsing can be effective to prevent the toxin from binding, but you are best off using a soap that will help solubilize the oil. That expensive Zanfel stuff really works to wash it away as soon as you are exposed. It also works to get rid of it after symptoms develop. Rite Aide has a less expensive version of the same thing. I carry a tube in my vest now after learning the hard way last June while shad fishing on the American. Caught my fly in a bush behind me at dusk and realized too late what it was after crushing several leaves in my hand while pulling my fly out of the twigs. A quick water rinse did nothing to prevent transfer of the toxin to several parts of my body in the subsequent minutes, especially when I relieved myself ( :shock: ).

I had not previously been sensitive to poison oak for over 25 years, in spite of known exposure, but for several months after this episode, I repeatedly re-contaminated myself from something in my fishing equipment (waders, vest, boots, or something). Repeated washing of everything with detergent eventually stopped it. Then I found that I had become sensitive to another Rhus species, african sumac. I have several of those trees in my yard, so I have to stay away from them.

Nasty stuff!

[Ed Wahl]

I've been told I need those Ivy specific type soaps for years but my personal experience has proven otherwise. Maybe I'm not as sensitive as others, although I've gotten it pretty bad in the past. When I said rinsing off at every opportunity I meant more like what Rob said, scrubbing like crazy, especially before relieving myself. Had that experience too, horrible work week after that. Also just a personal rule of mine, I never, ever, put soap in the streams, so that kinda makes them unusable, except for back at camp. Part of being in the outdoors is being totally aware of your surroundings, I make it a game with the grandkids to spot the poison oak along the trail, it gets them in the habit of constantly looking for it. Abby gets a refresher course this weekend, along with some more fishing time. Ed