What medicine should I apply to the ant bite for redness and swelling

Ants are a very common animal in normal times, but if you are not careful, you can easily be bitten by ants. If bitten by an ant, your body will become red, swollen and painful, and sometimes it may be accompanied by itching. If you scratch it with your hands, the redness and swelling will become more and more serious. Generally speaking, if you deal with the bite of an ant in time, it will not cause much impact on your health.

What medicine should I apply to treat the redness and swelling caused by ant bites?

After being bitten by an ant, you can first use 5%-10% sodium bicarbonate solution to clean the affected area. Corticosteroid preparations, such as desonide cream or elocon cream, can be applied to the itchy area to significantly relieve the symptoms of itching and pain. If the rash is obviously red and swollen, and the itching is severe and cannot be relieved by topical medications, you can take oral antihistamines such as levocetirizine and loratadine. It is also possible to take two antihistamines by mouth at the same time. For example, take loratadine orally in the morning and levocetirizine orally in the evening. If necessary, glucocorticoids should be used and stopped after symptoms are relieved.

Treating ant bites

1. Ants secrete formic acid after biting. You can apply soapy water or 3%-10% ammonia water, 5%-10% sodium bicarbonate solution to the bite and then rinse with clean water. Repeat several times.

2. Symptoms of itching and swelling at the bite site can be relieved by using topical ointments containing steroids or oral antihistamines.

3. If you have special reactions after being bitten by an ant (such as systemic itching, urticaria, redness and swelling of the face, difficulty breathing, chest pain, rapid heartbeat, etc.), you must see a professional dermatologist or allergist as soon as possible.

Prevention and treatment

1. Pay attention to personal and environmental hygiene, and change clothes and bedding frequently. Eliminates ants, bed bugs, fleas, lice and other insects. Once symptoms are found, medication should be taken promptly.

2. Do not drink alcohol or eat spicy food, and go to the suburbs or parks less often.

3. The straw mat should be washed and dried to reduce the number of insects hiding in it and the possibility of insect bites.

4. Burn the eggshells with fire, grind them into powder, and sprinkle them in corners or near ant holes to kill the ants. If there are ants in the closet, you can put some fragrant vegetables such as coriander and celery to drive away the ants. Putting some walnut leaves, tobacco or peppercorns in places where ants often appear can help repel ants.

Ants' living habits

1. Housing: Ants usually build their nests underground, and the underground nests are very large. It has good drainage and ventilation measures. Generally, worker ants are responsible for building the nest. The entrance and exit are mostly a small arched mound with a hole in the middle like a volcano. Secondly, there are holes for ventilation, and each room in the nest is clearly classified. They prefer warm, moist soil. They usually live in dry areas, but what is less well known is that they can barely survive in water for two weeks.

2. Lifespan: Ants have a long lifespan. Worker ants can live from a few weeks to a few years, while queen ants can live for several years or even ten years. An ant nest can grow in one place for 1 to 10 years. But most of the newly born queens will die!