How to Get Yellow Jacket Stings to Quit Itching

Yellow jackets might look like bees, but they're actually more powerful. Unlike many bee species, a yellow jacket doesn't lose its stinger in the victim's skin. This reusable stinger enables a single yellow jacket to repeatedly sting one victim and inject fresh venom each time. Swelling, irritation and itching occur within two to three minutes of the sting. These symptoms usually subside within a few hours, unless the victim is allergic or the attack consisted of multiple stings. The venom of 1,500 yellow jacket stings is potent enough to kill an adult man, and children can die from just a few hundred.

Things You'll Need

• Antihistamine
• 3 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon warm water
• Wet cloth
• Calamine lotion
• Cotton balls
• Hydrocortisone cream

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Instructions

• 1

  Take an over-the-counter antihistamine pill. Your body releases histamines after sustaining a yellow jacket sting, or encountering other allergens. The natural reaction of your skin to histamines is swelling, itching and irritation. An antihistamine stops your body's reaction, thus stopping the itch. Take the antihistamines as instructed on the product label.

• 2

  Apply a baking soda paste directly to the affected skin. Mix 3 tsp. baking soda with 1 tsp. water into a fine paste and spread the mixture over the sting. Baking soda eases itching by alkalizing yellow jacket venom and reducing swelling. Let the paste harden on your skin and remove it with a wet cloth. Repeat as needed until the itching stops.

• 3

  Soak a cotton ball with calamine lotion. Spread the lotion over the itching skin. Allow the lotion to dry and repeat as necessary until the itching stops. Calamine has a soothing effect on aggravated skin.

• 4

  Apply a pea-sized amount of 0.5 to 1 percent hydrocortisone cream to the yellow jacket sting. Massage the cream into the affected area and let it dry. Repeat as needed throughout the day.