18 SIMPLE HOME REMEDIES FOE CHICKENPOX

Chicken pox, the highly infectious disease caused by the varicella-zoster virus, usually starts with skin rashes that develop into itchy blisters. Most commonly found in children below 12 years of age, chicken pox can anyway affect any person of any age. Apart from kids, pregnant women and people with weaker 

immune system form the high risk group for chicken pox. The best way to prevent chickenpox is to get your children vaccinated against the disease. Treatment of chickenpox depends upon the age, personal 

health and the severity of the disease. Healthy children may not require any medical treatment and can get well through home rest only. A visit to your doctor is recommended to rule out any complications though. If, however, you are looking for some home remedies for chicken pox, here they are for your help.

Home Remedies for Chickenpox

1. Baking Soda Remedies for Chickenpox

Baking soda is one of the popular remedies to give relief from the itching when suffering from chicken pox. When you apply baking soda on the skin and when it dries out there, you are relieved of the irritation the rashes and blisters cause.

Ways to use baking soda for chickenpox

1. Take half teaspoon of baking soda and mix it well into a glass of water. Sponge the chicken pox patient with this water. Let it dry on the skin to give relief from itchiness. You can use upto 3 tablespoons of baking soda in a bowl or glass of water.
2. Take half a cup of baking soda and mix it with warm water prepared for taking bath. Let the patient bathe with this water. You can even have cool bath instead of warm bath.

2. Honey Remedy to Cure Chickenpox

Honey is the natural antibacterial component which can excellently cure irritation. It is said that the simple natural sugars contained in the honey along with its anti-bacterial properties create this soothing effect.

Do this:

• Apply honey in thin layer all over your skin where there are rashes, blisters or just itching.
• Leave for sometime and then wash away.
• Repeat this 3-4 times a day.

3. Neem Leaves Remedies for Chickenpox

Neem or Margosa leaves, also known as Indian Lilac, is one of the best remedies for chicken pox used since ages in India. Neem has significant antiviral properties that can combat varicella zoster virus causing chicken pox. It also relieves of itchiness and irritation caused by rashes and blisters. In fact, neem is a magnificent herb that exhibits immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, antihyperglycaemic, antiulcer, antimalarial, antifungal, antibacterial, antiviral, antioxidant, antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic properties. So it makes sense to use neem leaves for chicken pox cure. However, giving its strong nature, do not directly apply or let your children ingest neem in any form. For adults, neem is safe to be used.

Ways to use neem leaves for chickenpox

These are the ways that people in India adopt to use neem leaves for chicken pox. You should do all the listed things and not one or two of them.

1. Hang neem fronds all around the bed of the patient.
2. Use neem fronds as a fan. Fan the patient with neem fronds.
3. Prepare a paste of neem leaves by crushing them with water. Apply this neem paste onto the skin of the patient. If the patient is a kid, omit this step.
4. Once the disease is cured and the scabs have dropped off the skin, give the patient neem bath. For this, soak neem leaves in warm water and bathe with this water.

4. Brown Vinegar for Chickenpox

Vinegar consists of acetic acid and before it found usage in cooking, vinegar had been used for medicinal purposes long back. Mild acid in vinegar kills the harmful bacteria. As a traditional remedy, brown vinegar has been used to treat chicken pox as it helps relieve irritation and make blisters dry off. It also prevents chicken pox scars.

Do this:

• Take half a cup of brown vinegar and mix it with lukewarm bath water.
• Now take a bath with this water daily till your chicken pox is cured.

5. Oatmeal Bath for Chicken Pox

Oatmeal has been used to prepare a bath for patients of chicken pox and it really soothes their skin by relieving them off the itchiness that they get from rashes and blisters.

1st way to prepare oatmeal bath for chickenpox

Get this:

• Oatmeal- 2 cups
• Water- 2 liters
• Cloth bag- 1
• Bath tub filled with warm water

Do this:

• Take 2 cups of oatmeal.
• Grind this into fine powder.
• Add this oatmeal powder to 2 liters of water.
• Leave for about 15 minutes.
• Now take a cloth bag and fill this with the oatmeal mixed water. Secure it tightly.
• Release the bag into the bathtub with warm water and swirl it around till the time your bath water appears milky.
• Now soak in this bathwater to get relief from chicken pox generated itchiness.

2nd way to prepare oatmeal bath for chickenpox

Get this:

• Oatmeal- 2 cups
• Bathtub filled with warm water

Do this:

• Blend the oatmeal in a blender or a food processor to get a fine powder.
• While filling up the bath tub with warm water, swirl around this powder into the water.
• Soak into this milky water.
• This method will, however, leave certain bits and pieces of oatmeal on to your skin and hair but will relieve you of the itchiness.

6. Oatmeal Bath with Essential Oils to Cure Chicken Pox

While oatmeal bath can itself help you relieve of the itchiness, you can further improve its effectiveness by adding certain antiviral essential oils.

Get this:

• Oats- One handful
• Roman chamomile oil- 4 drops
• Lavender oil- 4 drops
• Tea tree oil- 2 drops
• Naouli Oil- 2 drops
• Clove oil- 2 drops
• Rosemary oil- 2 drop
• Sock- 1

Do this:

• Place the oats in the sock.
• Pour the oils over it one by one.
• Now start filling the bathtub.
• Place the sock under the tap where it is releasing water.
• As the water flows into the tub, the, it will take the essence of the ingredients packed in the sock.
• Now let the patient soak in this water.

7. Homemade Anti-Itch Cream for Chicken Pox

Certain essential oils have anti-viral and anti-fungal properties. They can also relieve the itching you get from rashes and blisters on your skin when suffering from chicken pox. Here is one recipe to make an anti-itch oil for getting such relief. It uses a blend of essential oils good for skin.

Get this:

• Fine sea salt- 1 tsp
• Baking soda- 1 tsp
• Bentonite clay- 2 tsp
• Witch hazel- 1 tbsp
• Peppermint oil- 5 drops
• Lavender oil- 5 drops
• Ravensara oil- 3 drops
• Tea tree oil- 2 drops
• Naouli Oil- 2 drops
• Clove oil- 2 drops
• Rosemary oil- 1 drop

Do this:

• Blend all the ingredients together.
• Dab the required amount on the rashes and blisters to get relief from itching.

8. Epsom Salt Remedies for Chicken Pox

Epsom salt, as against its name, is a mineral compound and not a salt. It consists of magnesium and sulfate and can be very useful in relieving itching due to chicken pox. The minerals in Epsom salt also relieves pain and soothes inflammation of skin associated with chicken pox.

1st way to use Epsom salt for chickenpox: Epsom salt bath

• Take 2 cups of Epsom salt.
• Fill your bath tub with warm water.
• Add Epsom salt to this water. Mix well with your hand until it dissolves completely.
• Now soak in this water mixed with Epsom salt for about 15 minutes. You may like to soak for some more time.
• Get out of the tub and gently pat dry body with a towel. Be careful not to damage your blistered skin.
• Soak everyday in Epsom salt water till your chicken pox is cured.

2nd way to use Epsom salt for chickenpox: Compress

Get this:

• Epsom salt- 2 cups
• Warm water- 1 gallon (a little more than 3.5 liters)
• A clean cloth

Do this:

• Mix the Epsom salt in warm water.
• Now dip the cloth in this water and saturate it.
• Take out the cloth and apply on your skin where there are blisters.
• Let the cloth cool down.
• Repeat as many a times as you want. You’ll be relaxed.

9. Essential Oils Bath for Chicken Pox

Thieves oil is a blend of five anti-infectious, anti-viral, anti-bacterial, and anti-septic essential oils. These five oils are cinnamon, clove, lemon, eucalyptus and rosemary oils. When combined with other useful essential oils and Epsom salt, this oil blend does wonders to cure chicken pox. You can use this for an oily Epsom salt bath.

Get this:

• Epsom salt- ¼ cup
• Thieves oil- 3 drops
• Lavender oil- 3 drops
• Melaleuca oil- 3 drops

Do this:

• Add all the oils to the Epsom salt.
• Let this sit for 30 minutes. This will make the salt absorb all the oils so that they do not float over the bath water.
• Add the oiled Epsom salt to your bath water.
• Soak for 15-20 minutes or more.
• Pat dry gently with a clean towel.

10. Sandalwood Oil Remedy for Chicken Pox

Sandalwood oil is anti-bacterial and anti-viral. Not only this, it is anti-inflammatory and natural calming agent. While you can simply rub sandalwood oil on your skin to treat its inflammation and itchiness, here is a recipe that also use turmeric, yet another anti-bacterial herb having anti-inflammatory properties.

Get this:

• Sandalwood oil- 3-7 drops
• Turmeric powder- 1 tsp

Do this:

• Mix turmeric powder with sandalwood oil to make a paste.
• Apply this to your skin with itching.
• Let it be there for about half an hour.
• Wash off with water and gently pat dry. Take care not to damage your blisters.

11. Jasmine Flower Remedies for Chicken Pox

This is a Thai remedy for treating chicken pox. People in Thailand use jasmine flowers to make tea as well as for a bath to treat chicken pox. These flowers are easily available at any herbal medicine shops as well as herbal tea shops.

Ways to use Jasmine flowers for chicken pox

• Drink Jasmine tea 2-4 times a day. You can find this tea in herbal tea shops. Just steep it in hot water and have it.
• Make Jasmin bath. Take a handful of jasmine flowers and grind them. Mix ground Jasmine with some rice water. Now add this rice water to lukewarm bath water. Bathe with this water.

12. Ginger Bath Remedy for Chicken Pox

This is yet another Thai herbal remedy for chicken pox. This relieves you of the itching caused by the disease. Although you can always drink ginger tea by boiling ginger pieces in water, ginger bath is what will get you rid of itching rather instantly.

Get this:

• Ginger powder- ¼ to ½ cup (you can also use fresh ginger pieces)
• Bath tub filled with warm water

Do this:

• Mix ginger powder or fresh ginger pieces into your warm bath water.
• Soak in this water for 20-30 minutes.
• Gently pat dry with clean towel without damaging your skin.

13. Marigold Flowers Remedy for Chicken Pox

Marigold (Calendula) is a flower which is an effective anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory herb. It is great for reducing swelling and redness of skin. Its capacity to stimulate production of collagen relieves you of pain and also speeds up the healing process. Get it from any herbal store.

Get this:

• Marigold flowers- 2 tbsp
• Witch hazel leaves- 1 tsp
• Water- 1 cup

Do this:

• Mix the two herbs, marigold flowers and witch hazel leaves.
• Now add them to your cup of water.
• Let them soak overnight.
• In the morning, grind the herbs using the same water in which they were soaked.
• Apply the paste on your skin to get relief.

14. Green Peas Remedy for Chicken Pox

Green peas are not only a delicious vegetable but also a great remedy to get rid of itchiness associated with chicken pox. Water made from peas also suppress the urge to itch.

Get this:

• Green peas- 200 g
• Water- enough to cover the peas while boiling.

Do this:

• Add the peas to water.
• Bring the water to a boil.
• Let it boil till the peas get soft,
• Drain the water and save it for later use.
• Crush the peas to make a paste.
• Apply the green peas paste on your skin.
• Leave for about one hour.
• Wash off.
• The water that you get from boiling the peas also is used to get relief from chicken pox.
• Let this water cool down.
• Once it cools down, sponge your skin with this water. This water also helps in curing the scars of chicken pox if you get any.

15. Make Herbal Tea for Chicken Pox Remedy

Herbal tea is a good way to boost immunity. As chicken pox virus is basically caught by people with weak immunity, it is always advisable to have some herbal tea to improve the defense mechanism of the body. Herbal tea is also recommended even if you have already got the disease. Here is a list of some herbs that you can use to make tea to cure your chicken pox.

• Lemon balm
• Echinacea
• St. John’s wort
• Ginger
• Pau d’arco
• Burdock
• Holy basil
• Marigold
• Chamomile

How to make herbal tea?

• Choose any of the herbs listed above.
• Take 1 tbsp of this herb and add to a cup of boiling water.
• Let it steep for 5-10 minutes.
• If you so prefer, you can add honey or stevia leaves for natural sweetness.
• You may also add some cinnamon powder.
• Strain and drink this tea several times a day.

16. Get Vitamin D from Sunrays to Cure Chicken Pox

Some researchers from the University of London conducted studies on varicella-zoster virus which causes chickenpox. In their studies, they found a link between UV levels in the regions and the prevalence of chickenpox there. In tropical countries, there is much lesser incidence of chicken pox through out the year. On the other hand, temperate zones have high rates of chicken pox during winter and spring seasons when sun’s ultra violet radiation (UVR) is at its low in these regions. Not only does sun rays kill many viruses, it also provides with the vital vitamin D which boosts immunity. Vitamin D is also anti viral in nature.

Expose yourself to sun to treat your infection as soon as you realize that you have caught the virus. However, if you have active lesions on skin, you should not go for sun exposure. This will turn the wounds into scars. If you have caught the virus but still have not developed the rashes, you may go for sunshine therapy though. Rashes always appear on skin after 2-3 days after you get infected with the virus of chicken pox. You’ll have to take the clue from other symptoms of the disease. In fact, exposing yourself daily to mild sunshine for sometime seems to be the best policy!

17. Diet Remedies for Chicken Pox

Your body needs basic nutrients including vitamins and minerals as also enzymes that may boost its immunity. Not only that, these nutrients also cleanse toxic wastes from the cells to treat chicken pox. So do not take diet lightly and pay proper attention to it.

• Have plenty of vegetables and fruits. They provide you with phyto-nutrients required to strengthen your immune system.
• Have juices that are rich in vitamin A and C. Carrot juice with coriander leaves and a dash of lemon juice is good for curing chicken pox. Add honey to this to make it more nutritious.
• Have chicken soup and vegetable broth.
• Make smoothies using kale, cabbage, beet, broccoli, cherries, blackberries, elderberries.
• Avoid sugary and processed foods as well as sodas.
• Limit the intake of dairy products but yogurt can be taken.
• Limit the intake of meat, breads or any other food that lays stress on your digestive system. Avoid salt, chillies, butter and spicy food.
• Have lots of water and other healthy fluids.

18. Precautionary Remedies for Chicken Pox

As long as the blisters are there, you’ll get newer ones because its very tough to avoid scratching due to the urge of itching. However, you need to heal those blisters so that they soon convert into scabs and fall off your body. For this, take the following precautions.

• Don’t scratch, it will cause scars and increase the risk of infection.
• Use cool compresses, even ice packs, to ease the discomfort of itching.
• Clip your nails, keep them as short as possible so that you do not scratch accidentally.
• Take baking soda or oatmeal baths to relieve itching. You will find may other remedies to relieve itching in the home remedies for chicken pox mentioned in this article. Use them.
• Take plenty of rest, bed rest. You are a carrier of infection and should not step out of your home to protect your family and friends from chicken pox.