How To Get Rid Of Chiggers Bites On Skin – Symptoms And Treatment

In order to protect yourself from chiggers, you must know what are chiggers. They are very small insects, cousins of ticks and spiders.

However, they are many times smaller than these insects. At the same time, this makes them more ‘’effective’’ in biting people. Keep in mind that they can cause a lot of medical issues and they are annoying.

The next question may be where do chiggers live? They live in grass and near water, so they can be present in your backyard. They will move from a grass onto your skin and explore your body.

In most cases, they will explore it for 6 hours, before they bite you. In addition, they like soft skin, so you can expect them on the ankles, behind knees and waist. In fact, any place where the skin is soft a chigger may bite you.

Chiggers like the summer and warmer months, so they are usually active during the summer and in fall (afternoons).

On the other side, they are inactive when the temperature is 60 F and they will die when the temperature is below 42 F. This also means that there are no reasons to worry about when the temperature is low and during the winter.

Do chiggers spread is another question you need answers to. The answer is simple and due to the fact they are very movable and they move all day, they spread easily. This also means that they can move from one place on your skin to another.

Beside aforementioned, most people want to know can chiggers live in your bed. The answer is simple and yes, they can live in a bed, but they cannot live for a long time.

Also, this isn’t their natural habitat, so they may move to another location. If you are or were affected by chiggers, replace your sheets and blanket, in order to be positive that they are not in your bed.

Chigger bites and their look

Chiggers are very small and they have 8 legs. On the other side, larvae have 6 legs and they are red. They will become yellow after they eat human skin, which means that they will be harder to get. In any case, you are going to need a magnifying glass in order to see them, even adult chiggers. They are very resistant and they are hard to remove.

Chiggers bite by sticking on the skin with their legs and using saliva to the skin cells. After that, our body will harden the skin and create a small tube, which chiggers use to drink dissolved skin cells. As the end result, you will end up with a chiggers rash. It is a severe issue due to the fact it may cover a huge amount of a body and it needs several days or even weeks to be treated. During that time, you will have red dots all over the affected area.

Keep in mind that they like soft and thin skin, so bite marks are the most common in those areas. The situation is even worse if you know that they can stay on your skin for a few days. After that, they will fall off. In addition, only larvae bites, so they are very dangerous.

All symptoms of a chigger bite

Most people won’t notice a chigger on their skin, due to the fact these insects are hard to detect. On the other side, people will notice once a chigger has left their body. There are several symptoms, but they can vary, depending on the place of a bite. The most common symptoms are:

  • This is the main symptom and all people will notice it a few hours after a bite.
  • A need for scratching of the affected place.
  • A red blister. This happens as the side effect of a bite and it will last for several days. In addition, you may need 2 weeks for the affected area to return to original state.
  • In a case that a bite happened on a penis, you may experience painful urination, swelling and itching as well.

In most cases chiggers won’t cause any severe reaction, but in some cases a person may develop an infection. In those cases, a medical attention is required. In any other case, medical attention isn’t required. On are chiggers contagious question, the answer is yes and no. If a chigger has some infection it may cause you a severe reaction or an infection.

In any other case, they don’t transmit diseases, so their bites are not life threatening.

However, this happens in rare cases and in most cases you will end up with a rash and blisters.

Treatment

Some individuals believe that chiggers live in the skin and that they can be removed with the help of different remedies. However, they don’t live in the skin, but they can be removed with home remedies for chiggers.

Keep in mind that nail polish, alcohol and similar substances are not effective and there is no point of using them. Most people believe that alcohol can kill chiggers and solve the problem, but this is an illusion!

On the other side, most creams can be used for treating these bites. In any case, anti-itch creams and taking a shower is the best thing you can do. Don’t forget that you don’t need a medical attention and you can treat this issue at home. It is mandatory to stop scratching, due to the fact it can cause an infection and it can make the situation even worse. If you stop scratching, the situation is less severe.

Beside home remedies, there are medications and creams that can be used for treating chigger bites. In most cases, the best solution and the best treatment you should use are corticosteroid creams, calamine lotion and diphenhydramine. All of these creams and medications will reduce the itching and they will help with the skin recover faster. It is mandatory to use these creams every day, until your skin is fully recovered. This means that you will have to use it for several days, or even several weeks. Using them every day is mandatory and highly recommended.

Keep in mind that if you don’t use anything to treat the affected areas, the recovery time will be longer and you will have a need to scratch. This may cause an infection and can leave scars! Despite the fact this issue doesn’t require medical attention, you will have to use something to treat the affected areas.


Prevention

Now you know how do you get rid of chiggers, but you should also know how to prevent them. As you know, they are not very dangerous, but they are annoying and their bites cause a lot of itching.

In any case, prevention is the best cure, and it should be taken into account. The best methods you can use are:

  • Wear long sleeves and long pants when the temperature is above 60 F.
  • Always wash your body with a soap after you were outdoors.
  • Use DEET and similar insect repellents. They are very effective and they are more than just useful.
  • Avoid spending time in short grass when the temperature is high.
  • Inspect your clothes after you get back home. Pay a lot of attention to the areas around ankles and hands.
  • If you walk in the nature make sure you avoid high grass and even walking near it.
  • Keep in mind that chiggers may be on your shoes, so remove from your home, after you were walking in the nature.

If you still get a chigger bite, don’t panic. The most important thing to remember is the fact that the bite isn’t dangerous and it isn’t contagious as well.

On the other side, it will leave marks for the next 2 weeks. Don’t scratch the affected area, simply because you will leave scars and you can cause infection, due to the fact there are millions of batteries under your fingernails. Use aforementioned lotions and creams in order to treat bites and make sure you use them every day, 3-4 times. Having a bath can help you reduce the need for scratching and it is a great thing to do.

In any case, medical attention isn’t required. However, if you notice that the affected area is swollen and becomes bigger, it may be infected, so you will need medical attention.

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