Q. I have recurring warts on one hand. My doctor has frozen them off and burned them off and they keep returning. She mentioned that some people have used poison ivy to get rid of warts. What do you know about that and the exact procedure of how to do it?
A. Many years ago we received an email from a reader of this column: “I read one of your articles about common home remedies for warts. One of the best uses the toxic oil, urushiol, from poison ivy plants. I put on surgical gloves to squeeze it from a leaf taken from the most rapidly growing part of the plant. I am very careful to only place a tiny drop directly on the wart. Then I cover it with a bandage.”
We decided not to share this remedy with our readers back then because we thought it was way too dangerous. Someone who is highly sensitive to poison ivy could have a terrible reaction and need hospitalization.
There are far safer ways to get rid of warts. Anyone who contemplates this approach should discuss it with a dermatologist first. Poison ivy should be treated as if it were toxic waste!
