Poison Ivy is a seasonal type rash. Most people contract poison ivy by touching the poison ivy or other similar plant species. Poison Ivy is not contagious. The way to get Poison Ivy, Poison Oak, or Poison Sumac is to touch the plants. Some people are immune to Poison Ivy but many people are not. Also, people that are immune to Poison Ivy may not be immune a year from now. Poison Ivy is a poisonous shrub that grows in most of the Canadian Provinces and all the US states except Alaska, California and Hawaii. It is usually found in wooded areas around the perimeters or rocky exposed areas. In Mexico it can be found in mountainous areas.

Poison ivy causes a rash in 90% of the people who come into contact with it. The rash is caused by an oil on the surface of the leaves, urushiol, coming in contact with any part of the body or even clothing. The same oil is carried by sumac and poison oak. The rash itches like crazy and can be spread by the hands if it has been touched (it cannot be spread by scratching the rash, though scratching can create an open wound that could become infected).

The most obvious form of poison ivy relief is prevention, but not everyone knows how to identify it, and those that do can sometimes expose themselves to it incidentally. If you're ever outside and believe that you're being exposed to poison ivy or oak, you need to clean your skin immediately. First, you need to apply alcohol by rubbing it on the affected area. Poison ivy grows wild in a number of places around North America. The plant may appear as a shrub or a vine that runs up a tree or creeps along the forest floor. Generally, the leaves are smooth-edged, although some varieties of poison ivy do have notched leaves. The important to remember is that in spite of the difference in the shape of the leaves, all forms of the poison ivy plant grow leaves in groups of three.

Dermatologist often look for natural remedies to ease the symptoms of Poison Ivy. Rapid redness or unusually high swellings are symptomatic of an allergic reaction to Poison. If this occurs consult your physician immediately and do not attempt any home remedies. The other of the popular poison ivy remedies is yet another simple one. So many times in life the simplest and oldest remedies seem to work the best. Get in a bath that has had baking soda mixed into its water. This is a cheap method indeed. Soak in that baking soda water for a pretty long time. After you washed your skin with water, you must wait a little time and then wash it again, only this time with warm water and a very powerful soap that will prevent the urushoil from spreading all over your skin. Once you have done that, you are on half of the way in treating poison ivy rash.