Fire Ant Bites Treatments

Fire ant stings can be very painful. If you have ever been stung by a fire ant, you know the pain and burning that is associated with the fire ant “sting”. Fire ant bites are different from wasp or bee stings in that a single worker ant can bite and sting numerous times.

How do fire ants bite?

A fire ant will bite by attaching itself to your skin with its mandibles. It will then pinch the skin to hold on and then it will arch its back like a bee and force its stinger into your skin. Unlike a bee which can only sting once, a fire ant can sting multiple times. Also, because they usually attack in large quantities, there will be numerous fire ants that are biting and stinging you. This is why many fire ant bite victims look like they have the chicken pox.

The venom from a fire ant is different from that of wasps and bees because it is made from a protein base. Almost 95% of the venom is water soluable. The venom also has a histamine in it which causes the reaction to the skin which looks like a blister or zit. There are also several different allergens in the fire ant venom that can cause allergic reactions to some people when they are stung by a fire ant.

How can you avoid being stung by fire ants?

The best way to avoid being stung by fire ants is to stay clear of their mounds, or nests, and their pathways that they travel for food. You need to recognize what a fire ant mound looks like. Also, knowing where fire ants are generally found can be a great help also. You will want to avoid disturbing their nest as this can cause a swarm of the ants to attack. A disturbance could be from a lawnmower to a child accidentally, or intentionally, poking the mound with a stick.

You will want to teach your children about what a fire ant mound looks like and how to recognize the fire ant also. Prevention is key to keep children from being stung by a fire ant. Often times, kids can react stronger to a fire ant sting than adults.

If you do have to work outside or around a fire ant nest, be sure to wear boots and tuck your pants into your socks to help keep the fire ants from getting to your skin. You can also wear protective overalls if you are at a high risk of exposure.

You will want to control fire ants activity as best you can when you are finding them in high traffic areas, or areas that you use frequently.

First Aid for Fire Ant Bites

Here are some tips for dealing with a fire ant bite. These are not all inclusive and are no means meant to diagnose or treat a fire ant bite completely. If you are in doubt about what to do, contact your doctor or seek medical treatment at an emergency room. Anaphylactic shock is a possibility if you are allergic to fire ant bites.

• Get the fire ants off of you.
  • Most fire ants, when they bite, are usually firmly attached to your skin. Usually the only way to get them off of your skin is to smash them or brush them off. Jumping around or jumping into water will not detach them easily.
• Perform basic first aid.
  • A single fire ant sting may hurt less then a bee or wasp sting, however when you are stung by a swarm, you could be facing a life threatening situation. You could possibly have hundreds of stings from a swarm if you aren’t careful in the matter of seconds. You can have severe pain and burning in your skin which can lead to an allergic reaction, if you are allergic to the sting.
• If you have a fire ant sting, you should quickly wash the area with soap and water in order to help clean the wound. This will also dilute some of the venom that might be on the surface of the skin. You will want to get a cold pack or some ice in a cloth and put on the wound. The ice will help reduce the pain and swelling some.

Remember, fire ant stings will burn and sting at first, but then will itch like poison ivy or chicken pox. You need to be careful as the sting location will blister and you don’t want to pop them or squeeze them. The liquid in the bump can lead to other skin infections and conditions due to the venom that is still inside. You could take some Benadryl also to help with the itching.

If you have allergies to bee stings, then you should consider yourself allergic to the fire ant bite. Seek medical treatment immediately or call your local emergency number or go directly to the emergency room.

There are numerous old “home remedies” dealing with fire ant bites, some work and some don’t. If you aren’t sure if you are allergic to fire ant bites, then the best course of action, depending upon how many stings you received, is to seek medical treatment from your doctor or local emergency room.

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