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Splinter Remedies

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Epsom Salt, Calamine, Castor Oil

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Posted by Diane (Southern Ca.) on 09/07/2016
 ★★★★★

Editor's Choice

I thought I had Stinging Nettles and Ringworm in my hand! I didn't know what to make of my hand and it took me a long time to figure out why my left hand was so painful! I am 65 and the skin on my hands is now thin and I used a rake that was older and worn out. I didn't realize I had gotten hundreds of fiberglass splinters in my left hand! I was even treating my hand for Ringworm! At times my hand looked like I had ringworm. I tried everything on line regarding getting the Fiber glass splinters out and it took me months to get them all out!

This is what I did!

I found that soaking my hand in Epsom salt would bring out the splinters, but usually only the top of the splinter. Then I would use calamine lotion on the infected area and let it dry on my hand and the lotion would attach itself to the splinters when it was dry so I could pull or scrap them off with my finger nails! This was not the end as most of the fiber glass splinters had gone deep into my hand. I had to repeat this process every day to get the fiber glass splinters out completely!

I even went to the doctor and that didn't help. Also to help get the splinters out I used Vaseline worked into my hand followed by caster oil worked into the skin, and even vicks! The 3 oils would help work some of the splinters out! Then I would go back to the Epsom salt again and repeat the process all over again, the Epsom salt, the calamine lotion and then the oil.

It took me about 6 months to get all the splinters out! And it was HELL!

Please use gloves when working outside! My infected hand was so bad that I actually was worried that my hand would infect and I could lose my hand! Also Tinactin the fungus powder would help soothe my splinter filled hand and give it a rest. Then I would continue to treat my hand again. My hand is finally back to normal! I will never do yard work without gloves ever again!

Replied by Tiffiany
(Wasilla, Alaska)
09/08/2016

ACV splashed on and left on for at least 10 minutes, really get your skin wet with the vinegar, yeah it's going to sting (don't splash it into your eyes or put it up into your nose or private parts). Then rinse off with cool water. If area still itches soak a washcloth in ACV and leave on for 10-20 minutes then rinse in cool water. Husband has worked in commercial construction for over 25 years and this is what we use.

Replied by Diane
(Southern Ca.)
09/09/2016

Thanks,

As for my particular situation with loads of fiber-glass splinters in my palm and fingers, using vinegar on the condition of my hand would have been too painful for my situation as most of my palm was red. I could see that working on a few splinters though. For me the calamine lotion stopped the itch as did the Tinacin. I have had wood splinters before and PRID worked well to get wood splinters out very well. But PRID did not work on the Fiber-glass splinters. The most painful part was in the webbing of my hand between the thumb and forefinger. Working the fiberglass splinters in that area was murder!

Hair-Removing Wax, Watchmaker Tweezers

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Posted by M Johnson (Bothell, WA) on 07/27/2023
 ★★★★★

Hair removing wax and watchmaker tweezers for splinters

When my son was little he went barefoot in bark mulch and got a huge number of splinters sticking straight out of the bottom of his little feet. My quick thinking neighbor ran home and grabbed a pot of wax used to remove unwanted hair. She heated it to warm and spread it all over the bottoms of his feet. When it cooled, we peeled it off. It removed the vast majority of the splinters. I was able to remove the rest with watchmaker tweezers, which I've used many times to pull out thorns and splinters.

Homeopathy Silica

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Posted by Gail (Toronto, Nsw Australia) on 09/04/2010
 ★★★★★

I think the 'herb' you are concerned about is actually homeopathic silica (not a herb) it is great for helping expel foreign objects from your body. I stood on a sea urchin and the spines broke off in my foot - they were very deeply imbedded - but after taking the silica pillules for a few weeks all the spines miraculously came out. I would be very wary about using it if I had any type of clips etc in my body. Can't make any comment about the effect of OP though, which I have tried for the first time a couple of hours ago (1tsp VCO). I was thinking though that some of these really bad side effects might come about if you were to inadvertently swallow a bit of the oil you are swishing about in your mouth - I don't think that would be too good for you after 10 mins of swishing!

Neosporin

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Posted by Caca (Orangeburg, South Carolina Usa) on 04/25/2012
 ★★★★★

After a splinter got under my fingernail, I cut nail as low as possible and pulled skin back from nail. After several attempts to remove splinter with needle (after sterilizing it), I had no success. I then soaked finger in alcohol for about three minutes. After making sure there was an opening over the splinter I forced neosporin ointment under the nail. I only waited about two hours before I pulled skin back from under nail and then pushed on the nail and the splinter slid out. Thank goodness. Maybe it was just just luck..... but it worked for me.

Vinegar

5 User Reviews
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Posted by Mutsa (Zimbabwe) on 01/01/2017
 ★★★★★

Thank you. Apple Cider Vinegar worked for me today as I am writing. I thank God. The splinter was stuck deep in my hand finger nails and I followed the steps it came off easly without pain when I pulled it after it appeared on the surface.

Vinegar
Posted by Mmsg (Somewhere, Europe) on 08/13/2016
 ★★★★★

Editor's Choice

This is the second time a vinegar soak (10 or 20 minutes) caused an embedded, not-even-seeable splinter to pop out of the skin making it easy to remove.

One time wine vinegar was used and the second: plain white distilled vinegar.

Both times, the splinter "appeared" (1/2 popped out of the skin) only a while later, when I had given up staring at it!

Vinegar
Posted by Toni (Henderson ) on 03/27/2015
 ★★★★★

I was a little skeptical about the whole vinegar treatment for splinters but I got one under my fingernail that could not be removed and it hurt so bad that after reading this I had nothing to lose. I went home from work and soaked in for 15 minutes in white vinegar. I bandaged it and left it alone for the night. The next day, I massaged the splinter on my fingernail in a forward position. On the third try, the splinter came out in one complete piece. I was so excited and my husband couldn't even believe it worked, but it did.

Vinegar
Posted by Mmsg (Somewhere, Europe) on 09/22/2013
 ★★★★★

Another YEA for vinegar soak for splinters. After about 10-15 minutes of soaking (I only had wine vinegar), the edges of 2 hair-thin spliners came out of the sking far enough for me to painlessly pull them out with tweezers.

Vinegar
Posted by Austin (Texarkana, Texas) on 11/11/2011
 ★★★★★

Vinegar for Splinters

Thank u so much. It just made my day because I was just about to go to a wedding in Arkansas with a huge splinter in my thumb. My mom just told me to tweeze it out but it didn't work. Then I looked up this website and it saved me from my worst dipleasure in the world. Thanks a bunch.

White Bread in Milk

1 User Review
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Posted by Sharon (Vancouver, BC Canada) on 03/05/2009
 ★★★★★

I had a huge painful wood splinter under my thumbnail that was impossible to reach with tweezers and about a week later it either became infected or I had an allergic reaction to the wood itself which was cedar. A good friend insisted that white bread boiled in milk would remove it, and (ignoring my protests about the evils of white bread and milk) proceeded to boil 1/2 a slice of white bread in about 1 cup of milk for about two minutes, then while it was still very hot but not boiling, put a blob of this mixture on my fingernail and covered it with a bandaid. I was given strict instructions not to remove the bandaid until it was completely dry, so I left it on overnight and the next mornng removed it to find that the splinter had been almost completly drawn out from under my nail and was very easy to remove. I was very grateful and also amazed...that simple home remedy saved me a trip to the doctors who would likely have used a scalpel!

White Vinegar

10 User Reviews
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Posted by Laura (Fort Wayne, In) on 01/30/2016
 ★★★★★

It worked! 9 year old daughter had a splinter under her fingernail. We had her soak it in vinegar for 20 minutes. The splinter came out lickety split. Thanks for saving us a trip to the doctor.

White Vinegar
Posted by Kate (Germany) on 10/20/2015
 ★★★★★

Hi,

My 14 month old and I handled a prickly pear not knowing what it was :(. No advice given in store.

My wee one screemed in pain half an hour later and I had stings all over my hands.

I read on another side to use pumice stone to reduce the pain levels. I have one with a very fine side to it, so I very gently rubbed it over my daughters hands and then over mine and she stopped screaming immediately. It worked for most of the stingers, I think.

I then used white wine vinegar and bathed our hands in it for 10 minutes. I felt better immediately but as I touched my daughters left hand I could feel, she had a pretty big splinter in the soft palm. I sucked at it for a few minutes, drawing it out and then used a tweezer to get it out completely. She is absolutely fine now and the redness on her hand is disapearing as I write this.

I won't be buying this fruit for quite a while to come as it is not child proof!

Thank you for this great piece of advice.

All the best...

Replied by Mmsg
(Somewhere, Europe)
10/21/2015

The people I've seen opening and eating it, handle it with workman's gloves. But be forewarned: it has multiple small pits, NOT for little children. But, I'm told it's sweet!!!

White Vinegar
Posted by Tiffany (Northern California) on 02/24/2014
 ★★★★★

Editor's Choice

My young son had a minuscule splinter in his foot that was causing him a lot of discomfort. We soaked his foot in soapy water for about an hour but this did not move the splinter to a removable position. After reading Earth Clinic, we soaked his foot in white balsamic vinegar for 30 minutes. The splinter almost slid out of his foot! We were able to use tweezers with no problem at all to remove the splinter easily. Thank you Earth Clinic for all your information. You have saved our family many times!!

White Vinegar
Posted by Goldy (South Elgin, Il) on 10/27/2012
 ★★★★★

OMG!!! This vinegar things really works! Had a small pc. of a thorn in my thumb for a couple days. Soaked it in vinegar for 30 min. After reading this and it worked! Had to pull a tiny bit of the skin away from the top with a needle, but I started sqeezing it after that and it came right out!!! Thanks everybody! Many Blessings!

White Vinegar
Posted by Krazierkay (Newcastle, Nsw, Australia.) on 10/17/2012
 ★★★★★

Had a nasty splinter in my finger that wouldn't budge. Tried Magnoplasm and Bi carb soda paste and wouldn't budge and my skin was swollen around the splinter. To painful to get to it with the needle. Tried the vinegar. Soaked it for 30 mins. Swelling reduced to a shriveled finger look. I was able to slide it out with a needle with very little pain. Thank you Earth Clinic.


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