★★★★★
Cool Water
★★★★★
Cool Water
★★★★★
I was working in a sand candle making business. After forming the candle they had to be dipped in 250 degree wax to coat them. A large candle I was hand dipping slipped out of my hand and made the hot wax splash up on my hand past my wrist. My boss was there and grabbed me and filled a coffee can with regular cold (but not too) tap water. She had me keep my burn completely immersed for at least 30 minutes. When I removed my hand from the water, not only was the pain gone, but I also didn't blister and there was no permanent skin damage. A couple of years later I was working in a pizza parlor. The oven is usually around 500 degrees. I was scraping the stone that the pizzas sit on when it got stuck behind the stone. When I tried to pull it out my right hand came up and hit the top stone. The whole thumb side half of the back of my hand was burned. I grabbed a wet towel and put it around my hand till I could get to a water source and fill a bucket. I immersed my hand for a full 30 minutes (much to the displeasure of my boss). Once again not only did the pain go away, but also there was no blistering or any lasting scar. The skin was slightly discolored for a day or so. It seems that the most important thing for a burn is to seal it off from air. Also part of the shock of a burn is a rapid evaporation of fluid to the affected area. Simple water - not too cold - seemed to do the trick in both cases. It's been over 30 years since both incidents and I have never had any scarring or weakness of the affected areas.
