Were you ever enjoying a colorful picnic on a blossoming spring day and suddenly got stung by a fly? Or have you ever woke up from a peaceful nap to an annoying insect bite? Insect bites are usually very painful and their sources vary. Some of these insect bites are commonly due to mosquitoes, fleas, bees, bedbugs, fire ants, and ticks.
Generally, insect bites will cause swelling, redness, itching, and numbness. Although some insect bites are considered harmless, a number of them are marked as medical emergencies.

When Should You Worry?

Examples of “medical emergency-insect bites” include fire ant bites, spider bites, and harvester ant bites. If you experience any of these problems, then it’s advised to head to the hospital: difficulty breathing, faintness, confusion, swelling of lips/eyes/throat, redness that’s quickly spreading, fever, rapid heartbeats, chest pain, vomiting, and stiff neck, or if the affected person is a child below 6 months.

How to treat it?

First, if the stinger is stuck in your skin, try to remove it, then wash the area with water and soap, and if possible, run an ice cube on it to relieve the swelling. Afterward, you can apply numerous treatments that are available at our pharmacy and don’t require a prescription, which include calamine lotion, and, antihistamine gel (Fenistil). Finally, prevention is the greatest way to stay away from stinging and biting, where you can apply insect repellents before visiting a place where you’re aware of insects’ presence, including Ziva insect repellent wipes, and BEN’s insect repellent spray.