A recent survey by the Wound Care Resource Center of Johnson & Johnson (the makers of Band-Aid® brand bandages) found:

• Nearly half of the people surveyed don’t routinely clean cuts.
• 70% don’t treat their cuts and scrapes with an antibiotic ointment.
• 60% don’t use a bandage to protect a cut or scrape.
• 72% think it’s best to let a wound air out and form a scab.

Now you should learn the best way to heal cuts . it is an easy-to-remember, three-step process

1. Clean
2. Treat
3. Protect

How to clean?

At home, you can wash the cut or scrape under strong running water with soap.

Try not to dab or wipe the cut or scrape with moist gauze. Dabbing can push dirt into the skin. Wiping with a gauze pad or washcloth can damage delicate injured skin. Flush or irrigate the cut or scrape, and let it air dry before you go to the next step.

How to treat?

After the cut or scrape is cleaned, apply antibiotic ointment. You have a number of product choices today. You can buy a tube of ointment and apply it to the injury (but don’t touch the tip of the tube to the skin so the tip stays sterile). Or you can buy special Band-Aids® that have antibiotic ointment already on the pad.

Some antibiotic ointments today have an anesthetic, or numbing medicine, mixed in to reduce pain. Check with the pharmacist at your pharmacy or discount store to help you select the right product for your particular needs.

How to cover?

Cover the cut with a band-aid. If you don’t have that use a cotton ball and tape.

Keep the cut or scrape covered until you see that new skin has formed and healing is well on its way. Take the bandage off once a day for a bath or shower, and then reapply the antibiotic ointment and bandage for the rest of the day.

Questions and answers:

What to eat to support healing?

Eat vitamin rich, fresh, raw vegetables and fruits. They provide enzymes to boost your immune system. Dark green and orange vegetables contain beta-carotenes, which are important to speed up healing. Limit dairy products, sugar and white flour, since they slow down tissue regeneration.

As for supplementation:
- Vitamin C, Bioflavanoids, and Vitamin A to promote healing and fight infection.
- Vitamin E (internal and external) to help prevent scars.

Cover or uncover??

Both medical and nursing researches show that keeping a wound covered and moist and preventing scabs is the best way to heal the skin and reduce scarring.

If you think the best way to heal cuts is to allow a scab to form, you’re not alone. Most people think that’s the best thing to do but for sorry it’s not.

If a scab forms, it blocks the body’s ability to make new skin cells. As a dermatologist explains, “Grass doesn’t grow well under a rock; skin cells don’t grow well under a scab.” These new cells heal the cut or scrape and reduce the risk of a scar. Scabs actually prolong the healing process! Scabs also tend to get bumped, picked, or torn, which can lead to re-injury or more scarring.

For more information you can refer to:

www.nursesnotebook.com

www.optiderma.com

If you have any questions or suggestions please leave a comment , I will be  happy to hear from you^_^