Living with chronic hives (chronic urticaria) can be so uncomfortable that it can be hard to sleep and difficult to enjoy daily activities. If you or your child is itching or in pain, home remedies may help you feel more comfortable until you can see a healthcare provider.

One home remedy that may help with many types of hives is an oatmeal bath. If you’re thinking about trying this to help improve your quality of life with chronic hives, here’s what you need to know.

What Is an Oatmeal Bath?

An oatmeal bath is exactly what it sounds like: a bath where you add oatmeal to the water. There are packages of oatmeal that are specially made for this purpose. You can buy them over the counter, or you can make regular oatmeal work, too.

If possible, you’ll want to use colloidal oatmeal. This is a type of oatmeal that’s very finely ground. It absorbs water easily, and it’s easy to use in the bath.

Do Oatmeal Baths Help With Chronic Hives?

There’s very little research looking at colloidal oatmeal and chronic hives. But researchers do know some useful facts about colloidal oatmeal that suggest it may help with chronic hives.

Oatmeal has been shown to be anti-inflammatory. This means that it may help reduce inflammation, like the swelling many people experience as a symptom of chronic hives.

Inflammation is also associated with itching, which may be why oatmeal has also been shown to be anti-itch. In one study, oatmeal specifically helped people who were taking antihistamines for itching so they needed less of the medication to control the itch.

Oatmeal is also known to protect your skin. It does this in a few ways:

• It can bind to your skin to form a layer that protects it from getting irritated.
• It helps keep moisture close to your skin, which can help with skin hydration.
• It can help keep your skin at the right pH level, which is good for your overall skin health.

While these things may not help with chronic hives directly, they could help protect your skin from further irritation. If you deal with chronic hives because of irritated skin, it might help with that, too.

Some people may have a bad reaction to oatmeal. If you know that it gives you contact dermatitis or that you’re allergic to it, you shouldn’t use it on your skin. While oatmeal is generally considered safe, you should monitor your skin for any sort of response that might tell you it’s not right for you.

It’s important to know that a lot of the research on colloidal oatmeal has been done on people with atopic dermatitis, the most common form of eczema. While chronic hives and atopic dermatitis have some symptoms in common, they’re different skin conditions. There’s always a chance that oatmeal won’t help people diagnosed with chronic hives as much as it does those living with atopic dermatitis.

Some existing research was done using oatmeal as an ingredient in creams, lotions, bath oils, and more, but not specifically as a bath soak. Thus, the results may be specific to that kind of oatmeal treatment.

Even when you take those factors into consideration, it seems like there’s a chance colloidal oatmeal could help with chronic hives. If you’d like to try it, speak with your dermatology team and ask if you can take an oatmeal bath. If they clear you to do so, there are some things you can do to make it more likely to work well for you.

How To Take an Oatmeal Bath

There are a number of ways to take an oatmeal bath, assuming your dermatologist clears you to do so.

At its most basic, you can sprinkle colloidal oatmeal in your regular bathwater, mix it up, and sit in it for 10 to 15 minutes.

If you don’t have access to colloidal oatmeal, you can put regular oatmeal in a long sock, tights, or pantyhose. Tie a knot and put the whole thing in your bath, then soak yourself, too. If you want direct exposure of your skin to oatmeal, you can squeeze the water from the wet oatmeal sock directly onto your skin.

Dermatologists disagree as to the best temperature for an oatmeal bath. Some suggest using warm water, others think that cooler is better, and still others suggest that it should be lukewarm. In the end, you may find that different temperatures have different effects on your skin. If you have chronic hives that flare when your shower or bath gets too hot, for instance, you’ll want to keep your bath on the cooler side.

If you don’t have a packet of colloidal oatmeal made specifically for use in the bath, use somewhere between a half a cup and a full cup. If you add it into the water while the tub is filling up, it may be easier to get it completely mixed in.

Soak in your oatmeal bath for 10 to 15 minutes. If you can, get the affected areas of your body in the water for that amount of time so they get exposed to the oatmeal and can reap its benefits.

Make Your Own Colloidal Oatmeal

If you have regular oatmeal, you can make it into colloidal oatmeal on your own. This can be a more cost-effective way to get the best kind of oatmeal for an oatmeal bath.

Add your oatmeal to a food processor, a blender, or even a coffee grinder in a pinch. Anything that will grind it up into smaller pieces can work. Process it until it looks powdery, rather than like oatmeal. If you add it to some water, it should mix easily until it looks like a white, cloudy liquid.

You can use this in your bath, or you can take it one step further. You can put the oatmeal powder into a saucepan with a cup or so of water. Boiling it for a few minutes can pull out some of the most helpful parts of the oatmeal. Then, you can cool this and put the whole concoction into your bath.

When To See a Doctor

Any time you have hives that last longer than just a few days, you should see a doctor or a dermatologist for treatment. They can help you get the right diagnosis. If you’re living with chronic hives, they can figure out if you’re being exposed to a specific trigger.

When your hives have an ongoing, clear trigger — such as cold, pressure, or heat — this is called chronic inducible urticaria (CIndU). They may also determine if there is no known cause. This is called chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU), previously known as chronic idiopathic urticaria (CIU).

Dermatologists can also help you make a treatment plan so you feel more comfortable and can take part in your daily activities while you’re dealing with chronic hives. They can help you come up with a list of remedies, like oatmeal baths or calamine lotion, that you can try at home. These treatments are usually used in addition to other treatments, not alone. They may give some relief, but it’s often not enough to restore your quality of life.

You should also see a doctor if your symptoms get worse, you have a chronic hives flare-up, or your treatment isn’t working. This may mean that they need to adjust your medications to better help you manage the condition.

Finally, if you ever have hives alongside trouble breathing, swelling in your mouth or throat, or feel dizzy and lightheaded, get emergency medical help right away. These can be signs of a serious allergic reaction and may be life-threatening if not treated quickly.

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If you’ve used oatmeal baths to help with chronic hives, what was your experience like? Let others know in the comments below.