Easy Ways to Remove a Splinter
Splinter? No problem! Just try one of these home remedies for splinter removal.
Summer is a time for frolicking around in sandals, flip-flops, and of course bare feet. It’s also a time for splinters. Splinters are painful and can need medical attention, but most of the time the occasional piece of wood that gets stuck in your hand or foot can be remedied at home. Tweezers and/or sterilized needles work well, especially if the splinter isn’t too deep.
Sometimes, though, these common household items can incite screaming and crying when the patient is a child, or can be difficult to use if you are by yourself. If you’d prefer a more “natural” removal method, why not give one of these a try:
Tape
From Duct to Scotch to masking many people swear by this removal method. This method is best for more superficial splinters rather than deep ones. Simply break off a piece of tape large enough to cover the area, then pull off the tape in the opposite direction the splinter went in.
Potato Slices
Cut a potato into thin slices. Place one slice on the splinter (use the side without the skin). Varying sources suggest leaving it on the spot for 10-20 minutes to the whole night. If you decide to leave it overnight, secure the potato slice with two bandages to keep it in place. When you remove the potato, it should pull out the splinter.
Baking Soda Paste
This method is best for those tiny, invisible splinters. You should use this only after you’ve tried other methods, as this paste will cause the skin to swell and push the splinter out. Make the paste by combining about ¼ tsp of baking soda with enough water to give it a paste-like consistency. Apply the paste to the cleaned area and put a bandage on top to keep it in secured. Leave it in place for 24 hours, and then remove. The splinter may be sticking out and need to be pulled out the rest of the way with tweezers or sterilized needle. If you don’t see it, repeat this process for another 24 hours.
Which splinter removal do you use? Share your favorite remedy here.
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- Sandi Duncanhttps://www.farmersalmanac.com/author/sduncan
Does anyone have the “recipe: for Salty Pork = my grandmother made it when we butchered hogs, it was lard and salt and it ended up being creamy and it worked better than anything on things in hands and feet, I think it was a German or Czechlosavia recipe
I have a splinter in my hand but it doesn’t hurt but it hurts when I try to get it out I tried to search up stuff to get it out and found this so I’ll try it. But tomorrow rn it’s 9:17 so yeah
When I was about 14 years old we had shag carpet in our apartment and my mom had dropped sewing needles and pins that were lost. I happened to step on a needle when I was barefooted and it went up between my big toe and the next toe. My dad tried to remove it with tweezers but couldn’t reach it. He wanted to take me to the hospital but I begged him not to take me. I walked around with a sore foot for a week or two and an old woman who lived near us asked me why I was limping so much and I told her. She said for me to come in and sit down. She looked at my foot and I showed her the spot. She took a potato and cut it up and put a piece in between my toes and then put a bandage around it and told me to keep it on all night and remove it in the morning. When I took it off the next day, the potato had the needle stuck in it all the way. You can’t imagine how grateful I was to that old woman. I wish I could remember her name so I could give her credit. Sde saved my dad a lot of money!
Wow, that’s quite a story! Next time please go to the ER! But glad it worked out!
I have a wood splinter on the surface of my foot but too scared pull it out and it hurts to much to put tape on it so what do I do?
Hi, we list a few methods in the article but if it’s really in there and painful, we highly recommend you contacting your doctor. Good luck.
Splinter
I have a deeep splinter in my thumb and it rally hurts
Are u ok
Can something like one of these help shingles P H N
pain
Wash the area with Ivory bar soap, dry the skin then use the same Ivory bar to make a bit of a paste over the area. Leave over night. Pulls out impurities without drying the skin believe it or not. This trick also works for blackheads on the face.
Take a piece of salt pork and put it over the splinter with a piece of white cloth loosely tape over the top overnight the salt in the pork will draw splinter out or to /he top so you can get to it. Works very well on cactus needles,glass slivers,wood splinters etc.
Can we eat the salted pork for breakfast when the splinters out
No use in wasting it, because of a splinter
Young Sheldon would day to be careful eating splinters so that you do not splinter your esophagus. Because that can cause splinter reflux esophagitys GERD which will make everything you say sound stupid.
The tip of my thumb is covered with many tiny splinters that sting so bad if I even bump it! I have been digging them out for three days with blades and tweezers and needles and peroxide, and magnifying glass, but I’m not getting them out, and it’s sore! Help please?
I also have those too. I’m trying the peroxide, then the baking soda paste to sleep in.. good luck