About infections in the wild Boils, fungal infections, and rashes typically do not pose serious health problems unless poor hygiene results in a secondary infection. They cause discomfort though and may be treated to reduce discomfort and accelerate healing time. Treating Boils in the wild A boil is a localized infection in the skin. Over…
Category: Health
How to treat open wounds to stop infection in the wild.

Introduction Open wounds are serious in a survival situation, not only because of tissue damage and blood loss, but also because they may become infected. Bacteria on the object that made the wound, on the individual’s skin and clothing, or on other foreign material or dirt that touches the wound may cause infection. By taking…
Snake bites – how to treat a snake bite in a survival situation.
How to treat spider and scorpion stings in the wild.
How to treat bee and wasp stings in the wild.
Insects are serious hazards in a survival situation – how to treat bites and insect stings.

The hazards of insect bites Insects and related pests are hazards in a survival situation. Insects bite as a defensive mechanism or to feed off of the host. They not only cause irritations, but they are often carriers of diseases that cause severe allergic reactions in some individuals. In many parts of the world, you…
How to treat sprains and damage to tendons and ligaments.

The accidental tearing or stretching of a tendon or ligament (tissues that connect bones at the joint) causes sprains. The signs and symptoms are pain, swelling, tenderness, and discoloration (black and blue). You may feel a pop or tear when a sprain occurs. When treating sprains, you should follow the letters in RICE as defined…
How to treat dislocated bones and joints (when little or no medical devices are available).

Signs and Symptoms of a Dislocated Bone Dislocations are the separations of bone joints causing the bones to go out of proper alignment. These misalignments can be extremely painful and can cause an impairment of nerve or circulatory function below the area affected. You must place these joints back into alignment as quickly as possible.…
Treating broken bone fractures in a survival situation (with little or no medical devices available).

There are basically two types of bone fractures: open and closed. With an open (or compound) fracture, the bone protrudes through the skin and complicates the actual fracture with an open wound. You should splint the injured area and continually monitor blood flow past the injury and only reposition the break if there is no…
Medicinal use of plants in the wild – sedatives, antihistamines, antiseptics, anti-fungal washes and more

Many plants have the ability to synthesize chemical compounds that help them defend against attack from a wide variety of predators such as insects, fungi and herbivorous mammals. Some of these compounds, whilst being toxic to plant predators, turn out to have beneficial effects when used to treat human diseases. There are literally hundreds of…