Molluscum & Home Remedies For This Contageous Skin Condition

If you or your child has been diagnosed with molluscum, then it is a condition that you can safely treat at home while taking care to remember that it can be very contagious as its full name suggests - molluscum contagiosum.

This skin condition, which is increasingly common in children and young adults, is characterized by lesions or bumps which are small, waxy, round growths - often with a tiny indentation in the middle, making it easier to recognize as molluscum.

These bumps may be pink, pearly-white or your skin color

There may be one bump or many bumps.

Fortunately, there is no pain but there can be itchiness. In children, molluscum can appear on the face, neck, armpits, hands and arms. Many children who have eczema also develop molluscum with itching so that they can keep passing the infection from one part of their body to another part.

In adults, molluscum affects the groin, genital area, thighs and even the lower abdomen.

When treating at home, remember to:

• Keep the affected area clean by using wet wipes which can be thrown away.
• Use a different towel for drying other parts of your body after a shower or bath.
• Don't scratch the area that has been treated - the virus can be spread by itching, scratching or rubbing the lesions.
• Wash your hands after touching the area that has been treated.
• Cover the sores with bandages or clothing to reduce the risk of spreading the virus to others or to other parts of the body.
• Avoid skin to skin contact.
• Apply a cold compress to relieve any discomfort.

Some people choose not have their molluscum treated because it can go away on its own but it may take months or even years to do so.  There is a risk of spreading the virus both to yourself and to others.

Here are some of the home remedies suggested to treat molluscum:

1. Tape therapy where you apply silk-backed hypoallergenic surgical tape to the bumps and leave it on. Remove after bathing or showering and then immediately re-apply. Although the process can take 8-16 weeks, it does usually work if the child or adult with the virus can tolerate the tape (many get contact dermatitis from the tape and have to stop).

2. An old home remedy (used by the military and probably one you would not care to follow) is to apply a small dab of urine twice daily until the molluscum heals.

3. You can mix spirits of camphor with baking soda into a paste, apply and cover with bandage. Change morning and night until the virus disappears.

4. Another home remedy is a sea salt scrub where you mix two cups of sea salt, 1/2 cup of olive oil, 1/4 cup of grape seed oil, 1 tablespoon of honey. Store this homemade solution in a glass jar where it will last for months. Shower as you normally would and gently massage the scrub into the lesions every day. Allow the mixture to sit on the skin for a minute, rinse off with clean water and pat the skin dry with a clean towel.

5. Exfoliate skin by making a special solution where you mix ½ cup of baking soda with enough water to make a paste. Rub this mix into your skin during a shower, rinsing it off with water afterwards.

Use a home remedy daily until bumps are gone. It might take a little time and patience, but you can successfully treat your molluscum with a home remedy in the comfort and convenience of your own home.

Sources

Molluscum contagiosum. (2015)
healthychildren.org/English/health-issues/conditions/skin/pages/Molluscum-Contagiosum.aspx.  (Accessed, 10 November 2021).

Molluscum contagiosum. (2015).
cdc.gov/poxvirus/molluscum-contagiosum/. (Accessed, 10 November 2021).

Molluscum contagiosum. (n.d.).
aad.org/public/diseases/contagious-skin-diseases/molluscum-contagiosum.  (Accessed, 10 November 2021).