Who remembers having chilblains? What was the cure?

[MissCordeliaPreston]

I grew up in an old house in the70s/ 80s and I remember having to huddle in the one room with heating in winter.

And occasionally got chilblains on my toes, and one winter, on my fingers.

Can anyone recall what the cure was back then?

I ask in case we need to know this year.

Zambuk ointment

My mum always said you won't get them if you wee in the bath.

We used to use snowfire ointment

My Mam took a potato peeler to mine

No idea about back then but they do still exist! Try as much as possible to keep toes and fingers dry and warm, when warm isn't an option make sure they stay dry. Strong steroid cream on affected areas when they flare.

I'm not recommending that btw!

My mum used to get them really badly. She used to soak her feet in a bowl of warm water with a spoonful of linseed in. Seem to remember it working well!

@TyneTeas Jesus

Actually I may be thinking of a verucca...

(But still potato peeler!)

They were agony. I had a small bottle of some foul smelling liquid that used to ease the pain ( it is horrific, a sort of burning, aching feel combined with swelling and a need to scratch the itch) I don’t know what the stuff was, it was ancient , probably brewed by one eyed alchemists in stone dungeons, label long gone, but it worked!

I dunno about treatment, but I soon learnt about prevention after moving to Canada. In most cases it's not down to how cold your extremities get (frostbite is your worry then!) Chilblains are FAR more likely to occur if your toes and fingers warm up too rapidly after being cold for long periods.

My friend swears by a glass of beetroot juice every day to prevent them

Ah yes, I remember the joys of chilblains having grown up in a house with no central heating.

According to my late grandmother, the recommended treatment was to wee in a child's potty and then soak your feet in it. She absolutely swore by it.

Lovely.

I used to get them. Do idea about the cure. Think they just went away by themselves.

I got chilblains a lot as a child. I was told to soak my feet in hot salty water and raise my feet, so they were higher than my head. I also had to take cod liver oil, which tastes nasty. Not sure if any of this helped.

The only thing that I have found helpful is wearing warm boots in winter and mittens.

I get them every winter. It’s the change in temp from cold to warm- it’s about prevention and keeping feet at as steady a temp as possible. I had reynauds which makes that very difficult.

haven’t found a cure yet, or a way of keeping the temp from fluctuating.

I used to get them really badly as a child and teenager, and I grew up in a nice warm house. However I've always had cold feet and hands.
Strangely I didn't get them when I went to Uni despite living in craply heated accommodation and baking my feet in front of an electric heater in my cold room.
BUT I used to walk a couple of miles to and from campus every day plus loads of walking between lectures as they seemed to be as far apart as possible.
So I'm convinced exercise got rid of mine.

Urggh. I remember them 😔 Bloody painful. It breaks my heart that another generation will know they feel like 😔

I had some cream for them, but I don't remember it doing much,

No way would my mother have gone for letting us wee on them 😆

I get them even now. Itchy bastards!

I get the buggery things every year. I think you can buy a cream for when you get them but can't remember what it's called. I just battle through tbh.

Yes, wee in a potty and soak poor toes in that. It worked too

Not so much a cure as prevention but Doc Marten boots and thick socks worked for me! Too many mornings standing waiting in freezing cold bus stops waiting for the bus to school (which was always late) were the culprit!

I used to get them a lot in the winter on my thighs when I worked out doors. Never found a cure, they were incredibly painful. They only stopped when I stopped working outside.

I get them. I don't know of a cure but to prevent them avoid big changes in temperature. Wear warm socks and slippers at home and never plunge freezing cold hands or feet into a hot bath.

As others have said, don't put cold feet somewhere suddenly hot, like on a hot water bottle. I remember having them. Oh, they did itch. One day I threw some ancient chilblain cream out but before I threw it I took the top off to sniff it and it transported me back to my early days.