For decades, potassium permanganate was considered one of the first means of a home medicine cabinet, today it has been pushed aside by the advanced achievements of the pharmaceutical industry.
But still - this universal tool can be very useful and therefore it is important to have the necessary minimum knowledge about it.
The main areas of medicine in which potassium permanganate helps
Small particles (crystals) of potassium permanganate, black-violet, completely dissolve in water, staining it, depending on the concentration, in shades from pale pink to raspberry-purple.
In everyday life (gardening) it is so often bred - by eye, but for use in medicine, the proportions are crucial and are calculated in percent.
Currently, pharmacies dispense potassium permanganate according to a doctor’s prescription, but even after receiving it for one purpose (for example, rinsing the mouth with stomatitis), it is very important if there is a need to use it for other purposes (for example, treating acne), to get the most complete information about planned action regarding its rules and restrictions. Moreover, all this should be stated (in writing or orally) by a truly qualified specialist.
Potassium permanganate is known primarily as an antiseptic for external use. Not the most powerful, but it is relatively safe for beneficial microflora, plus, most pathogenic microorganisms are not able to adapt to its effects, and therefore it is used for:
• treatment of skin with impaired integrity (this category can include serious damage, as well as abrasions, cracks);
• treatment of thermal burns;
• washing of wounds (including suppurating ones);
• postoperative suture treatment.
In addition to the disinfecting effect, the ability of potassium permanganate to help is also due to the properties of drying, reducing the intensity of the inflammatory process and suppuration.
The wide spectrum of action of potassium permanganate as a means of neutralizing harmful substances has for a long time explained the habit of using it to wash the stomach (induce vomiting) in case of poisoning, especially severe, of unknown etiology.
However, according to experts, such first aid has no less disadvantages than advantages (in connection with the specific properties of the drug, which will be discussed later).
In gynecology and urology, potassium permanganate is in demand as a tool for treating many diseases and alleviating the condition (reducing pain, swelling, relieving irritation) of a patient in inflammatory processes affecting the external parts of the body. As a rule, the remedy is in addition to the main treatment (in the form of douching, washing, baths). Also, externally it is used to treat hemorrhoids.
In what other areas does potassium permanganate help?
When dressing, a weak solution of potassium permanganate can help, without damaging the tissues that are in the fragile regeneration process, remove the bandage that has sucked to the surface of the wound - you just need to soak it well with a solution.
In folk medicine, recipes for potassium permanganate baths against excessive sweating of the feet and the unpleasant odor emanating from them are widely known, although in reality, they can more likely contribute to the treatment of calluses from shoes and serve as a means of easily preventing the formation of corns.
Also, potassium permanganate solution is used for the following purposes:
• treatment of throat diseases (eg, sore throats);
• rinsing the mouth after dental procedures (for example, tooth extraction);
• getting rid of single rashes and dermatological diseases (for treating the body, with the exception of the head, face);
• treatment of herpes (effective in the initial stage);
• treatment of skin lesions resulting from the setting of medical cans;
• eliminate fungal infections of the nails.
Once, with the help of a potassium permanganate solution, a pregnancy test was done - if a small amount of urine added to it caused clarification of the liquid - there is no pregnancy, if instead a precipitate appeared in flakes - conception occurred.
To date, this method, especially in cases where the health of a woman depends on the accuracy of the result, is completely unacceptable in connection with dubious performance.
How potassium permanganate helps gardeners
A special attitude to potassium permanganate is present among gardeners.
Here it is one of the most frequently recommended means for solving many issues, and in particular, the following goals:
• disinfection of planting material (seeds, bulbs);
• disinfection of containers for seedlings, garden tools and greenhouses - planned and in cases where they came into contact with plants infected with various diseases;
• soil cultivation - for the destruction of both pathogenic microorganisms and many pests;
• healing of "wounds" of plants resulting from breaks or pruning;
• feeding a number of crops, which ensures their strengthening in general terms, increases the chances of a good harvest.
However, the plant world is sometimes no less sensitive than the human body, therefore, the improper use of potassium permanganate in the infield, in theory, can irreparably harm plantings and jeopardize the availability and edibility of the crop.
What you need to know to potassium permanganate help without harm
Self-preparation of a solution of potassium permanganate is associated with the need to perfectly dissolve its particles in water, because otherwise they carry the risk of chemical burns to the skin or mucous membranes.
For the same reason, it is forbidden to touch the substance with bare hands.
The use of excessively concentrated solution is also a danger from mild irritation to burns, and although the rules for its creation differ in different cases, it is important to remember that the weaker it is, the more suitable for delicate cases (for example, treatment of thrush, bathing with chickenpox).
The specificity of the effect makes potassium permanganate an undesirable tool for treating bedsores of bedridden patients.
And completely unacceptable can be called recommendations from traditional medicine to use a solution of potassium permanganate for washing the eyes, with diseases or their defeat by poisonous insects. The fact is that the theoretical benefit of the remedy in these cases is blocked by the highest risk of the burn already named.
Sometimes there is individual intolerance to potassium permanganate, well seen, for example, when it gets inside - with the same gargling, these side effects will appear such as discoloration of the mucous membranes and their swelling, sharp pain when swallowing, cramps. Naturally, such symptoms require the abandonment of the drug, and sometimes immediate medical attention.
Also, the disadvantages of potassium permanganate solution include its ability to leave hard-to-remove bright spots on human skin and on the fabric of clothing, home textiles.
Separately, it is worth noting the wrong attitude of traditional medicine to treating with a solution of potassium permanganate bites of poisonous snakes and insects - of course, the properties of an antiseptic will affect the upper tissues, but talking about the ability of potassium permanganate to neutralize poison already injected into the human body, which has begun to spread through the body, is impossible.
