Years and years ago I read a series of books by Willard Price in which two brothers journey round the world catching wild animals for zoos. All the 'animal facts' in the books that I have ever checked seem to be true, sort of "education disguised as adventure" for kids.
Anyway in one of them, one of the brothers gets stung badly by an enormous Portuguese Manowar jelly fish and of course is rendered unconscious, helpless, and the 'baddie' is closing in!
His brother remembers that the 'wise old sea captain' once told him to put shaving cream on jelly fish stings to help them, so he does and it works - brother saved, baddy foiled, happy ever after.
Does anyone know if this would actually work? Particularly in a severe case?

According to Wikipedia and a site from Hawaii, they basically say to use hot or cold. Supposing that shaving cream produces heat, then in my opinion it might help. However, hot water seems to be the trick. I doubt that shaving cream would work in a severe case. Medical treatment is necessary.

Man 'O War

And from the lifeguard's page: Venom

By the Way, Wikipedia also states that this creature is not really a jellyfish! I didn't know that!

I didn't see anything about shaving cream, but the Life Guard instruction said that 'almost' all stings remedy themselves in a couple of hours. Thus, making ANY first aid appear to be effective.
Great articles, Jar! I was facinated.

I thought vinegar was a treatment for jellyfish stings.

Not according to one of the websites I provided.

Veronikka, the only reason I mentioned the shaving cream was because that is what was mentioned in the original post. Having had to resort to using men's shaving cream once or twice, I know that it provided warmth. That was the only reason I said it is possible it might help. It is interesting information.

The other one that I thought of when you mentioned stings was centipedes. I used to live in Hawaii, and they are very common there. The way to help those stings is to make a paste of MSG (monosodium glutamate) also known as Accent Tenderizer and water, the spread it on the bites. That is even what was used in hospital emergency rooms. It was not uncommon to see a container of Accent on the shelves at the hospital. But I am way off topic. Sorry about that. Just something else interesting!

According to emedicinehealth.com this would be treatment for jellyfish stings. Same treatment was suggested in our Diving First Aid class.

"Rinse with seawater. Avoid fresh water because it will increase pain. Do not rub the wound or apply ice to it.


For classic box jellyfish stings, apply topical acetic acid (vinegar) or isopropyl alcohol."

i thought vinegar too

it seems like putting hot water on a jelly fish sting would really hurt...

I believe hot water is for Protein based stings like Scorpion fish and Sea Urchins. The hot water breaks down the protein in the sting thus giving relief.

I heard acetic acid (vinegar) too for box jellyfish and a variety of other kinds. I've also heard of urine being used for jellyfish sting relief. Any water hot enough to denature protein may scald enough to cause first or even second degree burns and can only be used over a small patch of skin, be careful! Still better than the sting I suppose. I've encountered lionfish/scorpionfish while swimming (in the Red Sea) and saw plenty sea urchins there, jellyfish elsewhere and my best tip is *respectful distance*! Not stung yet by any of those. You can wear flippers or sandals swimming in such waters so that you don't accidentally step on an urchin.
Thanks Jar for the tip. We get venomous centipedes here too and I'm going to get some MSG! Any tips for scorpion stings?

I was stung by one of these a few months ago whilst fishing and I can attest that washing the affected area with seawater does help, but I imagine this was mostly due to washing off the stingers from my arm and not actually offering a 'cure.' They are painful though, I can agree with that. The pain did fade away to nothing after about two hours.

Given that they are seagoing animals I would be surprised if someone would have shaving cream handy for use as a first aid measure.

I think some jellyfish stings can be initially treated with acetic acid, others cant, but, I can't for the life of me remember which is which.

This is from Wiki:
"Vinegar (3 to 10% aqueous acetic acid) should be applied for box jellyfish stings. Vinegar, however, is not recommended for Portuguese Man o' War stings. In the case of stings on or around the eyes, vinegar may be placed on a towel and dabbed around the eyes, but not in them. Salt water may also be used in case vinegar is not readily available. Fresh water should not be used if the sting occurred in salt water, as a change in pH can cause the release of additional venom. Rubbing the wound, or using alcohol, spirits, ammonia, or urine will encourage the release of venom and should be avoided. Though often not available, a shower or bath as hot as can be tolerated can neutralize stings. However, if hypothermia is suspected this method may cause other serious complications."

Wow, I had heard TO use alcohol or urine. Good thing I didn't find out the hard way that that is the exact opposite of what you should do!

This is off topic also, but I got really sucked into this and wound up somehow on a page of beautiful artwork done by a German biologist named Ernst Haeckel. Check it out.
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Ernst_Haeckel

Roofoo,
All I can say is, WOW! Those are fantastic, such intricate detail. I'm glad you got sidetracked and found that. Sandy