Not strictly Baja, but too important for off-topic and rattlesnakes are definitely Baja-related. Now where can I find some THICK Levis.
Denim may thwart rattlesnake venom
Reuters
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – If you're planning a trek into the wild, you might want to pack jeans instead of shorts. A new study suggests that a layer
of denim offers at least some protection from rattlesnake bites.
It might seem logical that any barrier between you and a rattlesnake's fangs would be a good thing. But it has not been clear whether ordinary
clothing can actually reduce the amount of venom that penetrates the skin.
In the new study, researchers at Loma Linda University in California looked at whether denim might offer some venom protection.
Drs. Shelton S. Herbert and William K. Hayes used latex gloves filled with saline to simulate a human appendage, then exposed the gloves to bites from
small and large southern Pacific rattlesnakes. Some of the latex "limbs" were covered in a layer of denim.
The researchers found that compared with the jeans-less gloves, those covered in denim absorbed about two-thirds less venom from the rattlesnake
bites. Instead, a high proportion of the venom "spilled harmlessly" onto the denim, the researchers report in the Annals of Emergency Medicine.
Worldwide, up to 2 million people are bitten by a venomous snake each year, resulting in as many as 100,000 deaths, Herbert and Hayes note in their
report.
In the U.S., rattlesnakes are mostly concentrated in the southwest, but can be found in most states. Bites can cause a range of immediate symptoms
including pain, bleeding, swelling and color changes around the area of the bite, breathing difficulty and blurred vision.
Untreated, rattlesnake bites are potentially fatal, so victims should get to a hospital emergency room right away.
While avoiding rattlers and their bites is always preferable, jeans may at least lessen the amount of venom that penetrates the body, according to
Herbert and Hayes.
"Wearing long denim pants as an alternative to shorts," they write, "may provide a simple, low-cost means of reducing the severity of snakebites."
SOURCE: Annals of Emergency Medicine, December 2009.
Someone got grant money, did a study and came up with this?
Dave - 1-5-2010 at 06:24 PM
Quote:
Originally posted by Oso
"Wearing long denim pants as an alternative to shorts," they write, "may provide a simple, low-cost means of reducing the severity of snakebites."
I'm jealous. wilderone - 1-5-2010 at 06:26 PM
Find some gaitors that go to just below the knee. They'll cover the tops of your shoes and socks too, so you don't get stickers in your socks and
sand in your shoes. the waterproof ones have a thin rubber coating - I would expect that type to be pretty snakebite proof over jeans. Gaitors are
good when wearing shorts too.Osprey - 1-5-2010 at 07:56 PM
At the sometimes crowded serpentarium at the zoooooo (all Os are Os) in Santiago(o) you might come on a day when the rattlers were want to warm up
above the others --- they would climb to about 4 feet to the tops of the cactus to safely sun and sleep. When my booted hiking pals saw that they had
to rethink the whole morning, their next canyon adventure around that part of the Lagunas. I told them they probably would not be victims to the kinds
of snakes which were that serious about how they spend their leisure hours. (just like my pals)grace59 - 1-5-2010 at 07:58 PM
Quote:
Originally posted by wilderone
Find some gaitors that go to just below the knee. They'll cover the tops of your shoes and socks too, so you don't get stickers in your socks and
sand in your shoes. the waterproof ones have a thin rubber coating - I would expect that type to be pretty snakebite proof over jeans. Gaitors are
good when wearing shorts too.
True, but that would make for some really crazy tan lines!!!Marla Daily - 1-5-2010 at 10:12 PM
Lace-up leather puttees are used in rattlesnake country by seasoned old timers.
Botanist, Clifton Smith, wouldn't go out in the field collecting plants in rattlesnake country without them!
