How To Remove Iodine Stains from Skin

            Each one of us would have made use of iodine at some point of our lives. This is because iodine is an effective disinfectant and this topical treatment is usually deployed whenever one gets some minor cuts and injures. Although iodine kills bacteria, yet it can also leave behind a pretty ugly stain on your skin.

           These unsightly iodine stains on your skin only add to the aggravation of your wounds and injuries. Many ointments and skin medications make use of iodine, therefore knowing how to remove iodine stains from skin is something each one of us ought to know.

          Iodine is a natural stain; therefore its removal is quite difficult. It tends to be pretty stubborn and persistent. Therefore you need to have some effective tips to counter these stains so that eventually you get rid of them.

          Given below are some tips and tricks which will make sure that these annoying iodine stains are removed from your skin satisfactorily, restoring it to its original clean and stain-free state.

Remove Iodine Stains from Skin using Alcohol

          Rubbing Alcohol or Isopropyl Alcohol has known to be pretty effective when it comes to the removal of iodine stains from skin and therefore the given method deploys this very ingredient. Instead of alcohol, hydrogen per oxide and lemon juice are also effective cleaning agents

Things that you will require:

·      Wash cloth

·      Body wash/soap

·      Clean water

·      Absorbent Towels

·      Cotton ball

·      Rubbing alcohol/isopropyl alcohol

·      Lotion

·      Lemon juice

·      Hydrogen per oxide

Steps that you need to take:

1.  First of all, you need to take hold of a soft wash cloth. Next, take some warm water and using this water moisten your wash cloth. Afterwards, using a body wash or soap, lather up the wash cloth.

2.  Now, make use of this lathered and moistened wash cloth to continually rub the iodine stained area of the skin until no more color comes off.

3.  After scrubbing the skin with this soapy wash cloth, rinse the iodine stain well with warm water and eventually using an absorbent towel, pat the surface dry.

By following the above steps any superficial iodine that might be left on the skin would be removed satisfactorily. However, now you have to deal with any discoloration of the skin and this is where rubbing alcohol comes in.

4.  Take some rubbing alcohol or isopropyl alcohol on a cotton ball.

5.  Using this alcohol-soaked cotton ball, dab your iodine stained skin thoroughly. Continue this process by replacing stained cotton balls with fresh ones until no more color comes off the skin and it is cleared from any discoloration.

6.  Finally, rinse the previously stained stain area with warm water, making sure that all traces of alcohol and iodine are removed. Follow this rinse by patting the surface dry with the help of a dry absorbent towel. Hopefully, you would have got rid of the stain by now.

Yet, if the stain persists, then you can also consider soaking the cotton ball with lemon juice and then using it to rub the iodine stain. Instead of lemon juice or rubbing/isopropyl alcohol, hydrogen per oxide can also be used.

7.     Eventually once you are sure that you have got rid of all stain traces, get hold of a moisturizing lotion or vitamin E oil. Using any of these two ingredients, carefully moisturize your hands so that their original vitality might be restored. This is done because all the three ingredients mentioned above, namely isopropyl alcohol, lemon juice and hydrogen per oxide have the tendency to over dry your skin.

Tips and Warnings:

1.  Never apply alcohol or hydrogen per oxide directly on your skin as they can damage your skin surface.

2.  Use soft and circular motions to gently lift stain off your skin.

3.  Scrubbing the top layer off your skin with a pumice stain can also help you get rid of the discoloration which ensues from iodine.