Eurax lotion (this page)
8 ways to cure scabies
with the Healthy Skin Program
My favorite itch relief is Eurax lotion or cream.
Why? Because it stops itching, softened my skin and it kills scabies!
It isn't as powerful a killer as permethrin, benzyl benzoate or sulfur, but it helps in so many ways! Every other skin treatment was more or less irritating to my skin. Eurax actually fixed the damage the other treatments (and my scratching) created.
I used it in addition to 5% permethrin cream and oral ivermectin. Not on the same day as another skin treatment; I used it on the in-between days. To be clear, if I applied permethrin cream on Sunday night, I’d shower that off Monday morning. Then I could apply the Eurax. I don’t think I would explode in flames if I accidentally used them on the same day, but my basic philosophy is to try to be kind to my poor, suffering skin.
Eurax contains 10% crotamiton as the active ingredient. Crotamiton is an anti-itching medicine that also kills scabies mites. It is also used by people who have skin allergies — if they get hives (bumps) they just dab it on for relief. It is not known exactly how it kills scabies mites…it might attack the nervous system of the mites and their eggs, but nobody has spent enough time or money to find out. The one named side effect is skin irritation, but I found it softened my skin which had gotten hard and dried out.
It takes 2 ounces (50 or 60 gms or ml) for an average adult to comfortably cover their whole body with Eurax lotion. It seemed to me it takes more cream than lotion because the cream is thicker and a bit harder to spread out. You apply it once a day for two days in a row, so you’ll need 4 to 6 ounces each week. A tube or a bottle is about 3 ounces (100 grams or ml), so you’ll need at least one and a half or two each week. The Healthy Skin Program can run from 2 to 5 weeks, depending on how stubborn your case is, so you’d need a total of 3 to 10 tubes of cream or bottles of Eurax lotion.
There is no law saying you have to do the same skin treatment each week. You can do 10% sulfur lotion one week, then do Eurax the next week and 5% permethrin the next week. It is up to you. You are in control now.
If you are using some other treatment once a week (such as permethrin or sulfur lotion), you can just order some Eurax to use on the in-between days to dab on when an itch pops up. When I had scabies and itched like crazy, I always had this feeling I wanted to be “doing something” to fight it. With Eurax I could use it whenever I wanted to “do something”! Yay!
You apply it once a day for 2 days in a row to kill scabies. Then you leave it on for two more days. Then you take a shower to wash it off. So that means no showering for 4 days total.
You apply it all over from the neck on down. Keep it out of your eyes, ears, nose, mouth and vagina. The instructions say to apply it under your fingernails with an old toothbrush. You can use that toothbrush the next week, but obviously you don’t ever use that toothbrush for anything else.
If you have to take a shower, dry off and apply the lotion all over again.
I applied it each day for 4 days in a row (4 times total) and it was great. No side effects at all. Plus you can dab it on anytime and anyplace you feel an itch. It stops itching for around 8 hours.
It's so mild, this is a medication the Healthy Skin Program suggests for babies! "Infants less than 2 months of age are treated with sulphur 5% cream daily for 2 to 3 days or crotamiton 10% cream (Eurax) daily for 3 to 5 days. Wash off and reapply the cream each day" Notice how it’s 2-3 days for sulfur lotion and 3-5 days for the Eurax? I believe that’s because Eurax is less irritating and it isn’t as powerful as sulfur. But they can both work to kill scabies.
Eurax comes as a lotion or cream. I preferred the lotion because it goes on easily and simply soaks in. No greasy layer to bother me later, but that’s just me…if you like a cream it works the same as the lotion.
In the UK it is around $7 for a 3 ounce tube or bottle of Eurax. In Australia $26 for 2 ounces. In the USA it is around $500 for a 2 ounce tube or bottle! I am talking about identical products. What’s wrong with this picture? I have this sneaking suspicion we could have affordable medical care if so many companies and providers weren’t all wildly inflating their profits. I don’t mind people making a decent living, but $500 for what is $7 elsewhere? We’re being robbed. OK, end of tantrum.
IMPORTANT NOTE: I used Eurax lotion and cream, but NOT Eurax HC. The HC means hydrocortisone which has a lot of bad side effects. Be nice to your skin, don’t beat it up.
Amazon used to carry Eurax lotion and cream which shipped in from England. Now I see it has disappeared from Amazon. Amazon is picky about anyone selling prescription stuff.
Sometimes Eurax lotion and Eurax cream are available from England on eBay. These sources come and go, so you just have to click the link below to do a search. One day you can find it and maybe the next day nothing is there. Prices vary wildly, too.
Click here to search eBay for Eurax and just choose the cheapest one. It's hard to keep up with listings as they can change any time. 100 grams was enough to cover my 250 body completely once with a bit left over.
Be sure to compare not only the price of the item, but also how much shipping they tack on. It varies from free to $30!
Of course, if you live in the UK, you can order from Amazon.co.uk or eBay.co.uk here. It is also possible to change your country temporarily on eBay and see if that works. Another option is to order Eurax from this UK pharmacy and simply have them mail it to you directly.
The other places I found it that ship to the USA are in Australia. I actually ordered some Benzemul (benzyl benzoate) from Australia, so I believe what they sell is genuine. I can't testify to the reliability of the eBay listings, but I did order Eurax from England through Amazon…but then Amazon bounced them out. I bought Eurax from here in England. I didn't order from India or China — I just don't see those countries having any real controls. But some folks say they have ordered from Turkey or India or Mexico and got effective stuff so it's just a bit of a gamble.
Also I have found a pharmacy in Australia which I have ordered from in the past so I trust them. ePharmacy sells tiny 20 gram tubes of the cream for $9 which means it's around $45 for 100 grams (more than 3X what it is from the UK source). And the shipping to the USA from Australia is around $30! So it looks like the UK source is the best price. It would take about 2 ounces (60 grams or ml) to easily cover my 250 pound body, so you do the math for whatever size you are.
The best alternative to Eurax is the 10% sulfur lotion which is really inexpensive. You can make quarts of 10% sulfur lotion for around $20. But sulfur is mildly irritating…it causes a sort of mild “sunburn” with a little redness and itching and dries your skin out a bit.
Shipping from Australia took about 10 days. The eBay listings for Eurax claim 9 days to 3 weeks. Shipping from England is usually about 9 days.
And, of course, if you are in England or Australia or probably any other reasonable country you can probably buy Eurax at your local drug store for around $6.
Eurax is a great extra helper. I preferred the lotion at night because it is easier to spread, softened my skin and one 100ml bottle covered my body twice. But the lotion seems to be unavailable. The cream is handy for applying to an itchy spot during the day. I got to the point where I would try anything, so I ordered both the lotion and the cream.
Plus you can apply it anytime! Got an itch? Rub some Eurax on it and it's better quickly. I put this on all over before bed and once under the blankets, my skin got this mild warmth with no itching! I could sleep! What a relief. Lack of sleep from itching actually made me a bit insane. Eurax gave me my sanity back.
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