Itching powder
{{Short description|Powder-like substances that induce itching}}
Itching powder is a powder or powder-like substance that induces itching when applied onto human skin. This is usually done as a practical joke or prank to an unsuspecting victim.
Description and uses
The cause of the irritation can be mechanical, such as products containing ground rose hips.Albert MR. Novelty shop "itching powder." Australasian J Dermatology. 1998 Aug;39(3):188–89.{{cite news |title=Itching powder prank affects dozens of Cobb County students |url=http://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/itching-powder-prank-affects-dozens-of-cobb-county-students |access-date=15 July 2018 |publisher=FOX5Atlanta.com}} Another common ingredient is Mucuna pruriens,G.V. Joglekar, M.B. Bhide J.H. Balwani. An experimental method for screening antipruritic agents. British Journal of Dermatology. Volume 75 Issue 3 p. 117. March 1963 a type of legume that produces seedpods coated with thousands of detachable spicules (needle-like hairs). The spicules contain an enzyme, mucunain, that causes severe itching, and they have been sold commercially as itching powder.{{cite web |title=Epidemiologic Notes and Reports Mucuna pruriens- Associated Pruritus – New Jersey |url=https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/00000646.htm |website=Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) |publisher=Centers for Disease Control and Prevention |access-date=15 July 2018 |date=6 December 1985}} Mucuna pruriens has been used to test the efficacy of anti-itch drugs.
The term "itching powder" is colloquial; there is no one specific source of the powder. For the safety of the maker and of the victim, gloves, dust masks, and glasses are worn, as itching powder is a mouth- and eye-irritant, and caution is strongly encouraged whenever handling the processed powder. Rose hips contain prickly hairs that are used as the active ingredient,{{cite book |title=Phytopharmacy: An Evidence-Based Guide to Herbal Medicinal Products |date=27 April 2015 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=9781118543566 |pages=324 }} whereas the body (rather than the wing) of the samara of the bigleaf maple is covered with spiny hairs that cause skin irritation and are used to make itching powder.{{cite web |last1=Hebda |first1=R |title=Plant profile: Acer macrophyllum |url=http://www.npsbc.org/Newsletter/Menziesia03Summer.pdf |website=NPSBC, menziesia |publisher=Native Plant Society of British Columbia |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070126201226/http://www.npsbc.org/Newsletter/Menziesia03Summer.pdf |archivedate=26 January 2007 |pages=14 }}{{cite web |title=Itching Powder |url=http://www.microlabgallery.com/gallery/ItchingPowder1.aspx |website=MicrolabNW Photomicrograph Gallery |access-date=15 July 2018}}{{cite web |title=Maple Seed Hair |url=http://www.microlabgallery.com/gallery/PlantHairAcerSeed66705.aspx |website=MicrolabNW Photomicrograph Gallery |access-date=15 July 2018}}
Itching powder was created from Mucuna pruriens in the early-19th century as a cure for lost feeling in the epidermis. When a person would lose feeling on their skin in conditions such as paralysis, the powder (mixed with lard to form an ointment) was used as a local stimulant believed to treat the condition.{{cite book |last1=Blatin |first1=M |title=American Journal of Pharmacy and the Sciences Supporting Public Health, Volume 1; Volume 25 |date=1853 |publisher=Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science |page=471}}{{cite book |last1=Grieve |first1=Maud |title=A Modern Herbal: The Medicinal, Culinary, Cosmetic and Economic Properties, Cultivation and Folk-lore of Herbs, Grasses, Fungi, Shrubs, & Trees with All Their Modern Scientific Uses, Volume 1 |date=1 Jun 1971 |publisher=Courier Corporation |isbn=9780486227986 |pages=229}}
Gallery
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| File:Mucuna-pruriens-fruit.jpg | File:Briar Rose seeds (3437238461).jpg | File:2015-08-29-14.01.42 ZS Pmax Acer macrophyllum-1 (20801222878).jpg |
