One of the most dangerous plants has left two schoolboys with scorching blisters after contact with it burned their flesh.
Brothers Alfie, 12, and Henry, 10, have to use steroid cream three times a day and take antihistamines after accidentally brushing past some toxic giant hogweed near Wordsley in the West Midlands
Mum, Nikki, who gave only her first name, said:
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The sap of the giant hogweed stops the skin from protecting itself against sunlight, leading to nasty burns when exposed to the sun’s rays.
For Alfie and Henry, it’s left them using steroid cream three times a day, with doctors also prescribing a week-long course of antihistamines. They still bear the scars.
The school boys were playing near the River Stour when they encountered the giant hogweed.
Two miles away, on another branch of the river, Jayden Pinches, 11, was scorched by the plant while spending the weekend with his dad.
Mum Eulalia Sintes, 30, said:
Now both parents have warned other parents about the plant, which has taken root across the country.
Nikki added:
The giant hogweed is native to the Caucasus, but was introduced to Britain as an ornamental plant in 1817, and its spread has now got out of control.
Mike Duddy, of the Mersey Basin Rivers Trust, said in 2015 that it was “without a shadow of a doubt, the most dangerous plant in Britain”.
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If exposed to the plant, you should thoroughly wash the area that made contact and keep it out of sunlight for a few days, the Woodland Trust advises.
Image Credit: Getty