Kuya Kim gives tips on what to do when scorpion stings

While island hopping in Palawan, Lauren Witherow, a tourist and content creator from Australia, felt that something bit her on her foot.

As seen on "24 Oras" on Thursday, Lauren said, "When I got stung, I thought at first it was a crab. Afterwards, I looked down on the toe, it was like three marks. That’s when I thought that maybe it can be a snake."

"My toe, it kinda went purple. It was around three hours -- pretty intense pain," she added.

She proceeded to a health center for help. Once they were at the medical center, Lauren said that she just took some painkillers and antihistamine.

"The local Filipino people were really helpful," she said.

According to the residents who helped her, it turned out to be a scorpion bite.

And according to the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development, it's possible that the scorpion that bit Lauren is the Asian Forest Scorpion, which abounds in Palawan.

"They inhabit areas that are humid po, may matataguan, ilalim ng mga bato, mga rubbles, mga logs, kung saan po pwede po silang mag-lay po ng ambush tactics para sa kanilang mga prey," said Eugene Ventorillo, staff at the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development, Habitats and Management Section.

"Wala pa po na na-conduct na population study kung ilan po ba 'yong estimated na total population po ng scorpions dito sa Palawan," Eugene added.

Should Palawan tourists and residents be worried?

Kuya Kim reported that all scorpions are poisonous. However, he said that out of 1,500 known species of scorpions, only 25 to 30 of those scorpions have the venom that can kill people.

Kuya Kim went on to explain that the poison of a scorpion is produced at the end of its tail, which is called the telson. The sharp, needle-like tip of the telson is called, aculeus, which serves as the venom delivery apparatus of the scorpion.

Dan Jones Cachero, an entomologist, said, "Pwedeng maging lethal ito sa tao kung may allergic reaction sa stings and sa bata rin. Pero sa healthy adult naman, hindi naman siya ganoon ka-lethal."

If you're stung by a scorpion, the first thing you should do is disinfect the body part that was stung. Kuya Kim advised to wash it with soap and water.

To bring down the swelling, apply a cold compress. And be sure to head to the nearest health center or hospital.

Even though Lauren still felt pain after the incident, she continued on with her vacation in Palawan.

"We definitely wanna come back. It didn’t put me off traveling to the Philippines," said Lauren. -- Kimberly Tsao/LDF, GMA Integrated News