If a Snake Bites You, Cut the Wound and Suck the Venom Out

Cutting and sucking is useless and dangerous, and modern first aid says do the opposite. Venom from a serious bite moves into the tissue and lymphatic system almost immediately, so by the time you are reaching for a knife there is essentially nothing to suck back out; studies and suction-device tests show they remove a negligible amount. Meanwhile cutting the wound risks worse bleeding, infection, and nerve or tendon damage, and sucking can introduce mouth bacteria. In Australia, where snakes can be seriously venomous, the official advice is the pressure immobilisation technique: keep the person still and calm, apply a firm bandage over the bite and along the limb, splint it, and get to hospital for antivenom, because movement is what pumps venom through the body. So forget the knife and the cowboy suction. Stillness and a bandage beat a blade every time, and the hospital has the actual cure.