For ultralight backpackers or travelers who don't have room for an entire first aid kit in their gear, you can buy single-use packets of antibiotic ointment online for around $0.69 per packet. If you already have a larger tube of ointment, you can make your own single-use packets with a drinking straw, a lighter, and a pair of needle-nose pliers.


Whenever someone has a cut or scrape it's helpful to have Neosporin or other antibiotic ointments on hand to prevent infection before sealing the wound with a bandage. Brian's Backpacking Blog came up with this simple method of making single-use packets: Squeeze some of the ointment into a clean (unused) drinking straw then pinch off the straw end with needlenose pliers and seal the end with the flame from your lighter. Turn the straw around, cut off your section from the rest of the straw and seal the other end the same way as the first.

Now you have a cheap, lightweight, and strong way to carry antibiotic ointment. The author of the original article has used this method many times and has never had a packet burst open. I'm sure there are many other substances you could seal in packets using the same method. You'll find step-by-step photos and more detailed information at the link below.


Single Use Antibiotic Packs | Brian's Backpacking Blog