Skin Rashes and Non-Allergic Causes

Recently I saw a number of skin rashes of the hands and feet and legs that were not caused by allergy but due to infestation by mites. Mites can be transferred from human to human or from pets to human.

Itchy rashes can be caused by parasites and fungal infestation. Each of these have their particular manifestation. Psoriasis can be at times itchy. So is a very particular skin condition called dermatitis herpetiformis which is extremely itchy.

So remember, not all itchy skin rashes are caused by allergy and therefore a diagnosis is not always straightforward.

And my learning continues...

Blame The Salons

For the last couple of years, hairstylists have created a deluge of allergic cases, mainly because women love having their hair dyed.

With the exception of henna (which is popular with the Indian community and also the older generation), the chemical ingredients in hair dyes are highly allergic in nature. Hence the great number of such cases. Typically, the allergies present themselves as rashes around the neck, behind the ears, face and even further down the body. When the patient showers, the water flows down and creates the rash. 

Usually at the initial stages when the hair is dyed there is no adverse reaction but after a period of time, the allergy sets in and the person with the allergy has to endure a few months until the hair dye disappears. Once a diagnosis is established, I teach patients how not to allow the hair to come in contact with the skin as well how to shower so that the dye does not contact the body. I also prepare an antidote for the specific hair dye. If the patient wants to dye her hair again, she has to bring the dye for me to test before she proceeds to use. There are also the dyes used to highlight the hair which also causes allergy.

I classify such allergies as chemical allergy mainly because they are due to the chemicals found in these daily substances. Toothpastes can also cause allergy as a result of the mint or the whitening contents. Hair shampoos can cause hair itch and rashes and soaps with chemical ingredients are notoriously common causes of allergy. In fact i have always been against the use of such soaps and the fact that many people use them because they are advertised to kill bacteria.

I will write about cosmetics in another post.

Lesson: We use too many chemicals daily; use those with the least chemicals

Allergies in Infants

Allergy in infants is fascinating to me especially neonates (babies who are a few weeks old) as most of them are on breast milk and therefore the number of allergens they are exposed to in their diet are limited. 

I had a neonate who had a rash on his face. His father is a good friend of mine and his mother is a pharmacist (who has since introduced a lot of patients to me).

I thought the obvious culprit would be cows milk but on testing it was not. I then thought maybe it was the cream or soap they were using on him but the test also proved negative. The mysterious agent was soon confirmed when the father stated that they have just installed a drinking water filter of a particular brand when the child was born thinking the water would be better for him. I did my muscle testing and confirmed that it was indeed the water was the cause of the boys rash and by simply eliminating the filtered water, the rash would not come back. I was proven right; it didn't.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                               Another interesting case was the child was having a rash just below both his eyes one week after birth and muscle testing did not reveal a cause for the rash. I was puzzled as I had gone through every conceivable substance and food with no results, UNTIL I saw the pacifier the child had in his mouth. I tested that and it proved to be positive. That was when I discovered that silicon material nowadays used in milk bottle teats and pacifiers can be the cause of allergy of the face or around the mouth in infants. They do very well by switching to rubber teats and not using pacifier (which is not easy to do sometimes!).

                                                                                                                                                                                                                               Other common allergy in infants is cow's milk or even soya milk allergy. Goat's milk allergy is rare but possible. House dust mite or mould (spores in the air) allergy causing infants to have a lot of phlegm resulting in disturbed sleep is not uncommon.

Diaper allergy causing rashes around the groin region is common and infants can have rashes as a result of paraben (a chemical) found in a lot of baby creams and lotions. Inhalants that cause nasal congestion or even wheezing also includes pets such as dogs, cats and even birds and hamsters. I had a child who was allergic to the white jasmine flowers which the indians use as prayer offerings. The list goes on and on.  

The Lesson: Allergy in infants can be caused by a myriad of agents

… and my learning continues.

Filling Your Allergy Cup

My dance instructor is a spritely 72-year-old man. The other day, he came to see me for an allergic rash. The rash was spread throughout his whole body and his skin was atrophied (i.e. thin) as a result of too much steroids (consumed as well as used on the skin for the last 2 years).

Ironically, he was trying to recommend a multi-level-marketing product he was consuming which was supposedly good for people with bad skin. After testing him, I found that he had developed multiple allergies to most of the supplements he was consuming!

The question is this: why did he develop an allergy at the ripe old age of 72?

My good friend, an allergist from London has this hyphothesis: Our allergy profile is like a cup and the allergens are the substances that fill the cup. For those who have an extreme genetic predisposition to allergy, the cup is already three quarters to almost full, whereas those with less allergic tendencies, the cup may be relative empty at first. 

More than three decades ago, when i first started my medical practice, I hardly saw any allergic conditions. Fast forward 30 years and there is an epidermic proportion of allergies. 

Why?......

We have been filling the cup of allergy with the sheer number of mind boggling chemicals in our daily use ranging from soaps, detergents, toothpastes and processed foods. Even when we take 'real' food, most are contaminated with weedicides and pesticides. With air pollutants included, it's not hard to see how the cup can fill quickly. When the cup overflows, allergy appears. 

I think this is quite an accurate assessment of what has gone wrong. What do we do to reverse the process? I think we have to re-educate ourselves and more importantly, our children to avoid, as much as possible, all the aforementioned allergens. 

Eat simple and as far as possible, eat organic. Use the most basic few daily use products that have the least likelihood of causing allergies (paraben-free and fragrance-free, for example). Remember that in the old days, most of these products were very basic and less likely to cause allergy.

Educate our young to eat healthy and use less products with chemicals in them

My learning continues.