Last week I had allergy patch testing done on my back
at my dermatologist's office.
Lovely as it is.
Then I returned 48 hours to get the first reading.
The nurse said most everyone who takes this test
comes back with negative results.
She took off the patches, looked my back over and announced,
"I see something!"
It showed positive for gold.
(the other spot to the lower right is hair dye and not a reaction)
I haven't been able to wear my wedding rings for more than a day
or two at a time without breaking out for the past 40 years.
Okay, not much news there.
But then another 48 hours after that, I showed positive for Nickel.
I thought at first, that doesn't sound too bad...
Until the Dr walked in and handed me a list
of all the things Nickel is in:
keys
coins
door knobs
cell phone
eyeglasses
frying pans
scissors
jewelry
electronics
metal chairs
metal lamps
magnets
chrome and brass
watchbands
hair ornaments
batteries
pigments
snaps, buttons, and zippers
hand tools
eyeshadow
knitting needles
For now, he told me not to wear any jewelry at all
(Yes, even the cheap stuff, which he said always has nickel in it.)
In 2 weeks if my eye eczema clears up,
then he'll say it's mainly the jewelry.
I said, but I only wear jewelry on Sundays! That can't be it.
He said once a week is enough to have a problem
for up to 8 weeks.
By the way, I found out the safest jewelry for anyone is sterling
silver. He said hardly anyone is allergic to that. But I have no
sterling silver anything.
Meanwhile, he told me about this little kit I should buy
so I can test all the nickel suspects in my house.
If the kit works I will be back on here with the results.
You may have a nickel allergy too. 10-20% of the population does.
Allergies do run in families.
7 comments:
Very interesting results and information. Tell us about the testing kit please. Were you tested only for metals? I have only been tested for foods and pets. I don't think your back is lumpy although I wonder why you put hair dye on your back. ;)
pjc
haha No, I didn't put hair dye on my back. That was one of the patch tests....testing me for my skin reaction to hair dye. At first I thought that was a reaction but they said, nope that's hair dye.
See 2nd picture of my back? Below the first marking are 2 fainter ones.
As the Dr was reviewing my pictures on his computer he totally ignored those 2 fainter markings. After he
finished I asked if he would bring back those pictures on the screen. He either ignored me or didn't hear
me. So I told him again. He said he didn't take those pictures (Den did on Sunday night at Dr's
request) and since he wasn't there to feel those markings, "they don't count."
He said he would have felt some kind of little pimple or something. I can see a little pimple on both
of those. I think they are positive. I asked if we could do the test again. He said if I'm not better in 2
weeks from no jewelry, then perhaps he will run it again. I will make sure of it.
So I googled the name of this patch test which is called True Test.
I was able to see that first fainter marking is for Wool Alcohols which means
"Steroid containing ointments/creams" among other things
(which they try to get me to use every time I go in there!)
And the 2nd is for Fragrance.
I find it all fascinating.
I’m not sure if this is useful but I’ve found line of jewelry called stately steel from the home shopping network. It’s made of stainless steel which is hypoallergenic. I like it because of its durability.
Peggy in iowa
Thank you Peggy! I'm going to go look for that now. I would love to find some jewelry I can wear since this allergy isn't going to go away. I hope I can find it online....
I have all sorts of skin issues, I would love to take this test. Is it expensive? I asked Jeff about gold, he said 14k yellow gold has about 10-15% copper. White gold has 2-3% nickel and 2-3% zinc. Sterling silver is 92.5% silver and the rest is copper.
Interesting! So I guess Sterling silver is the way to go. You should ask your regular doctor to either test you or send you to a dermatologist and that way your insurance would pay for it. I think it is expensive. Google True Test. I bet you have the same allergy. I've had hives on and off the past 11 years. I know you struggle with that too. Find out what is causing it. I did learn that as we age, allergies only get worse and what is eczema or hives could turn into asthma. So it's worth it to know.
Post a Comment