Allergic reactions

[Jeri Lynn]

Hi Everyone,
A couple weeks ago my sister developed hives all over her body, she ended up having to go to the hospital. She had taken a couple benadryl and those did not help so she went to the emergency room. The hives were all over her, her lips were starting to swell etc. They gave her IV steroids and a few other things and kept her overnight, by the morning she was fine.

She thought perhaps she had developed a peanut allergy because she had eaten quite a few of them over the weekend. She also wore some latex gloves at the dog shelter she volunteers off and her face became very red after wearing them. She is also a hair dresser and colored her hair the Monday before she first broke out, which was on a Thursday.

She went to an allergist and they did some bloodwork which showed she had a latex allergy and also some other food tests showing she was allergic to clams (which she has always eaten), red meat (which she has always eaten).

She is now breaking out on and off and she cannot figure it out. She dyed her hair one more time and broke out so she thought she was allergic to her hair dye, but upon going to a dermatologist and another allergist they told her if she was allergic to hair dye she probably would have had some burns and scabbing on her scalp.

She has been very careful about not wearing any latex gloves and has not dyed her hair since, although she has been dying her customers hair.

She went to her Primary care physician yesterday and also her dermatologist because she was one again broken out. They put her on Allegra in the morning, zyrtec at night and a full dose of prednisone.

She just called me this morning and she is all broken out again...

As you can imagine she is frustrated and upset. Is anyone familiar with the red dye allergies...I'm wondering if she is allergic to benadryl or the allegra...both of those pills are pink, although I'm not sure if red dye is in them.

She's afraid that maybe the hair color fumes at work could be doing this although her doctor told her it is highly unlikely.

Does anyone have any thoughts??? I considered telling her to take a couple weeks off from work, (she owns the salon) to rule out salon products...she has never had anything like this happen before.

TIA

[Hair_Razor]

You can develop hair colour allergies at any time that's why most states recommend patch tests. The allergist would have been correct though if she had a reaction to colour she would have had sores and irritation on her scalp from the colour. I would see if there is a new product, shampoo or other, that she has just brought on. Maybe that she is even using in her shower. She would be less likely to use gloves when shampooing. My friend has a red dye allergy and does hair as well, it is everywhere and in all sorts of things. It couldn't hurt to check that out. Good luck I would love to hear what comes of it since I am in the industry as well. Good Luck!

[Jeri Lynn]

Hi Cassi,
Thank you for your response.

My sister has done a patch test on herself and had no reaction at all.

She is a redhead with a few gray hairs and is very upset to think she could possibly be allergic to hair dye, although it may be unlikely. The next time she does her hair she is going to foil the dye in and see if she has a reaction...at this point though she is hiving without any actual exposure to the hair dye to herself and when she colors her clients she is careful not to expose herself (other than fumes).

[J9]

This happened to me my senior year of college.

Starting in November, I started to get hives EVERYWHERE. It never got to the point where my throat swelled, but my lips were swollen and I looked like I had some kind of awful disease with all the red spots. It got worse and worse until May when I finally opted to go to the allergist (why I took so long, I have no clue).

Turned out I was allergic to: Tomatoes, Peanuts, Tree Nuts, grass, ibuprofen, and hay.

Problems was I ate peanut butter every single day of my life and just all of a sudden developed this allergy. (The peanuts and nuts were the only thing that really bothers me). I had to go on steroids for like 2 months before my skin finally settled down. Every now and again I'll still break out if I accidentally eat something not from a nut free facility or if someone is eating particularly smelly peanuts near me. I've found my skin breaks out more easily from having pressure on it now as well.

But the moral of the story - it is possible to develop an allergy later in life. And my hives took an awful long time to go away, and still pop up every now and again (but at least I don't like like a giant walking hive anymore!)

I would tell your sister to take some time off as well, just in case it is the fumes. Like I said, particularly smelly peanuts will do it to me, but not always. Even if she's not allergic to the hair products, she might just need to give her skin some time to calm down - chances are any little thing will cause a flare up since its so sensitive at this point in time.

And since she did wind up with actual allergies to food products, make sure she gets an epi-pen and carries it with her always! I luckily haven't had my throat close yet, but I was told that especially since the allergy just appeared it could just as easily get worse without warning. Better be safe than sorry!

[pink]

I don't have any advice to offer other than maybe it's time your sister does take off and have a vacation. That sounds like a very frustationg situation and I'm sending her pixie dust that everything is figured out soon. :pixie:


:mickey:

[marciab]

I am a hairstylist who has recently developed similar allergies after over 20 years in the business. I have done significant research into this, and have created a website with a lot of information and links to scientific articles about the dangers of the chemicals in hair color.

The problem is that the offending chemical is most likely p-phenylenediamine -- a very toxic petrochemical used in hair dye, clothing dye and rubber (latex gloves, for example). We are inundated with chemicals like this through products we use, including LOTS of beauty products, and from our clothing. Many women are having these allergies as well as developing autoimmune diseases. I have one now called "lichen planus", as well as eczema on may arms and eyelids. The reactions can be activated by stress once you're sensitized -- it doesn't necessarily have to happen when you have your hair colored for you to be sensitive to the chemical. And the fumes are dangerous as well -- not just the topical application.



Marcia

[LauraleeH]

My mom and my aunt grew up eating sunflower seeds, and after they had kids, they developed an allergy to them. My aunt has been in and out of the hospital several times for her allergies. My mom discovered she was allergic to sunflower when she was eating seeds and her throat closed up. The paramedics just barely got to the house on time. Now she has to read everything because even shampoo and conditioner has sunflower in it, and the more allergic reactions you have, the faster you close up.

Definitely make sure your sister has an epi-pen, and see what other testing is out there for her. The longer this goes on, the worse it could get.
Also, if you and your sister share a lot of the same problems, you should also be aware and careful in case you develop anything.

[Tinkermom]

Severe allergies like these just stink! Unfortunately allergies can develop at anytime. If you think it could be a red dye issue they do make a dye-free benedryl.

I have an 11 year old son with a life-threatening peanut allergy. We have to be super viligent to keep him safe. Most people do not understand the severity of allergies like these. My son can die from his allergy. He does not get just a rash or upset stomach (as some seem to believe) that is simply an inconvience. When trying to explain DS's allergy I have had folks (including here on Intercot) debate me about their "right" to have peanuts on airplanes, in the classroom, on field trips, etc. I do not wish to make people miss out on something but why is it folks seem to feel that they MUST have their peanuts when they fly? I always wonder if they eat peanuts all of the time or only when they fly. When we fly we have to request a peanut-free flight. I have to bring wipes and wipe down the seats, windows, walls, etc where DS sits and we give him Benedryl before every flight. Of course we also bring our Epi-pen. This is the only way we can keep DS safe when we fly. It is not easy to deal with his allergy and we walk a fine line between being compulsive vs. being safe. In daily life we just have learned to be cautious, read labels and ask questions. We do not insist that there be no peanuts in his classroom but instead have taught him ways to keep himself safe (washing his hands before and after eating, paying attention to others around him, etc).

Anyway, I was wondering if some of the products your sister is using contain latex or the bottle that they are in contain latex??? Like I stated above with the peanut allergy we have to read every ingredient label to be sure that the item does not contain peanuts or is made in a facility that also manufactures peanuts.

I hope your sister can narrow down the culprit so she can deal with this! If it turns out that she does have a food allergy a great website for support and information is the food and allergy anaphlaxsis network:
www.foodallergy.org

:pixie: to your sister!