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LINALOOL: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Allergen Linalool This natural fragrance, like limonene, is an allergen on its own, becomes a more potent allergen with oxidation, and is a component of other fragrances. Linalool is found in citruses (lemon, lime, orange) and can be extracted from trees like birch, herbs and spices (lavender, mint, coriander, cinnamon), and over 200 other plants. […]
ESSENTIAL OILS: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Allergen Essential Oils These popular, delicious smelling oils are extracted from plants (the first red flag) and have been used for centuries as perfumes or components in perfumes (another red flag). The most popular essential oils — cardamom, cinnamon, citronella, clove, eucalyptus, geranium, jasmine, lavender, lemon, mint, orange, rose, sandalwood, tea tree oil, ylang-ylang (and […]
POTASSIUM DICHROMATE: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Allergen Potassium Dichromate Yet another top contact allergen that is totally natural — it is a common metal in the earth’s crust and found in loam, clay, ash, soil, water, and sand — potassium dichromate (chromate or chromium salt) can be difficult to avoid. It is found in … If you have a history of sensitive […]
VANILLA: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Allergen Vanilla This yummy, ancient spice (it was used by the Aztecs) is part of the Orchidaceae family. It can be found in lots of skincare and perfumes, in everything from essential oils to flavored toothpaste, lip balm, shampoo, conditioner, aromatherapy, skin cream, makeup, baby products, and more. The top contact allergen Balsam of Peru […]
CHEESE: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Not An Allergen Cheese As with milk and cream, cheese is not a top contact allergen. That said, its allergenicity can be more complicated. Food and skin allergies operate differently. Food allergies are determined by a prick, scratch, or blood test and involve type B cells. Skin allergies are determined by a patch test and type T […]
HYALURONIC ACID: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Not An Allergen Hyaluronic Acid The great news is this wonder humectant (a substance that retains water) is not a top contact allergen and is actually usually well tolerated by the skin. The other news is … developing. Hyaluronic acid is naturally found in our bodies, such as in the synovial fluid of joints, in […]
SLUGGING: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Not An Allergen Slugging If using a very pure, allergen-free, non-acnegenic petrolatum-based product like Boo-Boo Balm, slugging is not a top skin allergen and could be wonderful for very dry or barrier-damaged skin. This skincare trend went viral on social media fairly recently and was attributed to the Korean beauty universe but it has been […]
VEGAN (CLEAN, NATURAL) SKINCARE: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Allergen Vegan Skincare The words “vegan skincare” would not appear on standard patch test trays as such but many products labeled “vegan” (along with products labeled “natural” or “organic”) contain lots of top contact allergens. If you have allergic contact dermatitis, it would be best to exercise caution. The bottom line is that terms like […]
COLLAGEN: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Not An Allergen Collagen Neither the protein abundantly found in your body that gives skin its elasticity and strength nor the supplements derived from fish or cows (and other sources) is currently a top contact allergen. But supplements and collagen in skincare might also not be doing much for your skin. In topically-applied products, collagen […]
