CONTACT LENSES: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Allergen Contact Lenses In terms of skin contact allergy, reactions to contact lenses are fairly low but contact lenses (and the contact lens solutions necessary for their care) do tend to contain some top contact allergens. We’d suggest extra caution if you’re considering colored contact lenses and/or if you’ve patch tested positive to certain substances […]
MAKEUP SPONGE, BLENDER: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Allergen Makeup Sponge, Blender While some makeup sponges and blenders may be better or worse, depending on your specific patch test results, most contain at least some top contact allergens. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use any of them. It means that you should be guided by your patch test results and be prepared to […]
CAPRYLIC ACID: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Not An Allergen Caprylic Acid Yet another impressive, well-studied coconut oil derivative, this medium-chain fatty acid is (along with lauric acid and capric acid), is one of the three main fatty acids found in coconut oil. Caprylic acid is also known as octanoic acid and has several benefits, especially as a broad-spectrum antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory. […]
SALMON SPERM: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Not An Allergen Salmon Sperm So far, salmon sperm — really, the polydeoxyribonucleotides (PDRNs) derived from it — is not a top common allergen. Some clinical studies seem to show that PDRNs are effective in wound healing, skin rejuvenation, anti-inflammation, hyperpigmentation, and increasing collagen, among other benefits. Polynucleotide injections and facials are not yet FDA-approved […]
COTTON ROUNDS, PADS: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Not An Allergen Cotton Rounds, Pads White, pure cotton rounds or pads should be relatively free of allergens, especially if they are made from organic cotton (which means, among other things: no pesticides). It starts getting riskier if your applicators are: If you can find white cotton pads that are also free of chlorine and […]
RAZOR: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Allergen Razor While “razor” isn’t something you’ll see on your patch test results, there’s a pretty good chance you might see nickel, which has been the number one contact allergen for decades. Nickel was also the 2008 Allergen of the Year of the American Contact Dermatitis Society and is tough to avoid completely because almost all metals have […]
GARDEN, GARDENING: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Allergen Garden, Gardening You won’t see these words on a patch test but gardens and gardening involve lots and lots of top contact allergens. The main ones include: Other allergens you might get exposed to such as insects and pollen can be IgE-mediated allergens. While they might not necessarily be skin allergens (unless you also […]
DOLLS (“BARBIE,” etc.): Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Allergen (“Barbie”) Dolls First, the movie “Barbie” is empowering, important, pretty awesome, and NOT a top contact allergen (among other things, no contact!) Second, “dolls” wouldn’t appear on a patch test tray but many of the components commonly found in typical dolls and accessories would. Enough so that, while there are exceptions (see below), we’re […]
GLYCERIN: Allergen or Not An Allergen?
Not An Allergen Glycerin The classic humectant glycerin (also called glycerol) is naturally occurring and can come from animal or plant fats (the glycerin VMV Hypoallergenics uses is plant derived, usually from coconut oil) and it is not published as a top contact allergen. That it is not a contact allergen is especially impressive considering […]