A friend of mine asked for information about finding out about and eliminating the various causes of itchy skin. I approached the question from the standpoint of MCS/EI as well as using less-toxic and eco-friendly products and taking a look at the foods we eat.

Date:   10/21/2006 10:03:00 PM ( 18 y ago)

I received the following e-mail from a friend of mine:

Hi Liora, how are you doing?

I recently heard from a friend who has been suffering for the past year from itchy skin. Her dermatologist and a panel of dermatologists have not been able to identify the cause, poor thing!

I thought of you and the saga you have had with your allergies, and wondered if you had any ideas for her, especially in the way of identifying what could be causing this, and also ways to reduce the artificial crap we all have in our lives that can become problems for sensitive people.

Thanks for anything you can tell us.

Hope you are well.
Love, "H"


My response:

Dear "H":

Skin irritation can be tricky. I don't know what your friend has and hasn't tried. Skin irritation can be caused from substances coming into contact with the skin, from foods ingested, and/or from substances inhaled.

Skin itching can be due to contact allergies--plants, grasses, or other growing things found in nature, as well as ingredients in laundry products, household cleaners, makeup and perfumes--in other words, anything that touches your skin.

Products are fairly easy to control by changing the ones you use: I'd suggest using biodegradable, unscented, nontoxic household cleaners and laundry products, eliminate chlorine bleach, fabric softeners and dryer sheets, don't wear perfumes or any scented products, especially ones you put on your skin like lotions, soaps, shampoos. If she has itching on her face, stop using makeup and face lotions. Even lotions that are unscented can have other ingredients in them that are irritating to the skin. I don't put any commercial lotions on my skin; I put on natural body oils like grapeseed oil or almond oil that have no added ingredients for scent--these are available at health food stores. Below is a list of blog articles I've written about household cleaners and laundry products.

Outside, I'd recommend using gloves and long sleeves when gardening and avoid skin contact with grass. Also, eliminate all use of pesticides and herbicides; these are known to cause skin irritation as well as a host of other toxic reactions. If your friend turns out to be allergic to grass, she may want to eliminate some or most of her lawn. If she has pets, avoid commercial flea and tick products that contain toxic chemicals. Your friend may be allergic to animals: pet dander can cause itchy skin--I itch all over when exposed to long-haired dogs or cats, but somehow tolerate short-haired animals.

Itching can also be due to foods you eat--this is very common. Some people break out in hives, others just itch with no apparent skin lesions--like me. To eliminate foods that may cause itchiness or other problems can be a big process. It starts with eliminating most common items people are allergic to--wheat, eggs, milk, chocolate,etc. It's a whole program I can't easily describe. Your friend may want to look at information on allergy or food rotation diets--I'd suggest she google these phrases: "food rotation diet" or "allergy diet" or "allergy rotation diet" to read about it. I went through this process with an environmental medicine specialist and found out I was allergic to a lot of foods I had no idea were affecting me. It's hard to know where to start: if she hasn't been on a diet like this before and wants to do one, I'd suggest she find a doctor who can help guide her through it.

Skin irritation can be caused by candidiasis--an overgrowth of candida. Plug in "candidiasis" on google and then click on "alternative medicine" for more information. Candida is a very common fungus--symptoms can be localized such as diaper rash in infants or vaginal yeast infections in women. It can also be systemic--usually originating in the gut, like mine. This can cause all sorts of allergies, including skin irritations. Why I say "alternative" medicine is that traditional medicine doctors often don't focus on the type of problems that candida causes unless it's life-threatening, or unless it's easily treated with a topical or vaginal cream. One treatment for this problem is to go on a candida diet--eliminating all sugars, most carbohydrates, etc--anything that feeds the candida in your gut. Some people have to be on this diet a short time, others a lifetime, like me. Put in "candida diet" in google. There are a lot of companies that sell "candida cure-alls"--I'd stear clear of these products unless an environmental medicine specialist or trusted health care practitioner recommends a particular one--they can be costly and don't necessarily work. I find the diet is the best as you're eliminating foods that aggravate the problem.

Topical treatments that may help reduce skin symptoms from candida often contain "tea tree oil" in them; I have a shampoo with this ingredient in it and it eliminated my scalp itching. Tea tree oil is a natural, plant-based substance that is an anti-fungal. I take an herbal remedy internally that helps eliminate candida in the gut and it also has tea tree oil in it. There are a lot of companies that sell tea tree oil in their products and are very common in health food stores--again, I'd ask for recommendations from a trusted practitioner.

I'd also recommend eliminating all artificial ingredients in the packaged and canned foods she eats--including artificial colorings and flavorings, preservatives, sulfites, MSG, nitrates and nitrites (commonly found in cured meats such as hot dogs and other processes meats), as these can cause various symptoms in people. My brother-in-law is extremely senstitive to MSG in foods and gets severe stomach cramps from it--this one ingredient can cause all sorts of symptoms in people. She may want to google "MSG allegies" to see lists of symptoms. It may mean she has to pay more money at the health food store to get packaged products without these substances in them.

Also, eat organic fresh fruits and vegies to eliminate pesticides and herbicides that can cause immune system problems once ingested. I'd also eliminate any meats with antibiotics in them, including eggs. I buy all of my food at health food stores because I am extremely sensitive to antibiotics--not only can't I take them as medicine, I can't eat meats with them in it. The only way to avoid this is to buy meats that specifically say "no hormones, no antibiotics". For years whenever I ate chicken I'd get itching all over my body within hours, with no visible skin eruptions or irritations. I didn't eat chicken for years, thinking I was "allergic" to it. When I started eating chicken without antibiotics/hormones, I didn't itch; if someone has a true allergy to chicken, then they wouldn't be able to tolerate it even if it was hormone/antibiotic free. I used to get horrible pitting acne on my back; when I stopped eating beef years ago the acne disappeared. I didn't eat beef for years; now I eat hormone/antibiotic-free beef and I don't get acne. So, again, for me, the problem was with the additives in the foods. These meats without hormones/antibiotics are very very expensive but worth it to me.

Skin irritation can even be caused by substances you inhale. Some of these can be environmental allergies: pollen, mold, even grass fumes--- newly mown grass is a biggie for me and makes me itch all over. What causes the "smell" in cut grass are called "terpenes" and breathing them in can cause all sorts of problems, including itching. Sometimes, skin tests by an allergist won't show any sensitivities to certain substances, even if the person is in fact, sensitive to them--as is the case with me. All I can do whenever the gardeners come to my house or even the neighbors' houses is to slam shut my doors and windows so as not to breathe in the fumes--cut grass as well gasoline fumes from the equipment they use--this is typically called "avoidance" in allergy circles--avoidance of the substances causing you problems, when there is no other solution to keep from getting symptoms.

For another example, I am very sensitive to chlorine; I have water filters in the showers and one on the tap for drinking water. I can not go swimming in pools. I can not go in a hot tub, and can't even sit near a hot tub with chlorine in it, as breathing in the chlorine fumes causes me to get unbearably itchy all over--yep, from BREATHING the fumes, not even contact with the skin. So, again, your friend may be suffering from skin itching that has nothing to do with actually coming into skin contact with substances. An allergic reaction like I get from breathing fumes from cut grass, chlorine, etc. is a systemic reaction that can affect all organ systems, and the skin is the biggest organ system we have.

Your friend may want to invest in getting an activated charcoal filter for her shower, to eliminate breathing in the chlorine fumes and also keeping it off her skin. They are cheap and easily installed. I also have a "bath ball"--it is a filter that fits over the tub spigot if you like to soak--it was imperative that I get one of these as my skin was extremely itchy after I'd take a tub bath from all of the chlorine in the water. If she tries these and it is helpful for her skin, then this may be an indication that she is chlorine-sensitive. She may want to eliminate drinking chlorine by drinking bottled water or, less costly and better for the environment (eliminates the use of plastic bottles), get an activated charcoal water filter for her kitchen sink.

There are a lot of sources to purchase the above; I use a company specializing in equipment for the chemically sensitive: NEEDS 1-800-634-1380 or http://www.needs.com They can send out a free catalog of all of their products, including scent-free personal care products that have fewer toxic and skin-irritating ingredients in them, as well as safer and eco-friendly household cleaners. If she orders by phone, ask for "Robyn"--she's a great customer service rep.

If your friend has been to a dermatologist but not an allergist, she should go to an allergist. If she goes to an allergy specialist and doesn't get any relief, she may want to try going to a specialist in "environmental medicine" like I did. These docs work with people that regular allergists can't help, like me. She can google that term to read about this specialty. Chemical Injury Information Network, or CIIN, keeps a doctor list by state for referrals of environmental medicine specialists: http://www.ciin.org/ They rely on donations of any size to keep their organization running; I send them a small yearly donation to be a member and support them.

Please keep in mind that your friend may or may not have chemical sensitivity and/or environmental illness--the terms are sometimes used interchangably. Environmental illness (EI) refers to a person who has extreme sensitivites to substances in the environment--man-made chemicals, foods, and/or natural allergens such as mold, pollen, dust, etc, whereas multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) usually refers exclusively to extreme sensitivities to man-made chemicals. Some folks can have one or the other, or like me, both (MCS/EI).

Hope some of this helps! Let me know how your friend is.

Love, Liora


Blog Articles:


"Liora's List: Green Laundry/Cleaning Products" http://curezone.com/blogs/m.asp?f=309&i=77 Earth-friendlier Cleaning and Laundry Products I recommend, free of chlorine bleach and artificial fragrances, made without nonrenewable petroleum-based chemicals, with no optical brighteners or dyes, and biodegradable!


"Liora's List: Homemade Cleaning Supplies" http://curezone.com/blogs/m.asp?f=309&i=87 Homemade cleaning products use four simple ingredients: vinegar, soap, a "scrubber", and water. Oh, and don't forget the "elbow grease"! Read on for "green" cleaning in your home!


"Liora's List: More Eco-Cleaning Products! " http://curezone.com/blogs/m.asp?f=309&i=165 Oven cleaner, window cleaner, toilet bowl cleaner, unclogging drains, alternatives to moth balls, floor and furniture polish, and more!


"Multiple Chemical Sensitivity & Cleaning Products" http://curezone.com/blogs/m.asp?f=309&i=89
Not all "Green" or nontoxic cleaning products, homemade or otherwise, are healthy for people with Multiple Chemical Sensitivity.


"Toxins in Cosmetics": http://curezone.com/blogs/m.asp?f=309&i=2 Harmful chemicals in cosmetic and personal care products can cause cancer, birth defects, allergic reaction, and other health problems.


"Toxins in Perfume": http://curezone.com/blogs/m.asp?f=309&i=65 Many perfumes contain hazardous levels of certain dangerous chemicals, contributing to cancer, birth defects, allergies, asthma, neurological problems. Consumers are advised to avoid perfumes, colognes, and scents in all household products.


"Dangerous Dryer Sheets" http://curezone.com/blogs/m.asp?f=309&i=363 Stop using dryer sheets! They contain toxic chemicals that coat your clothes.


"Eco-Pest/Weed Control": http://curezone.com/blogs/m.asp?f=309&i=119
A friend wrote to me and wanted to know about less-toxic termite and flea control. I found this great website. It also includes info. on non-toxic weed control and lawn care/maintenance.


Eco-Lawn Care: http://curezone.com/blogs/m.asp?f=309&i=13 American lawns generate massive amounts of "green waste", waste water, require tons of herbicides, and cost the average homeowner much money and time. Read about ECO-lawn care!
 

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