Food allergies and emotions

I have been very busy with research for upcoming topics and interviews to be shared on here soon. As many of you know, life gets busy. If you have commented on posts, I will be replying soon. In the interim, I would like to share with you a post I recently wrote on my other blog, about life with food allergies. The fear and worries as well as ways to overcome them. I have had food allergies my entire life and am only now sharing how it truly feels to the public. It is something that has been hard to open up about as I’ve often thought it was only me. After several comments and DM’s it is clear that this is a topic I need to explore more.

Please have a read and let me know what you think. Here’s the link to my article on http://www.livingwithallergies.ca

I am curious. What do you do to overcome your worries, stress or fear with other allergies? If you get hives from different fabrics, dyes or soaps, shampoos and lotions, do you feel that you have some fear or worry around trying new products? Please let me know in the comments below.

Have a wonderful day!

Erika

Buying clothes when you have allergies

If you are anything like me, buying new clothes, whether it be jeans, shirts, dresses or other usually means that you are going to come home very itchy! I recently went clothes shopping and even just trying on 2 dresses made my body insanely itchy. I often find it takes a good wash before I can wear cloths without them causing hives all over my skin. There are a few chemicals that are often used in textile manufacturing and these can cause skin irritations ranging from mild to severe, for many people. Anytime I go shopping, I always plan to come home right after, as I know only a shower will help me. I also tend to have a lukewarm shower as having a really hot one will open my pores and often leads to more hives and feeling even itchier.

Now, buying used clothes on the other hand has its own challenges as well… If you have very sensitive skin, or are allergic to pet dander then trying on these clothes can also mean a skin irritation or allergy and may even lead to hives or even trigger asthma for some of us. I tend to be very cautious about buying used clothes, and only try on ones from friends who I know don’t have pets. But even at that… What laundry detergents did they use to clean their clothes? Did they use dryer sheets that had fragrance or were the dryer sheets fragrance free? These are all questions many of us ask ourselves. If you have found yourself pondering any of the above, then you deserve a pat on the back. It is extremely important to think ahead. To ask questions.

Time to get back to posting…

It has been quite some time since my last post and I promised Dayne I would keep up with her readers and keep Allergy Comfort Zone Active. So today I am holding myself accountable to my promise. I’m curious to hear what topics you would like to hear more about. Are there questions you have that you can’t find answers to? I often find that there are many things I cannot find an easy answer to and I’d like to continue making this your go to place when it comes to living more comfortably with allergies.

Please comment below or send me an email with questions you have or even topics you would really like me to bring up and share my take on.

Are you Sensitive to Chlorine?

Do you react after swimming in a chlorinated swimming pool? I get hives every time I go swimming, even when I go to pools which operate mostly on ozone and only use a very small amount of what they call “free chlorine”. I have always wondered if there is anything I can do to reduce the skin reactions I get and worry that it may in fact be affecting my asthma. The American College of Asthma, Allergy and Immunology (ACAAI) has great information on this topic. They mention that if you get hives or a rash after swimming in a chlorinated pool it does not mean that you have a chlorine allergy, however it may mean that you have a chlorine sensitivity or “irritant dermatitis” (like a chemical burn), which is caused by hypersensitivity to this natural irritant. If you get a rash or hives from the pool, have you found anything that helps to reduce the amount of hives you get? For my breathing I do take my inhaler prior to swimming to prevent an asthma flare-up. Have you found certain pools affect the rash, hives or other skin reactions you get from swimming pools? Do you notice a difference with indoor pools versus outdoor pools?

ACAAI Chlorine Allergy

Let me introduce myself

Dear readers,

As Dayne has mentioned in her latest post, she has passed along her blog to me and will be writing guest posts when she has time. I came across AllergyComfortZone when looking for information about contact dermatitis, as I live with numerous environmental allergies to dust, mold, dust and pets and often react to chemicals, moisturizing creams, hair products and soaps as well as life threatening food allergies and asthma. I feel honored to continue what Dayne has created, a community of readers just like you, looking to discuss useful information about allergies, find allergy comfort solutions, products and share experiences.

I am 24, and live in British Columbia, Canada. Originally from Montreal, I have traveled a fair bit and dealt with many situations that one cannot always anticipate.  I am extremely excited to get to know you; to find out what questions you have about products, lifestyle changes and allergies, or any other questions you may have! I do have other blogs on food allergies and asthma, thus my posts here will mostly discuss contact dermatitis and eczema.  As I am still in the midst of figuring out the “behind the scenes” stuff, I will keep this first post short.

I invite you to send me a message, (the email has stayed the same) or perhaps share a comment right here, with topics you are interested in.

I am thrilled to be joining this community!

Best,

Erika Ladouceur

There will be the new writer for this blog.

After writing this Allergy Comfort Zone blog for the last 4 years, I am passing it over to  Erika Ladouceur who promises to keep it active and true to its beginnings. Erika lives in Canada so she might have a little different perspective on allergies.

I want to thank all the readers who follow Allergy Comfort Zone and all the many reader who have left comments. I may occasionally write a blog on one of my favorite subjects; skin allergies, contact dermatitis and eczema.

Thank you, have a healthy and happy holiday and new year.

Dayne Sislen

Have an Allergy free Thanksgiving

(A repeat of my previous blog 11/15/10)

Thanksgiving is just around the corner and my kids with allergies are coming for dinner. My family is allergic to gluten, dairy, soy and eggs. The turkey will be fine, but what about the dressing, mashed potatoes, and pumpkin pie?

Turkey: Turkeys themselves are not usually a problem for people with allergies. Some commercial turkeys have been infused with a broth that may have wheat in it. Be sure to read the label carefully or just buy a fresh turkey.

Dressing/Stuffing: My favorite way to make gluten-free dressing is to use wild rice or a mixture of wild and long grain rice as the base instead of bread. I use the drippings from the turkey combined with enough gluten-free turkey stock according to the directions to cook the rice. In another pan, in a small amount of olive oil, I sauté chopped celery, chopped water chestnuts, and a chopped medium onion. Then I add the cooked rice, dried cranberries, poultry seasoning, salt, pepper and 1/4 c white wine. Everything you would use to make regular dressing except the bread crumbs. I don’t use a recipe, it all tastes good just mix it together, you can’t go wrong. If you can’t find gluten-free turkey stock, gluten-free chicken stock or a combination of chicken and beef stock work well. Or of course you can make your own.

Gravy: Do not use the prepackaged gravy that may come with the turkey or you can buy at the store, they contain wheat flour. I heat the turkey drippings with gluten-free turkey broth, poultry seasoning, salt and pepper, then add tablespoon of corn starch or tapioca starch (it takes more of the tapioca) mixed with a 1/8 cup or less of cool broth or water. Hint: always mix your tapioca flour or corn starch with a tiny amount of cool broth or water before adding to the hot gravy mixture and stir constantly until mixture thickens, this help to avoid lumps. Only add a little starch mixture at first, more can be added as needed.

Mash potatoes: My family is allergic to dairy, so I use a little chicken broth for the liquid, and olive oil for the margarine. Use you favorite seasonings, the potatoes taste great and it also cuts down on calories.

Pumpkin Pie: Since my family is allergic to gluten, soy, dairy and eggs, this is a real challenge. The filling can be made using a traditional pumpkin recipe (on the back of the can) using almond milk or Coconut milk and EnerG Egg replacer instead of the usually milk and eggs. The almond milk is a little thinner than condensed milk, so it needs a little buckwheat flour or gluten-free oatmeal added to thicken it up a bit. There are gluten-free crusts available at the store, but they usually won’t work when there are other food allergies. I use crushed Rice Chex cereal instead of a graham cracker crust. One trick I love is to pour melted “Enjoy Life” semi-sweet chocolate over the crushed Rice Cereal and letting it set up, before pouring in the filling. The Rice Chex get a bit soggy if you don’t use the chocolate. As a special topping, there is a product called Rich Whip® Frozen topping, that is sold near the Coolwhip section, it has no wheat, dairy, eggs, nuts, or shellfish.

Hope these hints help to make your Thanksgiving Holiday happy and uneventful allergy wise.

Would anyone like to take over this allergy blog?

I love writing this blog and hearing from people who are suffering from the same allergies I am. I like to think I have helped a few readers along the way. My life is very busy right now and I am finding I have less and less time to devote to this blog. I must simplify my life to survive. If anyone is seriously interested, let me know. I also own the matching URL allergycomfortzone.com , a Twitter account and Facebook account in the same name. This WordPress account gets about 100 visits a day.  This WordPress account is not monetized but it can be, by using the matching URL. I have not kept up with the Facebook and Twitter accounts lately.

← Back

Thank you for your response. ✨

Name(required)

Email(required)

Website

Comments about blog(required)

Submit

Δ

Help for Fall Allergies

Fall allergies are just around the corner. You know they are coming and you know you suffer. What can you do to relieve your symptoms?

Keep your house free of pollen

Your house should be your sanctuary, keep it free of pollen.

Keep dust at bay in your house, use a HEPA filter on your vacuum cleaner.

Leave your shoes at the door

Keep windows and doors closed, use air conditioner when possible

Re circulate air in you car instead of bringing in fresh pollen laden air

Change filter in you furnace and air conditioner

Wash your clothes and hair after being outdoors, you don’t want pollen from your clothes or hair on your bedding or furniture

Dry your clothes in a clothes dryer, not outside

Stay inside on windy days, pollen can travel for miles

Use a Neti Pot or saline rinse daily to clean out nasal tissues.

Hope these hints help make your Fall more comfortable.

What kind of allergy do you have?

My new favorite body moisturizer

I never recommend  any product on this blog until I’ve tried it for at least a month. I have used this wonderful product for three months.

My new love is Eucerin Smoothing Repair Dry Skin Body Lotion with Gluco-Glycerol. I have tried scores maybe even hundreds of skin lotions through the years looking for one that will help my extremely dry and very sensitive skin. My Dermatologist told me to look for a product without perfume that contains both Glycerin and Urea. After reading just about every bottle on the shelf I finally found this product.

In general, I have not had good experiences with other Eucerin body lotions. They are either too greasy or too thick to spread on smoothly without pulling and dragging on my skin or too thin and too drying. I have been using the Eucerin Smoothing Repair Dry Skin Lotion for three months now and my skin is almost completely cleared up. It’s nice to be able to wear short sleeve blouses and shorts. I still have damaged skin from years of terrible rashes and constant irritation, but my skin is beginning to look almost normal.

A 16.9 FL OZ bottle cost about $14, so it’s not very expensive compared to lotions you get from your dermatologist  but more expensive than other more common body lotions you can get at the drugstore. As I mentioned earlier, I have not liked ALL Eucerin products. I have put  Eucerin Smoothing Repair Dry Skin Body Lotion in my Allergy Product Store (click here) , You can get a good price on a double pack there, shipped by Amazon or you may be able to find it at your local drug store.

Hope this helps you as much as it has helped me. Let me know.

May is Allergy & Asthma Awareness Month

May is a peak time for people dealing with allergies and asthma and a perfect time to raise awareness about these diseases.

What are allergies?

Allergies are an overreaction of the immune system to allergens that usually do not cause a reaction in most people. Some of the symptoms of allergies include sneezing, wheezing, coughing, and itching; some allergies (food or drug) can cause an extreme response (anaphylaxis) that is life-threatening, is a medical emergency, and is the most severe allergic reaction. If you or someone around you is having an anaphylactic reaction, please call 911 right away.

For those with extreme allergies that cause anaphylaxis, I suggest reading about them on this WebMD web site.

Do your clothes make you itch?

If your clothes make you itch and you get rashes where your clothes rub your skin, you are not alone. More and more people are discovering their clothes are making them very uncomfortable. I have a few suggestions you can use to help make your life more comfortable.

 Causes of textile allergies:

• Dyes, Formaldehyde and N-methylol, fire-retardant coatings, anti-cling, anti-static, moth-proof, mildew resistant, anti-shrink and waterproof finishes. These finishes are being used more and more.
• Remains of detergent, dyes in the detergent and perfumes in clothes can cause irritation.
• Friction from clothing The areas of the body that come in the closest contact with the affected materials are: underarms, inner thighs, inner elbows, around waist and neck.
• Latex from gloves, rubber additives and in elastic.
• Chemicals used to dye and process leather, and glue products.
• Metals, especially nickel in buckles, cheap jewelry and even some expensive white gold jewelry.
• Dyes on inexpensive beaded costume jewelry.

This is a summary of the best solutions I have found so far.

1. Do not buy highly colored synthetic fabric clothes that will touch your skin. Be careful of highly colored natural fabrics also, be sure to wash all clothes at least three times before wearing.
2. Do not buy any article of clothing, especially for babies and children that is: wrinkle resistant, resistant to stains or odors or has fire-retardant coatings.
3. Be especially careful buying underwear. NEVER wear any clothes that touch your skin, even totally white ones, before washing several times.
4. Use special clothes washing detergents that do not have added fragrances or dyes. Nellie’s All Natural Laundry Soda, 50 Load Bagis my favorite, there are many others available. I also rinse all my clothes twice.
5. Do not use dryer sheets or fabric softeners, I use a Natural Anti Static Dryer Bal like Nellie’s PVC Free Dryer Balls with pretty good success. I also use vinegar in the fabric softener dispenser on my machine, it helps to remove detergent residue and softens clothes. Even fabric softeners without fragrance are unnecessary, they just add chemicals to your clothes.
6. When relaxing at home, have special “pure and natural” clothes that you can feel completely comfortable in. Wrinkled, white on white 100% organic cotton, may not be a fashion statement, but I sure feel more comfortable in my special “at home clothes”. I get mine at Cottonque.com.
7. In the winter I wear white or off white long underwear under my dark or brightly colored clothes. I like silk the best, it doesn’t make me look bulky or make my clothes too tight. Wintersilk.com has some great styles. Of course, I notice my silk long johns will turn light blue after wearing them under blue jeans. This dye would normally be deposited on my skin, no wonder blue jeans make me itchy and break out in rashes.

If you have any other hints to help make life us more comfortable in our own clothes, please leave a comment.

Helping Kids with Allergies

It is terrible to see your children suffer with seasonal allergies. They wake up with swollen eyes and have constantly dripping, raw, red noses. They are tired and irritable and have no idea why they can’t play outside with their friends.

My grandson knows he is supposed to stay inside, but he complains that he must have recess out side everyday and on nice warm days his class also eats their lunch outdoors. By the time he comes home from school he is miserable and irritable. That beautiful yellow-green dust that covers everything outside is very nasty stuff for some children.

Here are 6 things you can do to make your child more comfortable during allergy season.

1. Pollen counts are highest in the morning. avoid letting your children outside at that time of day. The safest time for outdoor play is right after a heavy rain storm, when all the pollen has been knocked out of the air and is still damp. The worse time is early on a sunny windy day.

2. Children’s hair should be covered when outside, it collects a lot of pollen. When anyone in your family comes in from being outside, they should change their clothes and wash all exposed  skin. Hair coverings are best left near the door or in your garage. If you do not use hair coverings, brush hair throughly before coming into your home.

3. Children should bathe or shower and wash their hair in the evening before bedtime. This removes all pollen from the hair and skin. You do not want their bed linens and pillows covered with pollen.

4. Your home should be kept free from pollen. Do not open doors and windows when weather is sunny and mild. Use your air conditioner to control temperature.

5. Outdoor pets carry pollen on their fur and can bring it into your house. When you touch your pet, the pollen can transfer onto your skin and clothes. A pet can also bring pollen into your house on its feet and fur. Brush your pets outside. Outdoor pets should not sleep in your child’s bed or even in their bedroom.

6. Since your child can not completely avoid going outside, there are many good allergy medications available over the counter and by prescription. Talk to your children’s pediatrician about what is best for them. Prescription anti-inflammatory eye drops and nasal sprays are very effective.

AAA-Choo season is just around the corner

Yes, Spring is near, but where I live it is still very much Winter. Tomorrow 10-12″ of snow is coming.

Nevertheless I have seen signs of Spring in my yard. The trees are budding and the bulbs are popping their noses out of the cold soil. I have read in the local paper that juniper, maple and elm pollens are already here. Can allergies be close behind?

When you have allergies, it doesn’t take much of the type of pollen you are sensitive to start you off sneezing with itching eyes and a runny nose. Most of these allergens are found outdoors, but if you let them in your home you will never find complete relief.

Five things to make your life easier this Spring:

1. Keep your windows and doors closed on warm, dry, breezy, sunny days. Right after a storm, there is less pollen in the air, this is when you can safely open your windows.

2. Take your shoes off when you enter the house so you do not bring in allergens.

3. If you want to be outside, take a shower and wash your hair AFTER the walk to remove all the pollen you can. Also put your outdoor clothes in a plastic bag until they can be washed. NEVER go to bed with pollen on your clothes, skin or hair.

3. Install a HEPA filter on your air-conditioning units and air purifiers.

4. A Neti Pot can be used to rinse out your sinus passages and cavities. This can help reduce symtoms.

5. Try using a 24 hour antihistamine that can be obtained over the counter. Charitin, Alegra, or Zyrtec. If none of these work for you, see your primary care physician or allergist for further treatment.

What to wear when your clothes make you itch

I have eczema and contact dermatitis and my clothes make me itch. A lot of other things also tend to irritate my skin. Here is a list of some of the things I am sensitive to: red, orange and blue disperse dye, laundry detergents with perfumes or dyes, nylon, polyester, wool, household cleaning products, water repellant, wrinkle free and stain resistance fabric finishes.

It’s very hard for me to wear most clothes, especially dark-colored clothes. My secret, at least in the cooler months, is to wear white or cream 100% silk long underwear under all my clothes. I buy mine from Winter Silk and Terramar silk from Amazon.

The long johns are very thin and really do not make your clothes look bulky. I always wash all new clothes including silk several times in a perfume-free and dye-free detergent and rinse them twice before wearing them.

I recently ran across a company who sells 100% pure medical grade silk  long underwear. Their product sounds pretty impressive, but the items are very expensive, so I have not been able to try them out. The name is Derma Silk they are located in Canada, the link is http://www.dermasilk.ca/

When summer comes I switch over to wearing well washed and rinsed 100% cotton fabrics in white and very pale colors. My favorite combination is a well washed white top with faded khaki bottoms. Some brands of blue jeans are better for my skin than others. The only way to know for sure is to try them. Levis 501 are suppose to use Indigo dye which may rub off on your skin, but should not be as irritating as synthetic dyes. I like to wear well washed Eddie Bauer jeans, they fit me well and do not irritate my skin.

A New Year, Start Fresh

Every year at this time, I clean up all the holiday decorations and start to reorganize and clean. It’s a new year so I want a new beginning. This year I was sick with a virus over the entire holidays. I was very conscious of keeping my home germ free and safe for my family. No one else got sick, so I must have done a good job.

Keeping your house clean so you don’t suffer from Winter allergies is very similar to keeping it free from germs. We can’t see germs and, even though they are much larger we can barely see pollen and dander.

When you are closed up in a house all Winter, dust is the enemy. Dust particles are composed of pollen, pet dander, dust mites, lead dust, pest droppings, chemical contaminates and pesticides. Not exactly what you want to be touching and breathing in all the time.

Dry dusting and sweeping just stirs up dust. Always use a vacuum with low emissions and a HEPA filter. I have a whole house vacuum that vents out into my garage. I love the idea of getting everything completely out of the house. Use a barely damp cloth to dust your furniture.

Use chemical free cleaners made of household products. Four tablespoons baking soda in one quart of water is a good general cleaner. Vinegar and salt mixed together makes a good surface cleaner. Lemon and salt is good for stubborn stains.

Holidays are here, what about your allergies?

This is a difficult time of year for allergy sufferers of all kinds. If you are allergic to foods like eggs, dairy, wheat, soy, fructose, corn, wine, beer and of course peanuts and tree nuts, it is a real dilemma. If you are allergic to perfume, textile dyes, formaldehyde  textile coatings and synthetic materials you may find it hard to dress festively and be around people who do.

Be prepared, eat something safe before you leave your home so you won’t be tempted to take a chance. If there is something being served that you are extremely allergic to (like having an anaphylactic reaction) go home, don’t chance it. If there are things you are sensitive to, be careful. Always ask the hostess before trying anything new. If there is a beverage or food you can eat or drink bring some with you to share.

If you have problems with perfumes and tainted textiles, dress safely with 100% silk or 100% organic cotton under your clothes. Always wash your clothes before wearing them in perfume-free, dye-free detergent ( I use Nellies All Natural Laundry Detergent). Stay away from people who wear perfume or use highly perfumed laundry detergent. and fabric softener.

Have a happy and healthy holiday season.

Does Grandma know best?

I will not take credit for this advice. I found it in my local newspaper in the Peoples Pharmacy column by Joe and Terry Graedon.  I hope I am giving them enough credit for this advice.

I often write about eczema, contact dermatitis and other skin rashes, this advice from grandmothers may help some people. I find “Old Wives Tales”, “Grandma’s Wit” and “Grandma’s Remedies” to be very helpful. If you think about it, a lot of our “modern” treatments are based on these old remedies (with a lot of added preservatives and added cost).

Here are a few from the Peoples Pharmacy: 

1. For eczema try mixing a non-scented simple lotion like baby lotion with olive oil. Rub on the affected area three times a day. After your shower or bath and two other times. It is supposed to clear up eczema in two weeks.

My experience: I tried using olive oil and lotion several years ago, it did make my dry skin skin feel better, but the greasiness of the oil and the olive oil smell turned me off.

2. Another remedy I haven’t tried yet, but I plan to starting today. Drink Oolong tea. I don’t know how much you need to drink, but it is supposed to help in four weeks. This shouldn’t be too hard for me to do because Oolong tea is my favorite tea.

Hope this helps with your eczema. Visit the Peoples Pharmacy, it is very interesting to read the articles.

Share your Grandma’s Wit with us, maybe it will help someone. Please comment below.

Are You on the Dry Skin Roller Coaster?

As your skin gets dryer, it gets more sensitive because it has less moisture. Less moisture makes the surface of your skin more porous. When you skin is more porous, it lets in more irritants and pollutants which makes your skin drier and more sensitive.

You try to solve this problem with more skin care products and some of these products have irritating ingredients. Therefore your skin gets dryer and more irritated and becomes more porous and lets in more irritants that cause allergies and rashes. The cycle goes on and on.

A few days ago, I tried to go “cold-turkey” and eliminate all moisturizers. I could not believe how rough and dry and cracked my skin was. I was in pain, the itching was terrible!  Just bending my knees and elbows was painful. I gave in and slathered on the moisturizers again.

 Here are a few things I have found that work for extremely dry skin.

1. Limit your baths and showers to 10 minutes. Use barely warm water, hot water dries out your skin even more.
2. Carefully pat yourself dry, you want to leave a little moisture on the surface of your skin.
3. Right away apply a sensitive skin moisturizer or oil. If this soaks in try another layer after waiting a few minutes.

 A few words about moisturizers:

Just because a moisturizer claims it is hypoallergenic doesn’t mean it will be for you. Each of us has different things we are sensitive to.  When a product says it’s “All Natural” it doesn’t mean it will be safe for your skin. I love the smell of lavender in my products and have no problems with them, but a friend of mine is very allergic to lavender.  Even safe sounding ingredients like: Green tea, chamomile, rosemary, mint, sandalwood, aloe vera, etc, can cause problems. I had the worse reaction in my life when I used aloe vera on a rash on my arm. I now stay away from lotions with aloe vera.

Try using food-grade oils like:  Olive oil, grape seed oil, coconut oil, Shay Butter and even Crisco. I have tried Crisco with mixed results (see my earlier blog) , coconut oil and shay butter with better results. Olive oil is great for your skin and hair, but I do not like its strong odor. I like to use shay butter from Africa by itself, without all the irritating stuff. I have also used St. Ives, Naturally Soothing Oatmeal and Shea Butter with fair results. It does have a mild fragrance and some mineral oil though (best not to use if you are extremely sensitive).

Here is a link to a recipe for shay butter moisturizer that you can make. I would suggest leaving out most of the fragrance and coloring and using pure shay butter. Shay butter has a nutty smell, you may or may not like.  If you can tolerate a small amount of essential oil, it might improve the experience.

A few ingredients to avoid:  Added fragrance, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Formaldehyde (that nasty stuff from biology 101), Phthalates, Parabens, Toluene, TEA and DEA, Mineral oil, Thimerasol and Parabens. Avoid products that are said to kill germs. The triclosan also kills the “good” bacteria on your skin that is helpful to maintain the natural skin barrier.

Test all products before using them on your whole body or face. A small area on the inside of your arm is best.

Make a comment below and tell everyone what product you like to use.