Nickel Exposure Side Effects and Warnings

Many, many years ago, I wore clip on earrings on a daily basis.  The earrings were basic costume jewelry, cute and inexpensive.  I had an ongoing irritation on my earlobes.  Sometimes it was red and itchy, while other times it was crusty and oozing.  I continued wearing the earrings.


A couple of years later, I got my ears pierced and figured my problems were over.  DUH!  While I had some improvement, I found that I had trouble whenever I wore gold plated earrings.  I had to wear 24k gold.  Life went on, and I usually wore 24k gold earrings.  Every once in awhile, I'd wear costume jewelry and suffer for a few days after.


It never crossed my mind that I was intensifying an allergy with each exposure.  About 10 years later, I started coloring my hair, and have never stopped since then... it's been decades! I had little bouts of blisters on my scalp after coloring my hair.  At one point, I told my Kineseologist/Chiropractor about the blisters.  He said I needed to make some changes immediately.  The doctor gave me a phone number for a beautician who takes special care in this treatment.  The beautician generously talked with me about adding Poly-Sorbate 80 to my hair coloring as a protection of the scalp from the chemicals. So I've done that for at least 10 years.

But when my eye problems exploded, with a diagnosis of chronic conjunctivitis and ocular rosacea, all these past little annoyances became a focus as an irritant to my eyes.  And following a nasty allergy panel on my back, lasting 5 days, the diagnosis was severe allergies to nickel and iron oxide.
 Turns out all the jewelry exposure and the hair coloring exposed me to toxic amounts of nickel and iron oxide.  Now drastic changes were facing me.

Prolonged exposure to heavy metal allergens like nickel and iron oxide will intensify the allergic reaction.  The sooner we eliminate exposure to the metals, the better we can manage the allergies in the future.  ANY nickel allergy can become a more severe condition if continues to be irritated. 

 

Nickel Allergy Side Effects and Warnings (from Clark's Nutrition)

• Nickel exposures may result from cigarette smoke, airborne particles from combustion of fossil fuels, and contact with stainless steel kitchen utensils, stainless steel and nickel-plated articles, and inexpensive jewelry. People working in or living near industries and facilities that manufacture and use nickel may have higher than average exposure. Nickel impurities may be introduced during the manufacturing of food, drugs, and dietary supplements. Nickel alloys are often used in dental and medical procedures. Certain foods contain high nickel levels.
• The level of nickel toxicity depends on its chemical form. Insoluble nickel compounds (metallic nickel, nickel sulfides, and nickel oxides) are associated with a higher risk of cancer than water-soluble nickel salts (chloride, nitrate, sulfate). Nickel carbonyl is the most toxic form of nickel. Inhalation of nickel carbonyl over time may cause cancer of the lung and nose. Taking it by mouth may lead to serious complications, including death.
• Long-term exposure to nickel compounds is associated with lung and nasal cancer in humans, and it induces tumors in experimental animals. The International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified nickel compounds as carcinogenic to humans.
• Skin contact may lead to nickel-induced contact dermatitis. In rare cases, skin reactions may occur at a site on the body other than the point of nickel contact, and asthma may occur. Exposure to nickel-containing dust may cause heart and lung diseases. Nickel exposure may cause variable degrees of kidney and cardiovascular system poisoning. Ingestion of high levels of nickel sulfate has been associated with nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, blurred vision, dizziness, coma, and kidney poisoning.
• Use cautiously in patients with diabetes, blood sugar disorders, cancer, heart rate abnormalities, liver disorders, kidney disorders, or immune or autoimmune disorders; in patients taking agents for any of these conditions; and in patients taking blood vessel-widening or -constricting agents, or agents metabolized by cytochrome P450 enzymes.
• Use cautiously during radiotherapy, or in combination with cis-platinum, trans-platinum, and mitomycin C, as nickel may enhance their cytotoxicity and genotoxicity.
• Avoid excess nickel exposure or consumption.
• Children should avoid excess nickel exposure, as early-life exposure to nickel may induce malformations and late-onset diseases. Body piercing should be done using nickel-free studs, especially in children, to prevent nickel hypersensitization.
• Pregnant and lactating women should avoid excessive exposure to nickel, because it can cross the placenta and has been demonstrated to be harmful to the fetus, and it may cause spontaneous abortion.
• Long-term skin contact with nickel should be avoided, due to the risk of developing contact dermatitis. Gloves should be worn by workers that handle nickel objects.
• Patients that are highly sensitive to nickel are advised to strictly avoid nickel exposure, including nickel-containing foods and dental material. Patients with a known allergy to other metals, especially palladium, cobalt, and aluminum, should also limit nickel exposures.
• Breathing nickel fumes or dusts should be avoided due to the risk of cancers of the lung, nose, larynx, and prostate, and cardiopulmonary diseases.
• Avoid in combination with disulfiram therapy in patients with nickel dermatitis, due to the risk of liver toxicity.

http://www.clarksnutrition.com/

Whew! When I found this list, it was a bit frightening! There is more at risk than simple rashes and skin irritation.  The words kidney poisoning, cancer and carcinogenic are very serious health risks connected with nickel exposure.  Those of us with nickel allergies honestly must pay careful attention to the early and subtle warning signs.  

Limit exposure to the heavy metals that you are allergic to, so you can reduce the chances of experiencing hypersensitization. 

 

 

Detox #6 Plan for Nickel Heavy Metals

When I think of detox treatments, I usually think of INPUT: eating and drinking foods that help clean me out.  But today I'm writing about a detox method that involves OUTPUT: doing something that makes my body push out toxins in the process.

 

So what kind of detox method involves output? Sweating!

Yuck! Who wants to sweat?!?!?  Most of us do whatever we can to avoid perspiring and sweating.  It's not pretty.  But it IS a way to cleanse your body of toxins. Sweating actually has many important health- and beauty-related benefits. Your skin is the largest organ of your body, and serves important roles just like any other bodily organ. Something as simple as sweating could provide equal or even greater detoxification benefits than dietary detox plans.

All of these benefits promote general health, and recent research^1,2,3,4,5 has even shown that regular sauna use correlates to a reduced risk of death from any cause, including lethal cardiovascular events.

Read more of this article here

Quite a number of years ago, we visited Sweden, and got to stay in someone's home.  They had their own sauna built into their laundry room.  It was a big surprise to me to see such a room.  Our hosts said most homes had saunas included in their houses. That is the first time I seriously began to think of sauna treatments as a way to purify the body.

 The Different Types of Saunas

Today, there are three basic types of saunas:

1. The wet Finnish sauna, where steam is created by throwing water on hot rocks (the heat can be generated by either wood burning or electricity)
2. The dry Finnish sauna that uses electrical heating, and therefore does not employ water (these stoves are not made to have water poured on them. Doing so can result in short-circuiting)
3. Infrared saunas

The difference between an infrared sauna and the traditional Finnish-style saunas is that the latter heats you up from the outside in, like an oven. The infrared sauna heats you from the inside out.  The traditional wet sauna typically uses a small stove with radiant heat elements, i.e. resistive elements that heat up when current flows through them. These elements heat up the rocks piled on top. The temperature is regulated by a thermostat. Initially, the sauna will feel warm and dry, but once you toss some water on the rocks, hot steam is generated.

Click here to see a larger version  of the infographic

In 2012, researchers with the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute provided a meta-analysis on 24 studies and found that arsenic, lead, mercury, and cadmium weren’t only present in sweat but often present in greater concentrations than within urine or blood (where such toxins are usually measured).  They determined, quite simply, that “sweating deserves consideration for toxic element detoxification.”

             http://naturalsociety.com/sweating-detoxing-body-heavy-metals-more/



Personally, I can't figure out how to afford a sauna.  And I don't think I have room for one.  That is why I've opted for infrared therapy with mats.  When I use the mat, I actually DO sweat!
Read my previous post about infrared therapy

 

So now what?? I guess it is important to realize we can't protect ourselves from toxins; they are all around us.  What we can do is break a sweat by sitting in a sauna, using infrared therapy, or doing some exercise. That way we can work on getting more of the toxins and heavy metals like nickel and iron oxide out of our bodies.

Do you have an alternative detox plan that I haven't covered? I would really like to hear about it.  Please comment below.  

Detox Plan #5 for Nickel Heavy Metals (my favorite)

 Let's face it.... we are living in a toxic world! It is nearly impossible to completely avoid exposure to toxins in our daily life.  I don't know about you, but I can't pull off my life by living in a "bubble".  Yet, when I was diagnosed with Nickel and Iron Oxide Allergies, I realized my body was paying a price and it was now showing me how unhappy it was. 


And once I was diagnosed as having Nickel and Iron Oxide Allergies, I started researching basic info, sources of exposure, dietary approaches, and lifestyle changes that I would need to make. I wanted to get a handle on this allergy and reduce it's power to take over my life.


I have been writing about detox plans to help reduce the toxic levels within a person's body.  Today's article presents the most "out there" approach.  But it is the approach I most depend upon and use it daily.  

Dr. MyHill is a medical doctor in the UK.  She describes herself this way:

I believe modern Western Medicine has lost touch with patients. What patients actually want is an answer to the question why they have developed their particular problem followed by which nutritional, lifestyle or environmental changing factors need they put in place to allow improvements. In pursuing this object, I have become the Secretary of the British Society for Ecological Medicine, a medical organisation in which we have our own scientific journal, our own bi-annual scientific meetings at the Royal College of General Practitioners as well as running training meetings for GPs and Consultants. All the medicine that we practise has an excellent evidence base, but of course not the mega financial resources to sell this to the health industry in this country. 

 Hang in there, I WILL get to the detox in a moment.  Read a bit more of what Dr. MyHill says about daily exposure to toxins:

In the last fifty years it has been estimated that 5 million new chemicals have been created by man, of which 75,000 are in regular everyday use, of which less than 10% have had any sort of toxicity testing. These chemicals are now ubiquitously present in the environment, and are well absorbed through food, water, by inhalation and through our skins. Many of them are very fat-soluble and bio-accumulate in our bodies. It is now becoming very clear that the internal environment of our bodies reflects our external environment.

Furthermore, because we are at the top of the food-chain and because we live for many years, chemical burden is increasing each year. Studies done by the World Wildlife Fund and other such scientific bodies show that we all carry a heavy burden of chemicals. They are present in our fat in mg/kg (this would be similar to the sort of levels in blood if we were taking a therapeutic drug); persist for many years; and their effects are unpredictable.

Most of these chemicals are known toxins, cause cancer, birth-defects, damage to nerves and the immune system, to the liver and bone marrow, etc. Furthermore, we now know that cocktails of chemicals have much more serious effects than chemicals in isolation. Low-dose chemicals may be very much more toxic than we ever expected, partly because many of them mimic our own hormones, thereby disrupting the delicate hormonal balance within all of us.

http://www.drmyhill.co.uk/wiki/Detoxing__Far_Infrared_Sauna_%28FIRS%29

 

Detoxing Plan #5 Through the Skin

So Dr. MyHill is one of many holistic doctors who are recommending Infrared Therapy as a method of detox.  

 Chemicals can be excreted directly through the skin and by exhalation. These excretions happen when the body gets hot & chemicals are released, passing through the sweat. 

There are a few ways to detox through the skin:

• Exercise 
• Saunas, Turkish baths & spa therapies
•  Far Infrared Sauna (FIRS)

Sorry to keep quoting, but this one is needed.  Dr. MyHill describes how Far Infrared Sauna (FIRS) works:

Far infra red rays constitute the main energy-source that comes from the sun and are responsible for warming our skin when we sit in direct sunshine. The rays penetrate several centimetres through the skin and heat up subcutaneous tissues. With enough sun on the skin, the skin will sweat; chemicals from subcutaneous tissues will be mobilised and pass out through sweat. The sunshine does this without heating up the core temperature (although if you lie in the sun for long enough then the core temperature will eventually rise;) therefore chemicals can be mobilised and excreted without causing systemic poisoning. Dr Rogers describes many case-histories in her book of patients who, for example, have severe heart-disease who would certainly not tolerate a sauna, but who can tolerate FIRS very comfortably. 

 Infrared sauna treatments are the top recommendation of holistic doctors.  However, it is difficult to find places to get this treatment.  AND it is very expensive to purchase.






My kineselologist/chiropractor told me about using a infrared mat that is made by Therasage. Studies have shown that it takes about 15 minutes of infrared heat to warm up the tissue to start improvement.  Some doctors believe by going 5 minutes longer, you are working on the actual healing and repair. 

                                               

I started using the Therasage mat daily to help heal my knee following surgery. Now I also include daily treatments on my front torso &  back torso.  It truly has become my favorite way to detox!

The Therasage FIRS mat is available at Amazon and at   http://therasage.com/

 

Happy Detoxing! 

 

Please leave your thoughts in the comments section below.  I have a Facebook page and you can find me on Twitter. Follow my Nickel Allergies board on Pinterest.

 

Detox Plans #1 and 2 for Nickel Heavy Metals

For some people struggling with nickel allergy, all that is needed to stay "clean" is to avoid skin contact with jewelry, kitchen utensils, zippers and metal buttons.


But those with more severe nickel allergies have to also avoid nickel exposure in their diet.  Either way, avoiding nickel exposure requires a lot of thought about how you live and what you touch.


I try to avoid many foods that are known to contain a lot of nickel .  But every so often, I'm in a position where I just cannot avoid it. For instance, we are eating dinner at a friend's house and several of the foods served contain a lot of nickel.  Most likely, I'm going to eat the food and suffer later.


When doctors told me there really weren't any pills I could take to get rid of the nickel in my gut and body, I decided to look toward more natural treatments.  Heavy metal detox techniques seemed to be the path I needed to take.

Is there anything I can do to get a nickel detox?

There are a couple of safe and easy ways to remove heavy metals by using natural supplements and foods. PLEASE NOTE that most detox techniques for heavy metals focus upon mercury, lead, and aluminum. Nickel commonly is not listed. But when I checked a bit further I found this:

Nickel (Ni) is a nasty toxic metal and a known carcinogen. It is one of the metals we see most commonly in toxicity tests
 Doctor Myhill 

In terms of degree of interest, the chief heavy metals of note in the environmental science literature are lead, mercury, cadmium, chromium, copper, manganese, nickel, zinc, silver.

The Encyclopedia of the Earth

  Detox Chelation Plan #1

Chelation is a very effective way to treat heavy-metal poisoning. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved prescription chelation therapy for the treatment of lead poisoning.
http://www.webmd.com/balance/tc/chelation-therapy-topic-overview


Until recently, all chelation was a formal medical procedure, usually supervised by a doctor but sometimes carried out by dentists. But recent research has revealed a more natural way to perform chelation.This detox plan uses  cilantro, also called coriander or Chinese parsley.

A  researcher named Dr. Yoshiaki Omura discovered that some patients excreted more toxic metals after consuming a Chinese soup containing cilantro, the leafy part of coriander, an herb whose seed is a familiar culinary spice in African, Middle Eastern, and Indian cooking. In China, cilantro is called Chinese parsley, and it is used mainly as a garnish rather than seasoning.  Cilantro is also common in some Italian dishes. It is a member of the carrot family and has a distinct taste that most people either love or hate.
http://www.kitchendoctor.com/herbs/cilantro.php

Cilantro is best used in conjunction with chlorella because it, “mobilizes more toxins than it can carry out of the body, it may flood the connective tissue (where the nerves reside) with metals, that were previously stored in safer hiding places.” This can cause retoxificaiton if another binding agent isn’t used to help rid the body of the heavy metals that are ‘found’ in their hiding places throughout the body.

http://naturalsociety.com/proper-heavy-metal-chelation-cilantro-chlorella/

 

Cilantro offers chelation benefits:

• Highly effective metal toxin binding agent and mobilizer.
• Powerful anti-inflammatory.
• Antibacterial.
• Increases HDL cholesterol and decreases LDL.
• Prevents gas and bloating.
• Wards off urinary tract infections.
• Eases hormonal swings during menopause and menstruation.
• Can reduce nausea.
• Adds fiber to the digestive tract – an effective bulking agent.
• Fights anemia with high levels of iron, and magnesium.
• Reduces minor swelling.
• Promotes liver health.
• Can be used as an expectorant.

 

 

Dr. Mercola suggests combining cilantro chelation with other supplements :

 Cilantro alone often does not remove mercury from the body; it often only displaces the metals form intracellularly or from deeper body stores to more superficial structures, from where it can be easier removed with the previously described agents.

 

 

The properties of chlorella lend themselves nicely to aiding cilantro for detoxifying the body:

• Chlorella is antiviral.
• It binds to dioxins and other environmental toxins.
• It repairs the body’s detoxification functions.
• Improves glutathione – the bodies ‘master’ antioxidant.
• Binds to heavy metals exceptionally well.
• Alpha and gamma lineolic acids in chlorella help increase the intake of fish oil and other important fatty acids.
• Methyl-coblolamine repairs the nervous system and damaged neurons which often suffer from heavy metal poisoning.
• Chlorella contains the most easily absorbed form of B12 and B6.
• Chlorella is high in amino acids, and thus ideal for vegetarians.
• Chlorella is able to open cell walls, which is necessary for detox processes.
• Chlorella restores healthy gut flora.
• Chlorella is still being studied for its detoxifying effects, since science cannot fully understand how it has developed over millions of years to be so effective in ridding the body of unwanted substances.
• This PDF describes very specific chelation dosing when using chlorella.

 Dr. Mercola supports the use of chlorella in chelation:

Chlorella is an important part of the systemic mercury elimination program, as approximately 90% of the mercury is eliminated through the stool. Using large doses of chlorella facilitates fecal mercury excretion. After the intestinal mercury burden is lowered, mercury will more readily migrate into the intestine from other body tissues from where chlorella will effectively remove it.

Chlorella is not tolerated by about one-third of people due to gastrointestinal distress. Chitosan can be effectively used as an alternative in these individuals. Chitosan makes up most of the hull of insects shellfish and also bind metals like mercury from the lumen of the intestines.

 

Detox Chelation Plan #2

Dr. David Williams has used natural chelation treatment extensively.  He suggests consuming at least 1/4 cup of tightly-packed fresh cilantro stems and leaves per day during a detox.

Since cilantro may release more heavy metals than the body can efficiently remove, and to prevent any metals from being deposited in the colon, I also recommend using a form of calcium bentonite clay called Pascalite. While using the cilantro for a detox period of two weeks, take 1 to 2 teaspoons of Pascalite mixed with water three times a day between meals.
 http://www.drdavidwilliams.com/cilantro-clay-for-detoxification/

Please note, just be sure your magnesium levels are high before starting any serious chelation program, since this trace mineral helps to promote ‘relaxed’ arteries and can make elimination of toxins easier on the body.

http://naturalsociety.com/proper-heavy-metal-chelation-cilantro-chlorella/

Check back for my next post showing two more ways to detox and help with your nickel allergy.

Please leave your thoughts in the comments section below.  I have a Facebook page and you can find me on Twitter. Follow my Nickel Allergies board on Pinterest.

Zendocrine essential oil blend supports the body’s natural ability to rid itself of unwanted substances. This powerful blend combines Rosemary, Cilantro, and Juniper Berry, known for their detoxifying properties and ability to support healthy liver function, while Tangerine and Geranium have purifying effects against unhealthy substances. Zendocrine helps cleanse the body of toxins and free radicals that can slow the body’s systems down, leaving a heavy, weighted feeling. - See more at: http://doterrablog.com/essential-oil-spotlight-zendocrine-detoxification-blend/#sthash.Ri6RluEI.dpuf

Zendocrine essential oil blend supports the body’s natural ability to rid itself of unwanted substances. This powerful blend combines Rosemary, Cilantro, and Juniper Berry, known for their detoxifying properties and ability to support healthy liver function, while Tangerine and Geranium have purifying effects against unhealthy substances. Zendocrine helps cleanse the body of toxins and free radicals that can slow the body’s systems down, leaving a heavy, weighted feeling. - See more at: http://doterrablog.com/essential-oil-spotlight-zendocrine-detoxification-blend/#sthash.Ri6RluEI.dpuf

Zendocrine essential oil blend supports the body’s natural ability to rid itself of unwanted substances. This powerful blend combines Rosemary, Cilantro, and Juniper Berry, known for their detoxifying properties and ability to support healthy liver function, while Tangerine and Geranium have purifying effects against unhealthy substances. Zendocrine helps cleanse the body of toxins and free radicals that can slow the body’s systems down, leaving a heavy, weighted feeling. - See more at: http://doterrablog.com/essential-oil-spotlight-zendocrine-detoxification-blend/#sthash.Ri6RluEI.dpuf

Birth Control Worries for Nickel and Iron Oxide Allergy Sufferers

Bayer's  Essure^® is permanent birth control that works by creating a natural barrier against pregnancy. But women experiencing nickel allergy need to think twice about using this product.

(click the photo above to watch the news report on the 

Federal Judge to decide on the status of Essure)

 

A dream come true?

The site’s Benefits/Risks page offers a long list of positives, including several items that could come most ladies' “birth control wish-list”.  Essure is a non-surgical sterilization procedure that can be performed in a doctor’s office without any incision.


It doesn’t use any hormones or silicone, both of which have received negative press recently, causing women to think carefully about what goes into their bodies. The fact that the procedure is often covered by insurance makes it seem like a dream come true. But as with anything, it’s important to look past the hyped-up language and directly into the facts.

Essure makes the following claims on its website: “Quick recovery … most women return to their normal activities within one day.”

Some women return to their normal activities that quickly, but many need three to five days, and some women claim that it took up to two weeks.


 “No general anesthesia required – … Although some physicians may offer general anesthesia, this is not a requirement of the procedure …”


It’s true that the procedure doesn’t require general anesthesia. However, many doctors do require it for the placement of the coils.


“No hormones or silicone – … Essure micro-inserts do not contain silicone or release hormones…”

http://urbanmilwaukeedial.com/2008/05/01/essure-be-careful-what-you-wish-for/ 

So How Does Essure Relate To Nickel Allergy?

The inserts are hormone and silicone free, but they contain nickel, which many people are allergic to. If you’ve ever had a reaction to jewelry or the snap on your jeans, you are at risk to have a reaction to the inserts as well.




Since 2004, almost 850 women and doctors have filed Adverse Event Reports with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) about Essure birth control.


They detail extreme symptoms -- from women experiencing excess bleeding, rashes and bloating to women who were forced to have their reproductive organs removed.

The Essure Safety page clearly states the following:

The Essure insert is made of materials that include a nickel-titanium alloy. Patients who are allergic to nickel may have an allergic reaction to the inserts. Symptoms include rash, itching and hives

The FDA has received more than 4,800 adverse event reports since the device went to market in 2002 and a Facebook page dedicated to the issue has grown to more than 17,000 members. Most of the comments and photos detail side effects from an allergy to nickel, which is a component of the coils.

 

Originally, women were advised to test for nickel allergy before getting Essure implanted, but the manufacturer asked the FDA to remove that requirement a few years ago. 

 

Perhaps it comes down to the old cliche: If it looks too good to be true, it probably isn't

 

Researching this topic has helped me realize the importance in asking lots of questions whenever I'm considering any medical procedure.  Until now, I wouldn't think it would be important to tell a OB/GYN about my nickel/iron oxide allergy.  So a safe approach would be to tell every specialist of this allergy!

 

What?? I'm Allergic to Hair Dye?

After I was diagnosed with severe allergies to Nickel & Iron Oxide, I realized that most cosmetics with color, including hair color have Iron Oxide. Yikes!  I am about 65% white/gray!  I survive by using hair color!  Is THIS the point in life when I would finally let my natural hair color take over?

I have colored my hair since I was around 26 years old, and now I am.... ummm.... well let's just say I'm in my 50's.  At the beginning, I would go to my beautician for a professional color job with highlights.

As the years went on, I needed to color more often.  And so for the price consideration, I decided to color my own hair with permanent color from the beauty supply.  I haven't ever used the coloring products available in the drugstores, they are pretty harsh on hair.

About 12 years ago, I started experiencing blisters on my scalp and around my hairline. These would appear right after I finished coloring my hair. I've also shown a flare up of rosacea on my cheeks immediately after coloring.  Little did I realize these were early signs of my iron oxide allergy.

It is important to realize blisters and allergic reactions to hair dye will increase in severity if there is continued exposure.  So it really IS important to pay attention to your body's signal!

Searching for Alternatives & Help

I contacted a beautician who helps people treat their hair with more natural products.  He recommended adding about a 1/2 tsp of Polysorbate-80 to my Wella hair color.  It is a healthy product that is added to foods like ice cream and is also used in many hair growth and management products.  Amazon sells Polysorbate-80 for $20 or less.

But eventually I had to make further changes in the hair coloring products, because I needed to avoid Iron Oxide.  So the search began.

There Are Healthier Alternatives for Coloring Hair

http://www.allergictohairdye.com/ offers some great info and alternatives to the hair color I had been using.  But ultimately, I've found iron oxide is included as one of the ingredients for those brands also. Henna is too difficult because I would have to wear the color and wrap my head for up to 6 hours. No way!




My dear friend, Terrie, owns a health food store. She recommended Herbatint hair color.  I was hesitant, but tried it. 

 The Results....

I absolutely LOVE Herbatint!  My hair color is warm, the texture is soft (for once), and it is shiny (finally!)

 

Click HERE to watch my video about Herbatint

And just as important - many others have complimented me on the color and texture of my hair since changing over to Herbatint. My beautician is amazed at how much softer my hair has become!  My coarse horse-hair has a lot less frizzies sticking up like tiny antennae.

Take a look at the ingredients used in Herbatint: 
Haircolor Gel: laureth-5, propylene glycol, water, peg-2 oleamine, ethanolamine, walnut extract, rhubarb extract, cinchona extract, aloe extract, meadowfoam extract, birch extract, cetrimonium chloride, echinacea augustifolia extract, hamamelis virginiana extract, sodium sulfite, ascorbic acid, tetrasodium edta, resorcinol, m-o-p aminophenol, 2 amino 3 hydroxypiridine, p phenylenediamine.Glycol Developer: water, hydrogen peroxide, etidronic acid, cetrimonium chloride. Royal Cream

I am convinced and will stick with Herbatint from now on.  In fact, I recommend it for anyone who wants to bring healthier habits into their lifestyle!  One woman I know brings Herbatint to her hairdresser, so it is applied in the salon.

Herbatint can be purchased at health food stores, and stores such as Whole Foods.  It is also available at Amazon and Vitacost.

(This is an unpaid, unsolicited review)

Airbrush, Sunless Tanners and Nickel/Iron Oxide Allergies

Today we returned from our annual weekend at the beach.  My parents, my sister's family, and my family all go to Cayucos, California on the Central Coast.  It's a great time together.  And believe it or not, my 79 year old mom and 80 year old dad get in their wetsuits to boogie board with the rest of us!

 

 

In the past 10 years, I always got very inflamed cheeks.  The skin on my cheeks would get hot and puffy.  In the early years, I thought it was a sunburn. But I eventually figured out I was having an allergic reaction.

 

So I started using zinc oxide as my waterproof sunscreen.  It was a fun purple colored sunblock. But I STILL had a bad reaction. Now that I KNOW I have an allergy to Iron Oxide, I realize the ingredients that created the purple color was the irritant.  There are lotions that are pure zinc oxide that would work great for me. I also believe there is some Iron Oxide in the sea water that is an irritant to my face.  

For the past 2 years, I decided to limit myself to just one day of boogie boarding, compared to 2 days in the past.  That helped quite a bit. In addition to that, I bought swimming goggles to provide further protection for my eyes.  This year I completely skipped sunblock.  And after 2 hours in the water, I had a great time with no allergic reaction!  Wahooo!!!


Here is a photo we took at the end of the day, look at my happy eyes & cheeks! Believe it or not, this is a big improvement over the past years.





In the past, I have used sunless tanners and tinted sunless tanners on my legs.  Now I'm realizing that Iron Oxide is the key ingredient that provides the color in the tinted sunless tanners! Bad news for me!

Having an Iron Oxide Allergy means re-thinking the way you get your Summer tan! Just think of it this way...if it deposits cover on your skin, it will have Iron Oxide.

In an earlier post, I wrote about how nickel and iron oxide are basically the same thing. So IF you have a nickel allergy, consider whether Iron Oxide will also be an irritant to your skin.

Sunless tanning products also contain bronzers that come in all different forms and colors. They may be blends of F, D, &C, (food, drug and cosmetic) water soluble dyes, iron oxides, (the different colors of rust formed by the oxidation of ferrous metals), or natural sources such as carmine, a pigment made from carminic acid, found in cochineal insects such as beetles. http://www.airbrush-tanning.us/faq1.htm

Dr. Mercola talks about Why Sunless Tanning Can Be Dangerous:

Sunless tanners contain a lengthy list of chemical agents — up to 45 in the case of spray tanners. Many of these agents have never been studied for their long-term effects on human health, because the FDA does not systematically review the safety of personal care products. Since testing is voluntary and controlled by the manufacturers, many ingredients in cosmetic products are not safety tested at all.
One of the main ingredients in spray tanning solutions is dihydroxyacetone, a color additive that darkens your skin by reacting with amino acids in your skin's surface layer. Dihydroxyacetone is often abbreviated DHA (which should not be confused with docosahexaenoic acid, the healthy omega-3 fat often given the same abbreviation). Sunless tanning products often contain between 1 and 15 percent DHA; the higher the DHA level, the darker the tan produced.
Manufacturers of sunless tanning products claim DHA is a simple carbohydrate sugar solution, but some toxicologists disagree. Part of the problem is that the U.S. government's regulations for DHA allow contaminants such as lead, arsenic and mercury.

A report by the National Toxicology Program¹ suggests the risks of DHA remain unclear, pointing to some evidence that DHA may be a mutagen that could induce breaks in DNA strands, which could contribute to accelerated aging and even skin cancer. Another issue is absorption through your skin. You shouldn't put anything on your skin you wouldn't feel safe eating.  

In fact, earlier this year a panel of medical experts reviewed 10 scientific studies on DHA and concluded the use of DHA-containing spray tans may cause genetic alterations and DNA damage that could lead to cancer and chronic lung diseases when inhaled.² Sunless tanning sprays have even been found to inhibit your skin's ability to produce vitamin D, as the dark layer on your skin produced by the DHA results in the prevention of UVB absorption, thereby inhibiting vitamin D production.
 http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/02/09/sunless-tanning-lotion.aspx

So I guess I will be sporting pale skin this summer.  Good thing I have an olive tint to my color naturally!  

My favorite skin treatment for summer is coconut oil.  It seems to make my skin look a bit more tan.  Enjoy these summer days!