Deadly Allergies

My nephew is allergic to nickel as well, and he has to be very careful. There is nickel in so many things. They found out when he was little and needed glasses. They caused a horrible rash, so he has to wear either plastic or silver-plated (gold plated apparently reacts too because the gold is not pure enough (contains nickel to make it sturdy enough to make into glasses).

And black_magnolia, I have heard of others allergic to thimerosal, which is a type of mercury used to stabilize vaccines. I nearly died from having the measles vaccine when I was little, but I seem to have outgrown that allergy. They actually ask every time I get a flu shot if you have allergies to eggs, but I don't think they use thimerosal in vaccines anymore (at least in the U.S.), because parents were thinking it was related to the development of autism in kids, too. I don't believe that one, but who knows?

i am really allergic to gold...jewelry made of gold....

I just know that if I wear a necklace or earrings made of something else then gold and silver (at least the more common jewelries, cheap stuff) it's gonna itch... know titanium doesn't have any nickel, as they don't work togheter, so if I ever pierce something on my body it's gonna be with titanium... or plastic... hm.

Also a bit allergic to makeup. Not sure what ingredient, but as a child I got red and itchy when I had my whole face painted, and after a summer of not wearing any makeup and then painting my eyes with layer on layer of black eyeliner at beginning of school, my eyes got swollen... but can wear it on an everyday basis tho.

being allergic to makeup sucks....you should try some natural make up products...

I overcame mine yrs ago but I seem to be getting one very irritating one living in the USA with all of the ignorance floating around.

CorpseQueen, a lot of the \"face paint\" makeup they use on kids at carnivals and the like contains base metals. The real thick stuff, the kind that comes in a lot of Halloween makeup kits or that nitwits cover their bodies in at football games, those pasty makeup products have a lot of nasty base metals, like nickel, in them. Just figure that might be why you had the reaction to them.

Knumpcy, I get that reaction too, sometimes. Strange itching on the back of my neck in crowds of people in suits...