Jump to content
  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.




  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):



    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):


  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Rash On Scalp


CarlaB

Recommended Posts

CarlaB Enthusiast

I used to get a rash on my scalp near my forehead, and once I eliminated gluten, it went away. It would get aggravated when I was using a shampoo and conditioner with wheat, but when I changed hair products, I didn't have a problem.

I got glutened last week, and a few days later the rash came back, and much worse than it ever was before. It's flesh colored in spots, red in spots, and it itches like poison ivy (but it's not). It's mostly on my scalp, but also comes down on my forehead just a little by my hairline. What do you think this is? I've read many of the old posts on dh, psoriasis, etc., and I just don't know. If it sounds like dh, and I'm gluten-free anyway, is there any need to go to a dermatologist? I've been hesitant to set up and appt. because I figure by the time I get in, it will be gone, besides, I just don't trust doctors.

I also have one sore on my lipline, one inside my mouth, and one on my upper lip, but I don't know if they're related to the rash.

Thank you for your suggestions.

Carla


Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):



Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):



AndreaB Contributor

Carla,

I have a rash on my thigh that still hasn't gone away. From what I understand they are triggered by allergies whether it be food or environmental. Did you eat anything different the last few days that could be an allergic flare up?

Ursa Major Collaborator

Carla, when I get glutened I get all kinds of rashes, and that one sounds familiar. I doubt that there is a need to see a dermatologist. It might help to use an eczema cream from the health food store. I use one called 'Execalm', and it really helps when I get those outbreaks. It helps with the itching and burning, and makes it heal faster.

CarlaB Enthusiast
Carla,

I have a rash on my thigh that still hasn't gone away. From what I understand they are triggered by allergies whether it be food or environmental. Did you eat anything different the last few days that could be an allergic flare up?

No, but I got glutened a week ago last Sunday and it showed up a little after that. Since I break out in rashes from topical wheat, I suspect a secondary wheat allergy, though I've never had any problems with respiratory reactions from it.

Carla, when I get glutened I get all kinds of rashes, and that one sounds familiar. I doubt that there is a need to see a dermatologist. It might help to use an eczema cream from the health food store. I use one called 'Execalm', and it really helps when I get those outbreaks. It helps with the itching and burning, and makes it heal faster.

Thank you, I'll try it.

  • 2 weeks later...
Guest Educator

I have had it for years in my hairline and even a couple of inches into the hair. I was told they were nerve burns from stress. I was diagnosed yesterday by biopsy and it is definitely DH. Still working on this one myself so can't offer any assistance. Take Care!!

FrostyFriday Rookie
I used to get a rash on my scalp near my forehead, and once I eliminated gluten, it went away. It would get aggravated when I was using a shampoo and conditioner with wheat, but when I changed hair products, I didn't have a problem.

I got glutened last week, and a few days later the rash came back, and much worse than it ever was before. It's flesh colored in spots, red in spots, and it itches like poison ivy (but it's not). It's mostly on my scalp, but also comes down on my forehead just a little by my hairline. What do you think this is? I've read many of the old posts on dh, psoriasis, etc., and I just don't know. If it sounds like dh, and I'm gluten-free anyway, is there any need to go to a dermatologist? I've been hesitant to set up and appt. because I figure by the time I get in, it will be gone, besides, I just don't trust doctors.

I also have one sore on my lipline, one inside my mouth, and one on my upper lip, but I don't know if they're related to the rash.

Thank you for your suggestions.

Carla

What kind of shampoo do you use? I was told to use baby shampoo and clear soap but I still have itchy scalp and skin, especially on the tops of my arms. I usually have sores in my mouth as well and have been trying to be gluten free for the past six years.

CarlaB Enthusiast
I have had it for years in my hairline and even a couple of inches into the hair. I was told they were nerve burns from stress. I was diagnosed yesterday by biopsy and it is definitely DH. Still working on this one myself so can't offer any assistance. Take Care!!

That sounds like mine. Bumps or blisters (look kind of like a big pimple with no whitehead), tender to the touch, itchy, a couple inches into the scalp from the hairline. In addition to the bigger bumps, there is a rash as well. Doesn't seem related to stress at all. Thanks for posting, that's interesting.

What kind of shampoo do you use? I was told to use baby shampoo and clear soap but I still have itchy scalp and skin, especially on the tops of my arms. I usually have sores in my mouth as well and have been trying to be gluten free for the past six years.

I use gluten-free shampoo and conditioner -- Alterna Caviar. I can't use baby shampoo because it's too drying. My hair is already dry enough! <_<

Try pure coconut oil on your skin ... it's gluten-free and makes it really soft! Thanks for your suggestion.


Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):



Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):



Green12 Enthusiast

This intrigues me too, I would get a rash when I was much younger all over my scalp. I never knew what it was. Is it possible to just have DH in an isolated area, or is it usually an all over thing??

Just curious.

lindalee Enthusiast

I went through that a few months ago and switched to a shampoo with no sodium laurel sulfates. I was totally dreading the shampoo thing until I switched. I went to the grocery store and bought Avalon Organics-tea tree mint treatment. It is the only one I saw without SLS. Now I am dealing with the itchy ear occasionally. When I used the other shampoo, I used to clean my ears with it. BIG mistake. my ears still itch a little. I think some may still be in there. Unless someone else know what it is. Carla, I am sure there are other brands out there but this took my rash and itching symptoms away. My hair is not as dry without the sls's. It is in soaps,toothpaste, etc. Hope this helps! LindaLee

CarlaB Enthusiast
I went through that a few months ago and switched to a shampoo with no sodium laurel sulfates. I was totally dreading the shampoo thing until I switched. I went to the grocery store and bought Avalon Organics-tea tree mint treatment. It is the only one I saw without SLS. Now I am dealing with the itchy ear occasionally. When I used the other shampoo, I used to clean my ears with it. BIG mistake. my ears still itch a little. I think some may still be in there. Unless someone else know what it is. Carla, I am sure there are other brands out there but this took my rash and itching symptoms away. My hair is not as dry without the sls's. It is in soaps,toothpaste, etc. Hope this helps! LindaLee

Mine has no sodium laurel sulfates, says so right on the front of the bottle!! I checked when you mentioned this on another thread.

Thanks for the suggestion. It seems to be connected to wheat, I get it with wheat shampoos, or if I eat wheat. I'll be glad when I'm gluten-free for long enough that I stop getting this!!!

lindalee Enthusiast
Mine has no sodium laurel sulfates, says so right on the front of the bottle!! I checked when you mentioned this on another thread.

Thanks for the suggestion. It seems to be connected to wheat, I get it with wheat shampoos, or if I eat wheat. I'll be glad when I'm gluten-free for long enough that I stop getting this!!!

The oil of oregano took away the itching when I had the problem. I think I'll take some tonight for the ear. I just put a drop in water. I don't know, you could try that or a different shampoo. LL

CarlaB Enthusiast
The oil of oregano took away the itching when I had the problem. I think I'll take some tonight for the ear. I just put a drop in water. I don't know, you could try that or a different shampoo. LL

It's taken three weeks, but this rash is not just little red marks that will take forever to go away. I still have a little bit of the rashy bumps on my scalp, but the blister part is finally gone.

I might try the oil of oregano next time thanks for the suggestion, I'll have to try it if there is a next time!! ... I used some hydrocortizone cream this time and it helped a lot with the itching. Looked great in my hair, too, made it look nice and greasy :blink:

I really don't think it's the shampoo as the ones I had before went away when I switched to this shampoo (my old shampoo had wheat).

grannynanny Rookie

Carla,

I, too, get a red patch near my hairline. I don't think it has anything to do with the shampoos I use. I think it shows up when (periodically) I get glutened. It just goes away with a little time. Had never heard of Execalm, but think I'll try it.

sspitzer5 Apprentice
That sounds like mine. Bumps or blisters (look kind of like a big pimple with no whitehead), tender to the touch, itchy, a couple inches into the scalp from the hairline. In addition to the bigger bumps, there is a rash as well.

I get these bigger bumps too. They're red and sore and more like a little cyst. I don't think I have a rash, however, my scalp is itchy. Weird thing is it got a lot worse when I switched to Dove shampoo and conditioner, which I thought were gluten free???

S

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):



  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      132,398
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748

    Megannnnn
    Newest Member
    Megannnnn
    Joined

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):


  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.5k
    • Total Posts
      1m

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):





  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):



  • Who's Online (See full list)

  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • Scott Adams
    • Scott Adams
      I had the same thing happen to me at around your age, and to this day it's the most painful experience I've ever had. For me it was the right side of my head, above my ear, running from my nerves in my neck. For years before my outbreak I felt a tingling sensation shooting along the exact nerves that ended up exactly where the shingles blisters appeared. I highly recommend the two shot shingles vaccine as soon as your turn 50--I did this because I started to get the same tingling sensations in the same area, and after the vaccines I've never felt that again.  As you likely know, shingles is caused by chicken pox, which was once though of as one of those harmless childhood viruses that everyone should catch in the wild--little did they know that it can stay in your nervous system for your entire life, and cause major issues as you age.
    • trents
    • Clear2me
      Thanks for the info. I recently moved to CA from Wyoming and in that western region the Costco and Sam's /Walmart Brands have many nuts and more products that are labeled gluten free. I was told it's because those products are packaged and processed  in different  plants. Some plants can be labeled  gluten free because the plant does not also package gluten products and they know that for example the trucks, containers equipment are not used to handle wheat, barely or Rye. The Walmart butter in the western region says gluten free but not here. Most of The Kirkland and Members Mark brands in CA say they are from Vietnam. That's not the case in Wyoming and Colorado. I've spoken to customer service at the stores here in California. They were not helpful. I check labels every time I go to the store. The stores where I am are a Sh*tshow. The Magalopoly grocery chain Vons/Safeway/Albertsons, etc. are the same. Fishers and Planters brands no longer say gluten free. It could be regional. There are nuts with sugar coatings and fruit and nut mixes at the big chains that are labeled gluten free but I don't want the fruit or sugar.  It's so difficult I am considering moving again. I thought it would be easier to find safe food in a more populated area. It's actually worse.  I was undiagnosed for most of my life but not because I didn't try to figure it out. So I have had all the complications possible. I don't have any spare organs left.  No a little gluten will hurt you. The autoimmune process continues to destroy your organs though you may not feel it. If you are getting a little all the time and as much as we try we probably all are and so the damage is happening. Now the FDA has pretty much abandoned celiacs. There are no requirements for labeling for common allergens on medications. All the generic drugs made outside the US are not regulated for common allergens and the FDA is taking the last gluten free porcine Thyroid med, NP Thyroid, off the market in 2026. I was being glutened by a generic levothyroxin. The insurance wouldn't pay for the gluten free brand any longer because the FDA took them all off their approved formulary. So now I am paying $147 out of pocket for NP Thyroid but shortly I will have no safe choice. Other people with allergies should be aware that these foreign generic pharmaceutical producers are using ground shellfish shell as pill coatings and anti-desicants. The FDA knows this but  now just waits for consumers to complain or die. The take over of Wholefoods by Amazon destroyed a very reliable source of good high quality food for people with allergies and for people who wanted good reliably organic food. Bezos thought  he could make a fortune off people who were paying alot for organic and allergen free food by substituting cheap brands from Thailand. He didn't understand who the customers were who were willing to pay more for that food and why. I went from spending hundreds to nothing because Bezo removed every single trusted brand that I was buying. Now they are closing Whole foods stores across the country. In CA, Mill Valley store (closed July 2025) and the National Blvd. store in West Los Angeles (closed October 2025). The Cupertino store will close.  In recent years I have learned to be careful and trust no one. I have been deleberately glutened in a restaurant that was my favorite (a new employee). The Chef owner was not in the kitchen that night. I've had  a metal scouring pad cut up over my food.The chain offered gluten free dishes but it only takes one crazy who thinks you're a problem as a food fadist. Good thing I always look. Good thing they didn't do that to food going to a child with a busy mom.  I give big tips and apologize for having to ask in restaurants but mental illness seem to be rampant. I've learn the hard way.          I don't buy any processed food that doesn't say gluten free.  I am a life long Catholic. I worked for the Church while at college. I don't go to Church anymore because the men at the top decided Jesus is gluten. The special hosts are gluten less not gluten free. No I can't drink wine after people with gluten in their mouth and a variety of deadly germs. I have been abandoned and excluded by my Church/Family.  Having nearly died several times, safe food is paramount. If your immune system collapses as mine did, you get sepsis. It can kill you very quickly. I spent 5 days unconscious and had to have my appendix and gall bladder removed because they were necrotic. I was 25. They didn't figure out I had celiac till I was 53. No one will take the time to tell you what can happen when your immune system gets overwhelmed from its constant fighting the gluten and just stops. It is miserable that our food is processed so carelessly. Our food in many aspects is not safe. And the merging of all the grocery chains has made it far worse. Its a disaster. Krogers also recently purchased Vitacost where I was getting the products I could no longer get at Whole Foods. Kroger is eliminating those products from Vitacost just a Bezos did from WF. I am looking for reliable and certified sources for nuts. I have lived the worst consequences of the disease and being exposed unknowingly and maliciously. Once I was diagnosed I learned way more than anyone should have to about the food industry.  I don't do gray areas. And now I dont eat out except very rarely.  I have not eaten fast food for 30 years before the celiac diagnosis. Gluten aside..... It's not food and it's not safe.  No one has got our backs. Sharing safe food sources is one thing we can do to try to be safe.        
    • Mmoc
      Thank you kindly for your response. I have since gotten the other type of bloods done and am awaiting results. 
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.