Allergic To Deodorant?

[Nia Lee]

About 8 months ago I switched over to a gluten free diet because of suspected Celiac and/or wheat allergy. I wasn't tested for Celiac specifically, because my doctor said the treatment would be the same either way though all the symptoms pointed in that direction

[Skylark]

Are you sure you don't have allergies to other cosmetic ingredients? I have always had to be careful about shampoo, cosmetic, and deodorants, and it has nothing to do with gluten ingredients. My skin is just sensitive and I have to find brands by trial and error. I can't use deodorant soaps for example, as the triclosan makes my skin angry and red.

[jerseyangel]

I understand--I have a terrible problem with finding personal care products that agree with me. Finding gluten-free ones have been easy--it's the chemicals and fragrences added to the mainstream things, and the seemingly ever-present coconut in the natural products that make it difficult for me.

I switched to a free and clear shampoo that had no fragrence at all--that managed to cause migraines. Anything with coconut (to which I am allergic)--including things like dish detergent--leave me with dizziness, nausea, and fatigue. I could go on and on, but unfortunately those of us with these issues have to keep trying different things until we hit on something that agrees with us.

For deodorant, I use Thai--which is a crystal. I've been using it for years now and it's never been a problem. Of course, like anything else it may work for me and not you, but given your symptoms it may be worth a try.

Do you use a "free and clear" type laundry soap and fabric softener? I need to--I use either Purex or All Free and Clear and either Downey Liquid or Bounce Sheets--both of the free and clear variety.

I can use Ivory bar soap, but have better luck with Dakota Free's bar soap. They also have a nice lotion.

Open Original Shared Link

[i-geek]

You haven't recently switched to a "natural" deodorant with zinc ricinoleate, have you? I ask because I recently switched from my usual anti-perspirant to a deodorant in the hopes that the deodorant wouldn't stain my clothing and clog my pores (two long-standing problems). I tried Tom's of Maine's long-lasting deodorant with zinc ricinoleate, and my armpits started turning red and burning after about four days. I switched to their regular formula today- only ingredient difference is that the regular one doesn't have the zinc ricinoleate- and there's no burning at all (seems to work better, too). I googled skin reactions to Tom's long-lasting deodorant, and there were a LOT of reports. Apparently this ingredient induces allergic contact dermatitis in a lot of people. People who've used it for longer than a few days were reporting that their armpit skin was sloughing off like crazy. I think it's also used in a couple of other brands of laundry detergent and air freshener. Might be worth checking.

[ravenwoodglass]

I would, in addition to the advice given by others, get to the doctor and have this looked at.

[Nia Lee]

Thanks all,

I have a yearly exam with my doctor just this coming Tuesday, so I'll talk to her about it then.

In the mean time, I'm showering a lot and avoiding people because I'm too scared to put the deodorant back on. lol. I shall figure something out.

[i-geek]

Thanks all,

I have a yearly exam with my doctor just this coming Tuesday, so I'll talk to her about it then.

In the mean time, I'm showering a lot and avoiding people because I'm too scared to put the deodorant back on. lol. I shall figure something out.

I know that feeling. I did some scouting around for homemade deodorants when I was having my own nasty reaction and came across this one: Open Original Shared Link. It looks fairly gentle and you can make it with more starch/less soda for sensitive skin and arrowroot starch instead of corn starch if you're corn-allergic. Disclaimer: I haven't tried it yet. It does look like it should be gentle on the skin.

[Skylark]

You never want to use essential oils on broken skin. It's just begging for sensitization. The starch/baking soda mix is fine until everything is healed up.

[i-geek]

You never want to use essential oils on broken skin. It's just begging for sensitization. The starch/baking soda mix is fine until everything is healed up.

Thanks for catching that! Very good point.