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Iodine Attack!

ndw3363

By ndw3363
in Dermatitis Herpetiformis

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ndw3363 Contributor
ndw3363
Posted

I've been gluten-free almost 4 weeks - active lesions were still itchy, but slowly healing and no more new ones. WELL then yesterday happened. I couldn't get out of the office for lunch, so I ate my emergency frozen gluten-free clam chowder that I had in the freezer. Not even thinking that the whole thing was probably full of iodine. Within hours I was itching like crazy. It's everywhere - all my old spots that were healing nicely came back like crazy. Didn't occur to me what it was that I ate that caused the whole mess until late last night. I'm swearing off all seafood for at least 3 months. I'm really just venting, but does anyone have any experience with this? Will these new ones stay around for weeks like the old ones, or might they heal a little faster if I'm more careful?

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hnybny91 Rookie
hnybny91
Posted

I have been gluten free for over two months and still break out. Mine seem to last just as long too. It takes YEARS for the antibodies under the skin to go away.

ndw3363 Contributor
ndw3363
Posted
  • Author

I was afraid of that. Just so frustrating!!! My outbreaks were mild and merely a little annoying while I was still eating gluten. Now that I'm gluten free, they are driving me insane!! I itch ALL DAY!! Used to only be on my elbows - now it's in and around my ears, back of my neck, on my back, back of legs, etc. Anybody have any suggestions to take the edge off while they heal? I had to take an antihistamine last night just to get to sleep!

hnybny91 Rookie
hnybny91
Posted

I take benedryl when the itching gets bad too. Mine has always been spread out and not in clusters like many have. If you eat eggs you might notice you break out too because I think there is iodine in eggs. I stopped eating them so much and do not itch as much anymore.

eatmeat4good Enthusiast
eatmeat4good
Posted

I'm so sorry to hear that you had a reaction. I am recovering from my last episode. But, yes, it seems any mistake will be paid for- for weeks.

I can't do dairy or eggs and I don't know why (iodine?). They both bother my sores.

Healing is slow. Cass recommended a Ionized Silver ointment from Whole Foods and says it cleared hers up. I haven't tried it yet. I use Pain Relieving Ointment-Walgreens brand of Benzocaine. Takes the sting away for a while.

But yeah, fish and shellfish is awful for DH. Took me a long time to wrap my head around how serious the reactions will be.

I ate Funyuns absentmindedly while watching a movie with my son. Salty. I ate 3 before I realized the familiar sting. It is a neverending adventure.

itchy Rookie
itchy
Posted

Yes, NDW, perhaps I've been experiencing it too.

I've been on holidays and got a lot of sun and ate a bit of seafood. Everything is stinging and itching, including spots not exposed to the sun. So either it is stress from travel, or iodine from the seafood. We ate nothing but fruit, vegetables, meat and fish that we cooked ourselves, so it is unlikely to be from gluten.

The difference is, the only effect has been the itching and stinging. So far, no worsening of the lesions, which have been healing more or less steadily for several weeks.

itchy Rookie
itchy
Posted

I was curious about iodine in dairy as discussed on a couple of threads so I did a little surfing and came up with these general sites.

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

The source below suggests that dairy might be a lower source of iodine than in past years, due to changing practices in the dairy industry.

Open Original Shared Link

While iodine seems to be a factor in DF, it seems to me that the priority has to be reducing gluten, and it is very difficult to monitor ones success if one is suppressing the lesions by avoiding gluten. And going iodine free is dangerous in itself over the long run.

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  • 3 weeks later...
ChemistMama Contributor
ChemistMama
Posted

Antihistamines do nothing for DH (except if you take enough of them to make you fall asleep). DH isn't a histamine response, it's another part of the immune system. I've found that Sarna lotion (the one without the menthol) works great. It contains the painkiller that's in Neosporin Pain and it works great to dull the itching.

As for iodine, you don't need to go iodine free, just don't use iodized salt and avoid shellfish and seaweed for a few months. There's enough iodine in the rest of your food to make sure you get enough (you don't need much). NSAIDS also can aggravate DH, use Tylenol instead of Advil or Aleve for awhile too. Good luck!

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