Allergies on the skin

Skin allergies most often begin to develop on the hands, as the skin of the hands is more susceptible to the influence of ever-increasing aggressive environmental factors. The topic of skin allergies is already quite hackneyed, but nevertheless, it continues to be relevant, and still raises more questions than answers. Look around you, standing in the kitchen, bathroom or toilet. Pay special attention to the amount of cleaning and washing products, as well as to the methods you use to protect yourself and your hands from the penetration of all this chemistry into the skin.

Skin allergies develop not only under the influence of external irritants, but also have a great influence on the internal state of the body, the level of its defenses, the perfection of metabolic processes and the absence of chronic infectious foci. Skin dermatitis can occur on its own, or it can be a consequence of other types of allergies, for example, food allergies. You should never start treating one symptom, which may be allergic dermatitis, without understanding the situation comprehensively. After undergoing a full examination and making sure that the changes in the skin are caused by allergic dermatitis, you can proceed to the next stage, identifying the main allergen and eliminating its harmful effects on the body.

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What causes skin allergies?

The above-mentioned chemical components of household cleaning products, alas, are not the only reason why skin allergies develop. Strong allergens include:

• most types of indoor plants, including liliaceae, rose, dogbane, mallow, night-flowered and other families. Particularly dangerous are plants that secrete milky juice. When a drop of this juice gets on the skin of a person with a high predisposition to allergies, a rapid and violent skin reaction occurs, leading to a severe burn, followed by long-term dermatitis in the affected area;
• pollen of flowering plants, especially wild ones. House flowers also produce pollen when they bloom, but due to artificial selection, its effect as an allergen is not as strong as that of those plants that reproduce in natural conditions. But if you have a tendency to allergies, it is better to avoid contact even with flowering house plants;
• food products containing natural and artificial colors, protein foods, honey, nuts, chocolate. The list of products that can provoke allergies can consist of hundreds of names and for each person these will be different lists;
• groups of drugs such as: antibiotics, vitamins, iodine derivatives;
• cosmetics.

Skin allergy manifests itself, in most cases, immediately after contact with the allergen. It can proceed clearly or weakly expressed, everything depends, first of all, on the susceptibility of the organism, as well as the strength of the allergen, the amount of its contact with the skin and the duration of the suppressive effect.

How is skin allergy recognized?

First, it is necessary to establish the cause of the skin reaction and make a correct diagnosis of skin allergy. Then begin a well-thought-out and adequately justified course of treatment with subsequent prevention of possible relapses.

Nowadays, even in the smallest pharmacy, you can find express tests with which you can easily determine whether you have a skin allergy or just a temporary irritation of the skin receptors. Express tests include skin scarifiers that can detect IgE antibodies in the blood, the presence of which indicates the development of an allergic reaction.

Based only on improvised means of determining the allergic nature of skin manifestations, you should not build a course of self-treatment. For a more accurate diagnosis of skin allergy, and, first of all, for a detailed identification of the true allergen, you need to seek help from an allergist.

How is skin allergy treated?

Treatment of any allergic manifestations begins with the elimination of the main factor that contributes to the entry of the allergen into the body. If a person is only bothered by an allergy on the skin of the hands, then it is necessary to completely abandon cosmetics, and when working with household chemicals, use rubber gloves, preferably with a cotton base, without talc. Avoid contact with pets and plants, exclude from the diet all products that are highly allergenic.

It is advisable to use local ointments based on corticosteroids, herbal baths, with decoctions of succession, chamomile and celandine. Simultaneous use of antihistamines, selected in an adequate dose based on individual characteristics and the severity of the allergic reaction, will give a positive result, and in a few days you can expect complete relief from the symptoms of dermatitis.

How to prevent skin allergies?

You should discuss preventive measures for relapses of allergic dermatitis with an allergist. Based on the allergological studies of your particular case, a number of effective methods and means will be selected to help you avoid situations in the future that could result in skin allergies returning again.