Unusual Allergic Reactions Revealed
There was redness and itching, some blisters. Getting out of the shower should have felt
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refreshing, but all Michaela Dutton felt was miserable and itchy -- her bath water was to
blame.
Dutton was shocked to learn she was allergic to water, but perhaps she should not have
been. While water allergies are extremely rare, almost anything from heat to a dust mote
to the nickel in a mobile phone can trigger an allergic reaction.
Talk to any physician who treats allergies, and they'll liken their job to that of a police
detective. Constantly on the hunt for the unknown offender, an allergy consult often
seems more like a witness interrogation featuring a litany of probing questions.
Sometimes, the case is tough to crack, because you can be allergic to just about anything.
Some people are even allergic to medications that are used to treat allergies.
Water allergy
Imagine being allergic to a substance that makes up about 70 percent of the earth and
almost as much of our bodies. But for some, a rare allergy to water is harsh reality.
Michaela Dutton, 21, has aquagenic urticaria, which causes
her to get hives when her skin comes in contact with water.
While physical urticarias are not uncommon -- people can
develop hives within minutes in response to ordinary stimuli
including heat, cold and pressure -- sensitivity to water is far
less common.
Dutton said she broke out in a red rash and white blisters after she took a bath about a
week after her son was born three years ago. Although she ignored the reactions at first,
her symptoms worsened and she went to see a doctor and a dermatologist who told her
she had a water allergy.
"It's horrible," Dutton said. "I couldn't believe it at first," Dutton said.
"Water induced urticaria is very unusual -- there are not many cases ever reported," said Dr. Thomas Casale, chief of
allergy and immunology at Creighton University and executive vice president of the American Academy of Allergy,
Asthma & Immunology. "The mechanism has not really been defined."
It is certain, however, that people with aquagenic urticaria produce histamine from mast cells in the skin which
causes redness, rashes and hives if they touch water. Dutton's sensitivity is such that she can only bathe for about
10 seconds each week and cannot drink water, juice, tea or coffee, opting for diet cola instead. She is also restricted
from eating certain fruits and vegetables.
"It's not a problem with water in the body. It's when [water] is applied on top of the
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body," Casale said, citing additives as a possible cause for the allergic reaction seen on
the skin.
Dutton, who lives in Walsall in the UK, also must be careful when holding her 3-year-old
son. Her allergy was triggered after his birth and even his tears can cause hives.
"He doesn't really understand," Dutton said. "If he falls asleep I have to watch he
doesn't dribble on me."
Physical urticarias tend to occur in individuals starting in their 20s and 30s but it is
impossible to predict how long the condition will last.
"Some of these can be time limited but some can last for quite a few years," Casale said.
Most urticarias are treated with antihistamines but
Casale said that because they are so rare, there have
been no major breakthroughs in treatments.
Exercise allergy
It's the perfect excuse: I can't exercise because I'm allergic to it.
Sure, it sounds like a joke but a rare condition called exercise-induced anaphylaxis can
result in an allergic reaction during exercise, and it can be severe enough to kill the
exerciser.
Most often reported with running or jogging, the exercise-allergic person might get hives,
swelling, trouble breathing, low blood pressure, itching, nausea, a headache or
wheezing.
Because some of the symptoms occur commonly during normal exercise, some people
with exercise-induced anaphylaxis might not realize they have the problem.
In addition, for some people, the reaction only comes when exercise is combined with a
certain food. Casale noted several early reports of exercise-induced anaphylaxis from
people who ate celery before they exercised.
"They could exercise, they were fine. They could eat celery, they were fine. They eat
celery, then they exercise -- then they have an anaphylactic reaction," said Casale, who studied the phenomenon in
the 1980s.
As is typical with most allergic reactions, the symptoms of exercise-induced anaphylaxis result from chemicals -including histamines -- that are released by mast cells in the body. But Casale said researchers have yet to figure out
why exercise, or the food/exercise combination, triggers the mast cells to act.
Still, doctors say there are ways for the afflicted to exercise and stay safe. You can exercise with a buddy, carrying
adrenaline, and in the case of those with food triggers, avoid meals for two to four hours before and after exercise,
Casale suggested.
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