Lanolin Allergies
Filed in archive Skin Allergies on September 25, 2006
Lanolin is a greasy substance produced wool-bearing animals, and that's why it's also called wool fat, wool grease, or wool wax. It is a good emmolient and is widely used in the manufacture of lotions, creams, ointments, and other pharmaceutical and industrial products.
A lot of products are being marketed as hypoallergenic because they are "lanolin-free", suggesting that lanolin is a common cause of allergies. However, it seems that although there may be people who are truly allergic to lanolin, there's a scientific study that indicates that "at most, a weak contact allergen". According to this article from the BlueSky Medical,
At present, the generally accepted opinion among skin specialists is : If patients who are lanolin sensitive are unlikely to react to lanolin containing cosmetics, the risk to the general population must be extremely small. This view is reiterated by Kligman who wrote: "In a healthy population encountering lanolin in the normal way, the incidence of lanolin allergy is vanishingly small."
You'll need a patch test to determine if you really are allergic to lanolin. Once confirmed,you'll have to be a bit more vigilant in reading the ingredients of your moisturizers and other cosmetics. Avoiding exposure is the best way to prevent breakouts. Ask your allergist for other advice on coping with your skin sensitivities.
Permalink: Lanolin Allergies
Tags: lanolin wool wax contact+dermatitis skin+allergy patch+test cosmetics allergies lanolin+allergies
Vote for Lanolin Allergies:
|
Rating: 7.00 out of 2 vote(s) cast.
|
Response from:
An
(10/27/08 11:32am)
I'm allergic to wool alcohol/lanolin. I always had a problem wearing wool but always thought it was just the nature of the material to cause discomfort. I recently had a skin allergy patch test done and confirmed positive to be allergic to wool alcohol/lanolin. Using skin care products with lanolin leaves me with itchy patches of hives that don't go away for a few days. I'm not sure if you'd really call that a "weak allergen" i still have a huge red welt on my back where they did the patch test for it - it's been over a week and the itchy patch is still there. :(
Most Popular
Allergy Basics
Allergy Blogs
Allergy Medications
Allergy Support Groups
Allergy to Drugs
Allergy: Diagnostics and Treatment
Allergy: Research and Development
Asthma
Best of
Did you know
Dust Mite Allergies
Food Allergies
Gadgets and Tools Against Allergies
Hay Fever
Information About
Insect Allergies
Latex/Rubber Allergies
Living with Allergies
Metal Allergies
Misc
