How can you tell if you’re reacting to latex in clothes/if there is latex in clothes? I think I remember you having some issues with that and was wondering if you have any advice

deadcatwithaflamethrower:

deadcatwithaflamethrower:

If you turn red and/or get itchy while wearing your clothes, chances are you’re allergic to one of several options:

Your laundry detergent. Swap to a free&clear detergent, don’t use fabric softener in the wash, and use only free&clear dryer sheets in the dryer (if you use them at all). DO NOT HANG YOUR LAUNDRY TO DRY OUT OF DOORS. To do so is to introduce yet another potential allergen culprit (see bottom of post).

The soap you use to bathe with could also be the culprit. Swap to a soap
that’s made without a whole bunch of bullshit in it. (Cetaphil might be
dermatologist-recommended, but that doesn’t make it hypoallergenic.
They only removed soap and dyes. There are more allergens in modern bar
soaps than that. This, for example, is the mildest not-soap I’ve ever
encountered:
Sappo Hill Oatmeal Glycerin Bar Soap.

If you are still red and itchy when wearing clothes that have been washed that way, and after swapping soaps…

Check your fabric content tags. Most often, clothes today are made with a blend of cotton, polyester, and spandex. Sometimes they mix it up with rayon for good measure without specifying what the rayon is made from.(Rayon made from bamboo is a natural fiber and is completely awesome though. Like, actually hypoallergenic AND antimicrobial!)

If you’re wearing mixed fabrics, you’ve gotta go through the list one at a time.

Wear nothing but cotton. (If you wear a bra, this will involve finding a bra that has literally NOTHING in it but cotton…which means you’re going braless that day because unless you get it handmade by someone trustworthy, there is no such thing.) If you are itchy/red after wearing nothing but cotton, you are allergic to cotton. If you’re fine, cotton is on your Go list.

Your next test: wear nothing by polyester. (This still means going braless.) If you are itchy and/or red after wearing polyester, you’re allergic, and you have my immediate sympathies, as that’s my OTHER fabric allergen. If you wear a bra, your life just became annoyingly complicated.

If neither of those trigger the itchy, wear something that is HEAVILY spandex-based but has passed your previous clothing tests. Find a pair of leggings or jeggings that have 20% or more spandex in them. (Numbers lower than 10% generally won’t bother you unless you decide to sweat through them, which spreads the latex about.

If you’re allergic to latex, there are ways around this difficulty:

Buy your bras (if you need them) with a spandex content of 10% or less. The lesser the better. Make sure that spandex is covered by fabric.

If you’re going to be sweating, temporarily swap over to a bra that’s only cotton/poly with no spandex.

Buy underwear with the spandex covered by fabric. Keeping the spandex from coming into immediate contact with your skin helps a lot (it’s why they call it contact dermatitis)

Spandex is also known as Elastane, Elastic, or Lycra.

If you’ve done all this and still no dice, you’ve got an unlisted fabric culprit (fucking bra companies), you need to test on rayon, OR you’re dealing with an environmental allergen, not a clothing one. At that point, it’s time to become friends with allergy pills, and this may mean trying a different type every week until you find one that works. Investing in a HEPA-filtered air purifier for your sleeping area is also a good idea.

Good luck! Allergies suck balls! 🙂

EDIT: YOUR SOCKS ARE NOT A GOOD MEASURE OF “I AM ALLERGIC” AS THEY ARE MIXED FABRIC, EVERY SINGLE TIME. It’s either cotton/poly/spandex or cotton/spandex. NO SOCKS DURING ALLERGY TESTING!

Reblogging for info and to tag my bae, @thebibliosphere, who shares my long experience/bitter war with hated hated allergens and might have extra tips.