Blame your jewellery for those unexplained rashes

Washington, June 24 : Unexplained skin irritations, rashes have happened to many of us, but still, for a majority, the cause for the breakouts remains a big mystery. Now, a group of researchers have answered the long waited query by holding jewellery as the culprit for the red, itchy marks.

According to experts, jewelry allergies are not only extremely common, but very simple to prevent.

"We see it quite frequently," says Lisa Garner, M.D., dermatologist on the medical staff at Baylor Medical Center at Garland.

"Some patients come in and actually realize what's going on and others do not have any idea what's causing their rash. The most common metal to be allergic to is nickel and any metal that looks silver-ish in color has nickel in it to some degree," said Dr. Garner.

And the first step to stop the breakouts is getting diagnosed.

"The only real treatment for an allergy like this is to avoid contact with items like this," adds Dr. Garner.

Sounds easy, but nickel can be found in practically anything metal. Dermatologists say a big help are test kits that can be used to detect nickel in items you're considering wearing.

"You could test the fasteners on your jeans, the metal belt buckles on your belts, etc.," says Dr. Garner.

Determining whether or not your rashes or irritations are the result of an allergy to nickel is pretty simple. If it is something you're wearing that's causing you to break out, simply not wearing it should cause it to go away quickly and not return. Also, your dermatologist can give you a patch test to double-check.

ANI