If you suffer from eczema, have you ever wondered if the fragrance and other ingredients contained in your shampoos, conditioners and other hair care and beauty products can cause your symptoms to flare? If so, you're definitely on the mark. In fact, researchers confirmed the connection.
Shampoo and Eczema
The results of a new study conducted in Sweden found a link between what kinds of hair products people use on their hair and eczema symptoms. Scientists who performed this study conducted a skin test to determine people's reaction to an oxidized fragrance ingredient called linalool, which is commonly used in a variety of shampoos and beauty products. Approximately five to seven percent of the people tested showed they were sensitive to this substance.
While this may not seem like an alarming percentage, the experts say it is significant since linalool is contained in so many health and beauty products gracing the shelves in grocery stores, beauty supply shops and pharmacies today. The authors of the study estimate that as many of 60 to 80 percent of products you can find on the market, including soaps and cleaning supplies, too, contain this offending fragrance that can make people scratch and itch.
If that wasn't bad enough, it seems that the more you are exposed to the substance, the higher your risk of having shampoo and eczema related symptoms.
What Linalool Is
You may never have heard of Linalool before, but this aromatic ingredient occurs in some plants, including lavender and mint. The substance appears to break down when it is exposed to oxygen. This process is what seems to spark the allergic reaction.
Things to Avoid
If Linalool and the shampoo and eczema connection is a problem for you, there are several things you can do. First, although you can't stop washing your hair or using other health and beauty products and cleaning supplies, you can read labels and look for items that don't contain this substance.
If you find you can't avoid this ingredient in the products you buy, though, the experts say that you can minimize your exposure to the oxidized form of it by steering clear of large sizes of items like shower creams and soaps and also by making sure when you do use a shampoo that contains it, you screw the cap back on immediately. These steps can help minimize the shampoo and eczema connection-and, more importantly, minimize the discomfort it can cause.
Sources:
Science Daily
http://www.sciencedaily.com /releases/2009/03/090327112543.htm
