Need help, suggestions on laundry detergent

G

greenfreak

New Member
I'm at the end of my rope, I don't know what else to do so I need some suggestions from y'all.

I've been getting itchy welts on my body for about 6 months. They are a lot like hives, itchy raised and red. They're not usually exactly round, they're more irregularly shaped.

It starts out just as a small itch. The more I scratch, the bigger the area swells and reddens. I only get them on areas that are covered by clothes and usually that have friction. The back of my legs, my back, now the front of my legs on my shins. They stop itching and swelling after a couple of days and turn into deep maroon patches.

I thought once the weather got cooler that it might dissipate, thought it might be heat-related. We've changed laundry detergent twice already and are currently using Arm & Hammer Perfume & Dye Free. I currently have four welts on the front of my shin which is usually covered all day by my dress socks that I wear to work.

Do any of you have any insight on this, any suggestions on really really mild laundry detergent? I haven't seen a doc yet, I wanted to see if I could resolve this myself. Anything you could suggest would be really appreciated.
 
2 of my kids are allergic to a lot of things, eczema and all that rot. Tide always kills them, they're always rashy within a day or two, but we're able to use Cheer and Gain. :confuse3:

I don't think it always is just the perfume, sometimes I guess it just boils down to the harshness of the soaps involved?

On newborns, Ivory Snow is the gentlest from most accounts. And it smells like babies. :love:

If it were me, and I couldn't use Gain, I'd go for the Ivory Snow.

As an aside, OMFG Gain smells soooooo goddamned good! I totally do that underwear smelling thing like in the commercials! :blush:
 
Leslie said:
As an aside, OMFG Gain smells soooooo goddamned good! I totally do that underwear smelling thing like in the commercials! :blush:
Click to expand...

Well, as long as you're not sniffing dirty underwear. :lloyd:
 
Go to your local hippie/health food store and find some liquid detergent. That stuff is made as simple as possible and shouldn't give anyone a reaction.
 
Thanks for the suggestions Les, I'll get some small containers and try them out. Tide was what we used for a long time, then we switched to Arm & Hammer when these problems cropped up.

I read up a little bit online, went to WebMD and found it's official name even it if is generic: "contact dermititis" It actually pinpoints most of the problems with laundry detergent as being fragrance-related. They suggested using detergent that specially designed for babies. That makes sense to me.

It also says to put the clothes through a second rinse cycle to wash away any residual soaps. And that it can accumulate over time in most fabrics.

AB, it's liquid. I don't like powdered because it will cake up a lot of times on the clothes.

Unc, good thinking. I've got a Trader Joe's nearby I can check out.

Dave, it's not all the same fabrics. I've had reactions after wearing cotton socks on my shins, denim jeans on my waist, satin-type underwear on my BUTT (that was annoying), polyester on my back. I find that less restrictive clothes that don't cause friction prevent it. But I can't really wear potato sacks all the time.

Thanks guys, now that I have options and things to do, I feel better. And less itchy. :)
 
Thats the one I use. My skin is very sesnative to soaps and laundry detegent. Thats the one my doc told me to try. So far its been working. :)
 
Gain has the highest concentration of bleach I think.
I'd suggest surf, then maybe tide, then maybe cheer.
I like tide the best myself, but I not sure on 'sensitivity' issues.
I would suggest Liquid, and try just half the recommendations on the bottle.
You might also take a look at fabric softeners for the dryer, like Bounce.
If you use it, try stopping. If you don't use one, try it.
 
They only had Dreft which was $10. for an 80oz and All baby detergent which was $3 cheaper. I bought the All. I'll have to wash my clothes seperately and see what happens.

Thanks again everyone. :)
 
I was just going to suggest Dreft ... just to add to Les's suggestion of Ivory Snow .. those are the two I used for my babies... wow ... that was so long ago ... :D
 
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