Fragrances found in baby wipes and ‘slime’ among most common causes of skin allergies – Sydney Morning Herald

They analysed patch-test data dating from 1993 to 2017 from two tertiary referral patch-testing centres including the results of 511 children who presented with suspected skin allergies.

Of those, more than half had a positive patch-test, and 65.8 per cent of those (38 per cent of the total) had a positive patch-test deemed relevant as an allergic reaction to a substance they had been exposed to.

The five most common relevant patch-test reactions were to fragrance mix (a mixture of eight individual fragrances commonly found in perfumes, cosmetics, laundry products and toothpaste), a group of preservatives (MCI/MI and MI) commonly used in wet wipes, liquid soaps, shampoos, cosmetics and toy 'slime', the plant resin colophonium (which commonly causes reactions to adhesive dressings), another fragrance (myroxylon pereriae) found in cosmetics and food, and nickel sulphate.

The study's lead author Claire Felmingham said MI and MCI/MI are particularly "potent allergens" that have been described as causing an "epidemic" of allergic contact dermatitis in adults and should be generally avoided even without a diagnosed allergy.

Dr Felmingham said the preservatives are being gradually removed from a lot of products, but that given their presence in baby wipes and 'slime', "its not surprising that theyve also affected the paediatric population".

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While the study found very few children under five had been patch-tested, among the 6-10 age group, fragrance and colophonium were the most common allergens. Fragrance and nickel sulphate were the most common allergens in the 1117 age group.

Nickel sulphate allergies were more common among girls, which the authors said is consistent with existing literature and likely due to the "increased use of jewellery in females", particularly ear piercings.

Armed with evidence of the most common allergens affecting children, the researchers have proposed the first Australian Paediatric Baseline Series comprising 30 common allergens and potential allergens for patch-testing.

While patch-testing is "the gold standard" for diagnosing allergic contact dermatitis (ACD), it "appears to be performed infrequently in children, and consequently, ACD is likely underdiagnosed," the authors said.

"This is unfortunate because ACD can have a significant impact on a childs quality of life, andearly, correct, identification of allergens and subsequent avoidance can lead to substantial improvement in symptoms, preventing progression to a chronic disease state," the study found.

Dr Felmingham said parents should consider patch-testing their children if they have persistent eczema that isn't responding to treatment, as well as keeping an eye on product labels for ingredients that commonly cause allergies.

Jenny Noyes is a journalist at the Sydney Morning Herald. She was previously a writer and editor at Daily Life.

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Fragrances found in baby wipes and 'slime' among most common causes of skin allergies - Sydney Morning Herald