Allergy to jewelry and rhinestones

 It is called a type of dermatitis in which direct or indirect contact with substances leads to inflammation of the skin, which affects the quality of life, work and income of the individual and society, unlike eczema (atopic but simplex dermatitis, etc.), this type of skin disease has a clear external cause. Occupational dermatitis or protein contact dermatitis are its other names, and the word eczema is not used for contact.

1. Irritant contact dermatitis 
2. Allergic contact dermatitis
3. Contact urticaria
4. Photodermatitis, which are either photoallergic or phototoxic, local contact dermatitis or systemic contact dermatitis are also mentioned in the books.

The most allergy to jewelry is due to allergy to nickel metal.
Nickel is commonly used in making many jewelry and rhinestones.
In jewelry that is not very expensive, nickel metal is used as the base metal and then gold or silver metal is used as a cover. Many people think they are allergic to gold or silver, when in fact they are allergic to nickel.
If a small amount of nickel metal is used in jewelry and rhinestones, the same small amount can cause allergic reactions in people prone to allergic diseases.
Of course, it should be remembered that the use of nickel metal in mobile phones, glasses, coins, zippers, belts and buckles or keys may also be used.

In people with allergies to jewelry and rhinestones (especially nickel metal), dermatitis (or eczema) develops in the areas of the skin that are in close proximity to nickel-containing metal.
The most common areas of causing allergic reactions to jewelry are earlobes (using earrings), fingers (using rings and rings), around the neck (using necklaces).
In case of sensitivity and allergy to jewelry, the mentioned areas will be itchy, red, and dry, and it is possible that these reactions will be accompanied by the formation of blisters (acute dermatitis).  
Also, as a result of long-term proximity to the metal used in jewelry and rhinestones, the skin in the contact area may become thick and dark (chronic dermatitis).

Normally, the purity of jewelry made of gold is measured by the standard of “carat”.
24 carat gold is completely pure and only about 0.1% of other metals are used in it.
18 carat gold consists of about 75% gold and 25% other metals.
Manufacturers of ornaments and jewelry use metals such as nickel, copper or silver to change the hardness of gold, change its color or work.
Therefore, before wearing gold, silver and other precious metal jewelry, patients with nickel allergy should make sure that nickel is not used in them.
It is worth mentioning that although the coating of some jewelry made of nickel can be made of gold, silver, or platinum, but after months or years of use, the coating of the jewelry gradually wears off and the patient’s skin comes into contact with nickel metal and becomes infected. It reacts quickly.
It is worth noting that by looking at jewelry and rhinestones, it is not possible to ensure the absence of nickel metal in it! It should always be considered probable that there may be a small amount of nickel metal in most and almost all jewelry.
Only in completely steel (surgical) jewelry, 24 karat gold, silver or pure platinum, the probability of using nickel is very low or not used at all.

In general, nickel metal allergy is the most common allergy to metals in humans. 
Allergic contact dermatitis and related reactions to jewelry and rhinestones occur in men and women as well as at any age.
In most cases, a patient at any age who shows an allergy to metals, especially nickel metal, may remain with the person for years.
It is worth mentioning that sometimes, in some cases, with short-term contact with nickel metal, a person may develop allergic contact dermatitis.
However, in some other cases, allergic reactions may occur suddenly in a person after years of contact with nickel jewelry.
In general, the prevalence of nickel metal allergy is higher in women than in men, which can be caused by the fact that women use more jewelry and rhinestones.

In general, accurate identification of the metal that triggers allergic reactions in a person is commonly done with skin diagnostic methods (patch test).
Therefore, in these methods, the asthma and allergy specialist touches a small area of ​​the patient’s skin with the suspect metal in a completely controlled manner, and after a certain time, the area in contact with the tested metal is examined for allergic skin reactions.

According to the general rule in controlling allergic diseases, the best way to prevent and control sensitivity and allergy to jewelry, especially jewelry containing nickel metal, is to avoid contact with such metals.
Therefore, in case of reaction with these ornaments, they should be quickly prevented from coming into contact with the skin.

• It is better to use pure jewelry made of silver or palladium and other white metals or pure steel.
• If you use gold jewelry, it is better to use high quality gold.
• To pierce the ears or other parts of the body to install jewelry, be sure to use completely sterile needles.
• Pure steel, 24 carat gold, pure silver or platinum, and palladium are metals with low allergenicity. Therefore, jewelry made with these metals have very low sensitivity.
• If the purchased jewelry contains nickel or other allergenic metals, they can be coated with metals with low allergenicity. In this way, skin contact with metal sensitizers will be significantly reduced.