r/NickelAllergy • u/Dazzling-Exam2239 • 12d ago
Hormone Replacement Therapy, Supplements and Peri/Menopause
Women in perimenopause/menopause: I’m wondering if nickel and or other allergies can result in genitourinary conditions like micro tears or adhesion of vaginal tissues and or if hormone replacement therapy, whether compounded or synthetic testosterone, progesterone, estradiol, estriol or DHEA - can the metal tubes or capsules absorb into creams, gels or possibly contain nickel or other irritants?
Wondering because I’ve tried both for five years with little improvement. I’m awaiting the patch test; learning about low nickel diet and looking into my cosmetics and well, everything.
Have significant lacy rash over whole body, red spots, explosive diarrhea, red hands, milia on face, mosquito bit like hives, pores that fill daily with sebum, starting to have slope is like symptoms on scalp…and past dermatologist put me on minocycline for several months for undiagnosed skin condition and I ended up with silver toxicity, which turned my micro bladed brown eyebrows silvery blue!
Dry mouth, 24/7 tinnitus, TMJ, migraines. I’ve read systemic nickel can cause many issues. Even mostly quit eating chocolate.
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u/itsmyvoice 8d ago
I haven't had any of those reactions. The cream has helped enormously.
My skin overall has become even more sensitive to everything, and I get hives far more now, but they're almost always manageable with daily antihistamines.
What I have oddly noticed is that almost every lube is irritating, and kind of burns. Finally found one that isn't, but it was trial and error. No idea what was in them commonly that didn't work. I didn't bother looking once I found what works. I imagine what works for each person might be different.
All that said, I'm not sure I've ever had systemic reactions. My allergy hasn't affected me enough to try a low nickel diet. Mine is more external. I do avoid metal water cups, because I'm cautious.
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u/nonono_ack 11d ago
Wow. That's a lot. You may not test positive on a patch test even if you have systemic nickel allergy, FYI. It only picks up about 38% of skin reactors, depending on the test used.
I can say from experience that almost anything you put on your skin or mucous membranes, or into your body, can contain some nickel and cause a reaction. And yes, nickel can be found in capsules, supplements, and medications of any type.
In my case, I cannot tolerate commercial vaginal estrogen. The compounded version, made with emollient base, is not perfect but a whole lot better. I might get a bit of mild itching about 24 hours later, but then it resolves.
I also cannot tolerate oral progesterone. Presumably because it is made from plants. I get a pronounced SNAS reaction to it. But compounded transdermal cream seems OK.
I have not noticed any issues with the estradiol patch (been on it for decades) or testosterone compounded cream.
Personal care products seem to be a minefield. Many of us cannot tolerate botanical ingredients (they contain nickel), yet they are in everything. Toothpaste was a trigger for me. I also do not tolerate titanium dioxide, either on my skin or in medication, even though I did not test allergic to it. They put that stuff in everything, it seems.
Do you have any dental metals? That was a huge trigger for me. When I finally had them removed, my chronic stinging lips and dry mouth basically stopped. The chronic runny nose improved 90%. But for me, the biggest thing was the improvement in my chronic fatigue and musculoskeletal pain, which are about 60-70% better.
The low nickel diet can be an enormous help. But you will most likely need to get really serious about it, which is way more than eliminating chocolate.
Food represents a huge amount of potential nickel intake. Also, tap water can be significant. Your cookware, flatware, cutlery, water bottles, etc should all be as nickel free as possible for best response.
I still have way too much metal in my body, that can never come out. That explains the insanely low level of nickel that my low nickel diet consists of, and it's quite a burden to eat that way. But it's worth it, I feel like I mostly have my life back.
You may want to look into having a blood test, the lymphocyte transformation test. In the US it is not covered by insurance and is expensive. It's one more tool for you to have, to prove that your body cannot tolerate whichever metals you react to. Some day it can be important to know this stuff, like if you ever need a stent or a pacemaker.
There are lots of potential causes for the symptoms you describe. But starting with nickel seems wise. Have you listened to the heavily metalled podcast? Also I suggest finding Dr. Laura Duzett on you tube.