Maybe it's just burning me when I look at other women.

September 10, 2010 5:55 PM

Are there localized metal allergies? I think I may have one.

Over the past month, my wedding ring (18k white gold) has started to cause rashes on my middle finger (where I wear it because I lost some weight after the wedding and it falls right off). I've since switched to the ring finger and there is never a rash there, nor is there ever a problem with any of the other rings in my body (all surgical stainless steel).

I haven't checked to see if there is a real correlation here, but it is possible that I only get rashes after working out and sweating a ton. Does that even make sense?

posted by mkb to Health & Fitness (9 answers total)

Absolutely, and quite common. I know several people who have had to resort to rings made of platinum, tungsten, and other metals in order to avoid allergies.

I'm susceptible to skin allergies. I don't have any metal allergies specifically, but I find that the more time something spends on my skin, the more likely I'll eventually react to it.

And of course you should have it professionally cleaned, to make sure you're not reacting to something on it.
posted by ErikaB at 6:01 PM on September 10, 2010 [1 favorite]

Gold can definitely be an irritant. I couldn't wear gold earrings as a kid. Fortunately (knock on wood) my engagement ring doesn't bother me.

Do you wear it at night? Can you try wearing it less often?

Maybe talk to the jeweler about getting the inside coated with a less irritating metal?
posted by radioamy at 6:05 PM on September 10, 2010

The localization might be instead local sensitization -- you are allergic to the metal, but have only become sensitized on the middle finger.
posted by UrineSoakedRube at 6:36 PM on September 10, 2010

Ditto that middle-finger rash only is possible. I'm super allergic to a lot of metals (including gold, sterling silver, and plain junky cosmetic jewelry metals), but the severity of my reaction depends on the location. My earlobes are actually my least sensitive part, but I get a horrible rash after only a day or two of wearing rings on my fingers. My neck is also super sensitive, but my wrists a bit less so. I can wear metal watches for a couple of weeks before the rash sets in.

My sister is the opposite; she has little to no reaction to rings, necklaces, or bracelets, but has a horrible time with metal earrings.
posted by mesha steele at 7:23 PM on September 10, 2010 [1 favorite]

After I had my daughter, my platinum wedding ring suddenly gave me issues on my ring finger. My doctor recommended that I rub cortizone cream on it twice a day, which seems to have helped. Otherwise, make sure that your ring and your finger are dry and that you aren't capturing stuff (soap, lotion) underneath it. Sorry, this is a pain.
posted by dpx.mfx at 8:17 PM on September 10, 2010

Some white gold alloys contain nickel. Nickel sensitivity is very common.
posted by fritley at 9:02 PM on September 10, 2010 [2 favorites]

I wore a gold wedding ring for 10 years before it started causing a rash. I switched to titanium.
posted by MrMoonPie at 9:04 PM on September 10, 2010

I think one solution would be to coat the inside of the ring with clear nail polish. You'd probably have to reapply it occasionally.
posted by Slinga at 10:31 PM on September 10, 2010

Nail polish will drive you nuts. It's fine if you just want to be able to wear something to go out for the evening, but on an everyday item it will get you all stabby with rage and tiny flakes.

If you don't want to switch to a new ring, go to a custom jeweler and see if you can get it plated or lined in something you're not sensitive to. Lining it sometimes also has the benefit of effectively resizing the ring, so it may be small enough to go back on the original finger.
posted by Sallyfur at 11:27 AM on September 11, 2010