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Imagine getting covered in all these painful, super itchy, red welts every time you drank
water, worked out, walked in the rain, or took a shower.
Unfortunately, this is reality for people with an extremely rare allergy to water called
aquagenic urticaria.
Since water is literally everywhere, it’s said to have one of the most detrimental impacts
on a person’s quality of life of any skin condition.
For people with this allergy to water, coming into contact with it induces horrible rashes
in as little as 15 seconds.
Typically it’s water-on-skin contact that causes the hives to erupt, but some people
can’t even drink it.
They opt for things like milk or diet soda and avoid water, juices, teas, and coffees
to keep their skin hive-free.
While you obviously can’t avoid an element that covers 70% of the planet and falls from
the sky, people with aquagenic urticaria have to take some serious precautions when carrying
out basic everyday tasks.
Like washing their hands for example.
They often opt for hand sanitizer and wipes to avoid running water.
Exercise kinda gets thrown out the window because of sweat.
And some people need to bathe in water mixed with baking soda to avoid a reaction.
Even crying is said to be painful.
It doesn’t matter how hot or cold the water is or where it came from, any and all water
prompts these symptoms.
The hives that come with this condition can be really itchy and really painful.
And the rash can develop anywhere on the body, but typically, it will show up on the person’s
neck, arms, or torso.
Rather than sticking around for days like many rashes do, this one subsides after about
30 to 60 minutes.
It’s believed that these rashes appear due to a release of histamine from immune cells
in the skin called mast cells.
This histamine then interacts with “itch neurons” which prompt that scratchy feeling.
But other than that, not much is known about how it works in the body.
Less than 100 cases have been documented, according to a 2011 paper, and that makes
it really hard to study why some people are allergic to this basic component of life that
makes up 60% of the human body.
Some believe it may be due to additives in water, but since the welts will appear after
contact with even the most purified water, many don’t think this is the culprit.
Others think it may be due to a weird interaction between the water and an unknown component
in the outer layer of their skin.
It’s suggested that this then creates a toxin in the body, but scientists just aren’t
in agreement on a cause just yet.
This incredibly rare condition is very poorly understood and treatments for it are few and
far between.
However, there are some things that’ve brought people relief.
While UV rays typically aren’t great for humans, there’s a procedure called phototherapy
that involves beaming UV rays directly onto the skin that’s been effective.
Some doctors prescribe medications called SSRIs that are usually used for depression.
And often basic treatments like steroids and histamines are suggested.
Science is advancing more and more everyday and hopefully soon they’ll have an answer
as to why this very confusing condition comes around.
Is there another condition you want us to talk about? Let us know now in the comment section below!
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Curious to know what happens to your body when you have an allergic reaction? Check out this video.
However increased permeability doesn't just let white blood cells in, it also let's fluids out.
causing the watery eyes and runny nose that you know and love! *sniffs*
I'm not crying. I swear. It's just allergies!
As always, my name is Blocko, this has been life noggin, don't forget to keep on thinking!