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I will be able to simplest put on gold jewellery, the whole thing else breaks me out.” How many times did I hear that exact phrase from my mother when I was a child? Every time I would give her jewelry that was her response.
Why does everything but gold break my mother out? Is that statement even true? When I started designing jewelry over ten years ago I decided to find out. I wanted to design jewelry for my mom that she could wear without fear of a breakout. Now I am going to let you in on what I have discovered.
My mother, like many people, develops contact dermatitis when her skin comes in contact with some types of jewelry. Her dermatitis is a result of an allergic reaction to the nickel found in many types of jewelry. Nickel allergies are very common, in fact one out of every seven people are likely to suffer from a nickel allergy. More often, women tend to suffer from nickel allergies than men. Allergy treatment can help with the symptoms of a nickel allergy. Unfortunately once the allergy has developed, a person will remain sensitive to nickel for the rest of their life.
Nickel is found in many types of costume jewelry, especially those that are mass-produced. It may also be found in other everyday items like coins, zippers, eyeglass frames, and cellphones.
So why is my mom allergic to nickel, you may ask. For some reason, which science still does not understand, her body has mistaken nickel (or similar metals like cobalt) as a threat. In response to that threat, her body causes an immune response (aka allergic reaction) to get rid of the threat. This reaction causes her to breakout in an itchy rash. But others could have a more severe reaction to nickel.
Now that I knew what was causing my mother’s breakout, I set out to find out which types of jewelry did not contain nickel.
First I looked at gold jewelry. Generally speaking, yellow gold (above 14 karat) will not cause an allergic reaction. However white gold may. White gold alloys contain nickel and other “white” metals to produce its silver coloring. One out of every nine people will react to the nickel in white gold.
Another form of gold jewelry is gold filled or “GF” jewelry. Gold filled jewelry metal is created when a base metal is coated with a layer of gold. Gold filled differs from gold-plated by the amount of gold applied. The layer used in gold filled jewelry is typically 50 to 100 time thicker that the layer used to coat gold-plated products.
Next I looked at silver jewelry. For those who are nickel sensitive, fine silver and sterling silver are great choices for “white” metals.
Fine silver is by definition 99.9% pure silver. Jewelry is generally not made of fine silver because the metal is extremely soft and does not withstand normal wear and tear well.
Most silver jewelry is made using sterling silver. Sterling silver is by definition 92.5% pure silver. In most cases, the remaining 7.5% metal is copper. Copper is infused to harden the silver and make it more durable. I use this type of sterling silver in my jewelry designs it is a great metal for nickel allergic people. Sometimes you can distinguish sterling silver by a “925” mark discovered at the jewellery. This is commonplace on manufactured items, however might not be provide on artisan jewellery.
Some different metals which might be thought to be secure for other folks with nickel allergic reactions are:
Copper – Copper jewellery is most often thought to be natural and no longer blended with nickel or nickel alloys.
Platinum – Platinum jewellery accommodates 95% platinum and 5% of a secondary steel in most cases iridium.
Titanium – Titanium jewellery is each hypoallergenic and sturdy. It is a extremely really helpful steel for many who be afflicted by nickel allergic reactions.
Niobium – This is a slightly new steel within the jewellery business. It is a unprecedented earth steel that may be anodized (naturally covered with gorgeous colours). Like titanium, this steel is really helpful for nickel hypersensitive reaction victims, particularly the ones on the lookout for a pop of colour.
Since I’ve given you a listing of secure metals, I assumed I might additionally come up with a listing of steel phrases to be careful for when you’re purchasing for jewellery.
Fashion or dress jewellery in most cases has base metals that come with nickel. Sometimes those metals are plated; on the other hand that plating will put on off through the years exposing the surface to the bottom metals. If you select a plated steel, needless to say it is going to wish to be re-plated incessantly.
Some have prompt that brass could also be a hypoallergenic choice. However my analysis has prompt that brass is every now and then alloyed with small quantities of nickel and even result in enhance the steel.
German silver or nickel silver is a steel to keep away from the place jewellery is anxious. German silver does no longer comprise any silver. The silver refers back to the silver colour of the steel. The colour is derived from a mix of nickel, zinc, lead, and tin discovered throughout the alloy.
Surgical or chrome steel – Surgical grade chrome steel is made to be within the human frame. However, the metal alloy accommodates between 8 and twelve p.c nickel. I’ve heard various stories about how secure this steel is for other folks with nickel allergic reactions. Since the metal alloy does comprise nickel, I might generally tend to keep away from it, however some other folks swear via it.
If you do purchase a work of bijou and are involved that it’ll comprise nickel, business take a look at kits are to be had on-line. These kits comprise chemical substances that react within the presence of nickel.
Doing some research can save you a nickel hypersensitive reaction assault and nonetheless can help you put on gorgeous jewellery.
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Source via April Williams
