ZOMG! I had decades of dandruff and used Head & Shoulders. Switched and No More Dandruff.

[TheBlackAdder]

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What the actual fuck, if this report is true?

Common ingredient in soap can lead to debilitating allergic reaction

Even washing your hands has its drawbacks. A common preservative in soaps and household cleaners is putting thousands of people are at risk of developing painful, debilitating allergies.

The preservative, methylisothiazolinone, or MI, inhibits the growth of bacteria, yeast and molds, and is made by Dow. It’s widely used in the U.S.—a 2016 study found that MI is in 47% of household cleaners and 29% of soaps. It’s restricted in Europe.

“Many hand cleansers still contain this preservative,” said Andrew Scheman, a professor of clinical dermatology at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. “Whether or not this translates into new allergies will become clear over time. However, we will likely see an increase in reactions in persons already allergic to MI if they are not extremely careful about what they use when washing their hands.”

The Consumer Product Information Database lists 1,535 brands that contain MI including Ivory Body Wash and Lysol hand soap. MI, which is also part of preservatives such as Kathon CG, is not always listed on labels. People develop allergies over time with exposure to MI, and symptoms include a rash, swelling and flaky skin.

https://www.rawstory.com/2020/04/common-ingredient-in-soap-can-lead-to-debilitating-allergic-reaction/

Now, years ago, I had read that H&S helps to prevent dandruff, while at the same time, preventing the skin from flaking to instantly remove or reduce the dandruff flakes by somehow making the skin stick together or something.

I switched to another shampoo, which does not have it and was worried that my dandruff would come back. Because it always came back whenever I went more than three to four days without H&S. It was a natural shampoo and the flaking started for a day or two and went away. Not only has it not come back since, but that my head is no longer itchy. It's been four months now, and nothing.

WTF? Could H&S's use of that ingredient caused an effect where it masks or prevents dandruff and when you stop using it, the allergic reaction to having methylisothiazolinone in it kicks in, and you start to generate dandruff again... but the dandruff was actually a symptom of that ingredient. Meanwhile, the dandruff kicks in and makes you go back to using H&S to stop the flaking?




It looks like Regular and Intensive Strength have it. It looks like Dove Dermacare has it. It looks like L'Oreal Ever Fresh Antidandruff has it.

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[Bernardo de La Paz]

1. Would not this OP be more appropriate in Lounge or elsewhere? Especially in this crisis?

Further, read the warning ON THE LABEL:

Stop use and ask a doctor if
* condition ... does not improve after regular use of this product

You were warned.

[TheBlackAdder]

2. It did improve with use of the product, it's just that stopping it caused a flareup.

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I can't remember which occurred first, me having dandruff or me using it because it was the shampoo in the house.

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[Bernardo de La Paz]

3. Same trick in dry-eye drops like Visine (don't know specifically about that brand). Avoid all crap

Average American doses themselves with huge quantities of chemical on body and in house:

* carpet cleaners
* hair spray
* liquid soap instead of simple bar soap
* lotions up the wazoo
* cremes for any slightest imperfection
* oven cleaner once a week
* overuse of special body shampoos
* perfumed deodorants
* tons of plastic packaging
* spray air "freshener" and plugins
* on and on

It leads to massive absorption through the skin and high levels of indoor pollution.

[BComplex]

4. That was kind of snippy, Bernardo.

This is breaking news, as far as I'm concerned, also. I've been having terrible skin rashes on my head and neck, and around my face, and I just went to look at my bath soap and shampoo. Both have this.

You might not have the coronavirus, but this rash is enough to drive someone crazy. I say this is a good place for this post.

[hlthe2b]

5. "Even liquid soaps contain it and other chemicals"-- yup. That's why i've gone back to bar soap

[Blue_true]

17. Maybe you should check the ingredients on your bar soap.

I use a European made bar soap. The comparison to the top of the line US made bar soap is stunning. The US soap seems designed to not let one smell rank spots being cleaned up when bathing, it also leaves buildup on the skin that the European bar soap does not.

[hlthe2b]

19. I certainly have. I use finely milled soaps, but there are several US brands that

do not contain such "stabilizers" or "preservatives"---there is no need to as there is with liquid soaps or the so-called antibacterial bars that no one SHOULD need routinely.

Well-made bar soaps last a long time. I just finally used up a gifted set from a friend who makes them from goat's milk. And, yes, the Europeans make some wonderful finely milled soaps although one needs to be aware that too much included fragrance can be a problem as well.

[Marrah_Goodman]

6. The best thing I have found for dandruff, excema, dry skin, etc is a brand called MG17

I suggest checking it out.

[eppur_se_muova]

11. You mean, MG217 coal tar shampoo ? MG 17 is a machine gun. nt

[Marrah_Goodman]

22. Yes, you are correct :)

[Lars39]

7. I'm allergic to that.

Chemical tested. Landed me in the hospital. It’s a preservative It’s in so many products...shampoo, hand soaps, toothpastes, prescription eye ointments.
Doctor told me to just look for the isothiazalonone. Oh, and it’s used in making latex gloves and paint, too.

[Mersky]

8. Is hard to say whether it's intentional, but definitely could cause

A rebounding irritation to dandruff reaction. I guarantee the manufacturer knows that it’s an irritating substance, but would probably argue that it’s needed to maintain some ineffable product quality. Sigh, if you’ve been on this cycle for decades, then I feel like the company owes you, even if I doubt any recompense is likely. If the new stuff is working well months later, then I say problem solved, and... welcome to the world of, ‘wth is that ingredient?’

I think there’s a wider problem of piss poor ingredients logic with respect to chemical sensitivities in American household products. Methylisothiazolinone is in soooo many products that it’s ridiculous - even in sensitive skin or ‘natural’ products.

It was carpet cleaner concentrate that first tipped me off to the nine syllable preservative after I experienced a terrible bout of dermatitis on my hands (yes, this happened even though I wore gloves). I noticed other liquid soaps/cleaners irritated my hands thereafter and the common ingredient between them all was, indeed, methylisothiazolinone.

Had some longer running skin issues clear up after I started avoiding the chemical altogether - especially in shampoo. I worry about folks getting these types of irritations with all the extra hand washing, etc. and am glad you brought up this pernicious irritant.

[TheBlackAdder]

9. Your post has me thinking of the times I wash my hands and there's a mild irritation afterwards.

[Mersky]

10. Happens, yes, it does

Foaming hand soap, and some dish soaps can, for me, go from mild drying to straight up dermatitis type rash after normal repeated use. I’ve got this one patch on my right hand that’ll flare up first - is my cue to stop using whatever caused it to go off.

[sinkingfeeling]

12. I use only the soap I make. I know exactly what is in it.

[Blue_true]

18. Soap making is a lost art to most Americans.

I remember my mom making bar soap, cutting a big block of soap to make bath bars. Then she stopped and started buying the commercial soap.

You are right, when you make your own soap, you know what is in it. An alternative for people that don't have that skill is using "natural" soaps where all the ingredients are one or two steps from the plant - some don't even use a full spectrum bacteriacide to "preserve" the soap, ok if the soap gets turned over fast.

[Codeine]

21. YouTube is bringing back soaping in a big way.

My daughter and I are starting to experiment with hot process soapmaking. It’s fun and educational!

[rufus dog]

13. Used it for years. Limited success

Flipped to a shampoo with tea tree oil and haven’t had the problem in years.

[GulfCoast66]

14. A soap has totally improve my life: Dr. Bonners Peppermint soap

I used to get an annoying and unsightly rash on my torso. Especially when the humidity went down. Also had mild dandruff on occasion.

About 15 years ago I started using Dr Bonners and problem solved. Being a guy with very short hair I use it to wash my hair as well.

That shit is amazing. You should try it if you haven’t.

I understand is was one of the first ‘natural’ products from decades ago.

[Hekate]

15. Kicking this on general principles

[Blue_true]

16. I read an extensive article that a guy wrote a few months back.

He must have been a scientist or engineer, because his experiment setup and reading of data was sound.

Anyway, he had massive hair problems that included dandruff, believe it or not oily hair, and itchy scalp. What did he do? He experimented with shampoo frequency. What he found eventually was that shampooing his hair less often and using rinse-thru during showers solved every single hair problem that he had. When he first tried the shampoo reduction, his problem seemed to get worse, but he stuck to his plan and as time went on, his hair improved to the point where he said that his scalp felt great and his hair had the "right" amount of oil. He settled on shampooing his hair every two weeks, doing rinse-thrus between.

The article was interesting to me because I use a natural shampoo and shampoo my hair only once per week. Like him, I do water rinse-thrus at each bath (twice per day, the hair rinse-thru takes about 15-20 seconds. My hair is soft and has a delicate oil coating on hair strands, I love it. I don't use a conditioner at all.

Shampoo product companies want to sell as much shampoo and conditioner as possible, so in their ads, they have convinced people that they need to shampoo daily or several times per week and then use hair conditioner after the shampoo (either rinse out or leave in conditioner), it seems to be marketing bullshit that has deluded lots of people into making their hair less lively and damaged.

[Pobeka]

20. I'm allergic to methylisothiazolinone

Took me forever to figure it out, finally found it in a "natural" laundry detergent. methylisothiazolinone is allowed in the EU, but the concentrations have to be so low it no longer serves as a preservative, so products no longer use it.

Then I discovered it's in all kinds of cleaning/shampoo products in the USA.