Cause of Nickle Allergy Determined

There are millions of people who are allergic to nickle which causes itching, burning, and redness upon contact with skin. It's the reason why people have skin reactions when wearing cheap jewelry as well as cell phones.

The cause of such dermatitis was a mystery until recently when scientists in Germany have discovered the underlying mechanism of this reaction. Using mice, they figured out that nickel binds to a protein called toll-like receptor 4 or TLR4, which signals the immune system to initiate an inflammatory response.

Treatment of nickle allergy can be theoretically be made by creating a blocker to his protein.

Reference:
Crucial role for human Toll-like receptor 4 in the development of contact allergy to nickel. Nat Immunol. 2010 Aug 15. [Epub ahead of print]

Sunscreen CAUSES Skin Cancer?!!

On May 24, 2010, a study was released by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) stating that more than half of all popular sunscreens may actually increase the speed at which malignant cells develop and spread skin cancer because they contain vitamin A or its derivatives retinol and retinyl palmitate. In fact only 39 out of more than 500 products examined were considered safe and effective. Tumors and lesions developed up to 21 percent faster in lab animals coated in a vitamin A-laced cream than animals treated with a vitamin-free cream

Other additives cause harm including the hormone-disrupting chemical oxybenzone, which penetrates the skin and enters the bloodstream. Titanium dioxide that is made nanosized may also have serious health implications.

The full list of the best and worst sunscreens can be found on the EWG's searchable database here.

Read a media report here.

As an FYI, a few of the WORST sunscreens are:
• Banana Boat Baby Max Protect, SPF = 100
• iS Clinical SPF 20 Powder & Peter Thomas Roth Instant Mineral Powder SPF 30
• Hawaiian Tropic Baby Creme Lotion SPF 50
• Aveeno Baby Continuous Protection SPF 55
• Anthony Logistics for Men Sunstick SPF 15
• Panama Jack Naturals Baby Sunblock SPF 50
• Banana Boat Ultra Defense Sunscreen Stick SPF 50
• Baby Blanket Tender Scalps Scalp Sunscreen Spray for Babies SPF 45+

For your convenience, a few of the best (and safe) sunscreens are shown here:

The full list of other safe sunscreens can be found here.

New Webpage on the Mystery Ear Pain (ie, Ear Pain NOT Caused by Ear Infection)

A new webpage has been posted describing the various causes of ear pain NOT due to ear infections. Indeed, many patients and even physicians do not realize that there are MANY different problems in the head and neck that may lead to ear pain as a patient's only complaint. The reasons can be as simple as tonsillitis (ear pain referred by cranial nerve 9) to as dangerous as throat cancer (ear pain referred by cranial nerve 9 or 10).

Click here to read more about this topic.