Cell Phones Can Cause Allergic Reactions
Just when you think cell phones are finally out of the lime light in bad press, a new set of studies comes along to walk all over these devices. These studies are claiming that some people are actually allergic to their phone, and prolonged use is having some adverse affects on them.
Now before you go running to the laundry room to bleach your cell phone, this is not a cleanliness issue. This issue has to do with the metals that are inside the phone. Particularly, this has to do with the nickel in your cell phone. Just about every cell phone, with the exception of a few of the green phones, has nickel in it somewhere.
Now this may start sounding like a bunch of hogwash, but keep in mind that roughly three percent of men and twenty percent of women suffer from a nickel allergy nation wide. For the folks whom suffer a nickel allergy, prolonged use on a cell phone can lead to rashes and other unsightly reactions around the ears, cheeks, and mouth where the phone would normally lie on the face. Think about it this way, have you ever been on the phone so long it warmed up and started to radiate an odd smell? This is enough to cause an allergic reaction in some people.
While this is not a fatal reaction to people, it does have consumers concerned. It is unclear at this point how many people develop allergic reactions to their phones. What is known is that folks whom developed a strange rash on the side of their face that is commonly used for cell phone use had phones which contained nickel. When these users were given phones that were nickel free, the rash cleared up.
Researchers have found that roughly, 40 – 50% of all cell phones on the market contain Nickel in them. Those of you worried about your phones should look online or contact the manufacturer to find out if your phone contains nickel.
Therefore, what can you do if your phone has nickel in it? First, if you are a heavy cell phone user and you have not had a reaction yet, you most likely don’t have a nickel allergy. You should go to an allergist to find out for sure though. If you want to continue to use your phone, but don’t want to deal with potential issues you have a few options:
1. Use a hands free headset. This will keep the phone away from your face and helps deter any future allergic reactions.
2. You can try to use a phone cover. This maybe hard in the day that smartphones rein supreme, but this is an option you can look into.
3. Make use of the speakerphone. Do look out for your fellow human and try to keep the speaker phone use to a minimal.
4.Buy a nickel spot test, as this will be able to tell you if your phone contains nickel.
Ultimately, if you suspect you are allergic to you phone you should seek professional help. Several cell phones on the market do not contain this metal and maybe just what you need.
