# Allergic to Wool?



## calliemoonbeam (Aug 7, 2007)

Hi all! I have sort of a weird problem, lol, hope y'all can help.

I'm getting ready to take up knitting again after an absence of 25 or so years. I crochet all the time, but want to do socks and just haven't been happy with them, plus I kind of wanted to try some natural yarns instead of the synthetic I've been using. I had lovely visions of all these soft, comfy, natural fiber socks...and then I remembered that as a child I was allergic to wool!

We had some of those old scratchy wool army blankets, and I broke out every time I touched one. One of my hoity-toity aunts handed down one of her daughter's coats (we were the poor relations, lol), and oh my! It was so pretty, bright red and very expensive looking...but I broke out every time I put it on, and it was part wool.

So my question is, does this mean I can't use ANY natural yarn, or could it be only certain kinds? If so, how do I find out which ones without spending a fortune only to find out I've got the wrong ones? Does this mean I can never raise my own sheep? Would I be a walking rash from handling them? lol Don't know that I want to raise sheep, but it was something I was considering down the road.

Any relatives that I might have asked are all gone now, so I'm on my own. Any suggestions? Thanks!


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## RiverPines (Dec 12, 2006)

There are other fibers that you may try. Being allergic to wool doesn't mean you will be allergic to things like Alpaca, llama, cashmere, mohair, angora.

Wool allergy is like a person thats allergic to cats but not dogs.


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## Bramble (Dec 11, 2008)

you may be ok with good natural wool, those blankets are procesed and stripped and treated with harsh chemcials. the natural lanolins in good wool and lack of chemicals may mean for less of or no allergy. also you may have grown out of it. i was allergic to wool as a kid too and now no problems. natrabio makes a great homeopathic for pet and animal hair allergies including wool if it is an issue. that said i agree- try other animals. theres also some great vegan natural fibers- cotton, soy, bamboo, corn, linen.
i would hop on etsy.com and see if you can get someone to send you a pack of fiber samples for like $10-20. your allergy may even vary from sheep to sheep. most farmers will let you tour and see their farm animals for cheap/free so if you are worried about sheep, go pet one. bring benadryl lol


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## MTDeb (Feb 20, 2003)

There are a few people that area actually allergic to lanolin but like Bramble said, it most likely was the harsh chemicals and additives that commercial operations use to clean the wool. Try some completely raw, unwashed wool, right off the sheep and see what happens. You might be surprised it doesn't bother you at all.


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## shepmom (May 29, 2003)

I'm sensitive too it.
I can tolerate the superwash wool with no problems. I can crochet with regular merino wool. My eyes were tearing, nose itching and hands when I worked with some New England millspun yarn. It feels like it has a heavy lanolin coating.

For sweaters I think I could only tolerate the superwash as far as wool goes.


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## calliemoonbeam (Aug 7, 2007)

Thanks everyone! I know it sounds silly, lol, but I knew I'd get some good answers here. 

RiverPines, that's great, I never realized that (the cats and dogs thing) or even thought of all those other fibers. 

I was also allergic to cow's milk as a child and grew out of that, so maybe if it was a true lanolin allergy I grew out of it also. Maybe I'll look for some lotion with lanolin in it and try that as a test.

I'll be checking out Etsy this evening, that sounds like a great place to start. Thanks so much everyone, you all had great advice!


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## weever (Oct 1, 2006)

I just heard a talk by Hidden Valley (the fiber processing mill, not the ranch dressing people) and she said that many wool "allergies" are a sensitivity to the chemicals used to clean the dirty wool (she told us the name of the chemical, too--maybe sulfuric acid?).

Some people are genuinely allergic to lanolin. The rest of us just have problems with leftover hay itching us or the chemcal sensitivity...


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## calliemoonbeam (Aug 7, 2007)

Thanks Weever! I'm going to check on all this and see what I find out.


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## calliemoonbeam (Aug 7, 2007)

That's what I used to do as a kid, except for the shortness of breath, scary isn't it? I'll remember that about the merino though. Thanks Rose!


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## rabbitgeek (Mar 22, 2008)

Callie,

Be careful with the lanolin lotion test. Some people build up greater sensitivity to allergens on each exposure and a big dose of lanolin could land you in the hospital.

I guess I'm saying don't try it alone, have someone nearby who can provide assistance if necessary.

Have a good day!
Franco Rios


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## ajaxlucy (Jul 18, 2004)

My sister gave me a wool sweater that gave me a rash wherever it touched my skin. I can touch my own sheep without any problem, though. After a whole day of shearing them I have no rash or itching. I wonder if it's the chemicals in the treated wool.


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## calliemoonbeam (Aug 7, 2007)

Wow, thanks Franco! I would have never thought of that. I was planning to do that this weekend, but was just too busy to get to it. I'll keep that in mind, since I'm 40 miles from town and live alone, lol.

Lucy, it seems like that's the problem with a lot of folks, so hopefully it will be with me too. Gonna have to test this out this week, I've just been running all weekend and haven't done anything yet!


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