Cholinergic Urticaria

Cholinergic Urticaria and Indoor Tanning

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Hi All,

I have had cholinergic urticaria for about 4 years now with symptoms popping up whenever I switch from cold to hot rooms, showering, getting nervous or stressed. Over the past 2 years the symptoms have got increasingly worse, at first I would get an episode every so often, but now it’s each time I encounter a trigger (ie. it didn’t always happen when I shower, now it’s every single time).

Over the past few years I have been trying to figure out what caused the cholinergic urticaria, and I was wondering if anyone else had similar experiences. I have two theories:

1. I started indoor tanning when I was 15 years old (I’m 29 now). I was a pretty heavy tanner up to 4 years ago, (approx 2-3 x per week), when I got quite worried about how bad for your skin indoor tanning was. I slowly spaced out my tanning and havent been to a tanning bed in 1.5 years. In the tanning beds I would get very hot and sweat, and I would also use lotions that ‘tingle’ to give you a deeper tan. Not really sure what was in the lotions but they make you hot and itchy (similar to cholinergic urticaria but without hives or bumps. Looking back I don’t know why I put myself though that for a tan…anyways I digress). It was around the same time I stopped tanning that I started getting CU, so I’m wondering if they’re linked? Has anyone had the same issues.

2. Also, around 4 years ago I went on a trip to Cuba. I shaved my legs in the hotel then went into the pool. My legs were a bit itchy in the water, but I assumed I got a little bit of razor burn or the chlorine was irritating my freshly shaven legs. When I got home I had hives all over my legs that were really itchy and didn’t go away after a few days. I went to a walk in clinic and the doctor said I had a fungal infection, probably from the pool water. She prescribed me a cream and I used it for a few weeks and the hives eventually subsided. I feel like this event had something to do with my CU like it was a trigger. The itchiness and bumps usually starts in my legs and arms and my legs get the itchiest/most sensitive when I have an episode.

I feel like both of these events are related to why I have cholinergic urticaria and I’m wondering if anyone has had similar experiences, and what you did to help.

I have been to an allergist and their only suggestion is to take an allergy medicine every day. I have seasonal allergies also, and when I take antihistamines for this there isn’t really much change to my cholinergic urticaria.

Thanks for reading!

-Steph

Comments

  1. Hey Steph!
    It’s always possible that tanning affected or caused your cholinergic urticaria. It’s hard to say. I’ve only tanned like 4 times my whole life, but one time I used an “accelerant” cream. It stung my skin horribly and I had a weird reaction. This was several months before I developed CU for the first time, so it’s hard to say if it had an affect or not.

    Interestingly, UVB therapy is sometimes used to treat cholinergic urticaria (or other hives disorders). However, it obviously has its side effects and risks.

    PS, it’s a great thing that you’ve stopped. They are pretty dangerous. My wife worked in a tanning salon part time while she was in nursing school, and she saw a lot of skin issues and cancers occuring in those regular tanners. She eventually quit and never tanned again.

    Thanks for your post.

    • Thanks! Ya, I’m pretty proud that I quit. I do believe you can get addicted to it like alcohol or smoking. It was tough to stop, but in the long run I’ll be better for it.

  2. I have noticed for many years that there seemed to be a connection between fungal growth on skin and CU. Have you ever noticed that sometimes affected areas are the first to itch and burn? As a matter of fact I sometimes wondered if the CU originated with a type of hypersenstivity that was created from introduction of fungal antigens into the blood stream by various routes. Of course, the fungal growth can be related to diet. (i.e. candida) Various fungi reside in the skin and seem to prosper well. Their growth can be affected by moisture, sugar intake, sun exposure, stress, etc. etc. When the skin warms up or becomes moist from sweat it is conceivable that the more moist and permeable skin allows the immune system to be exposed to more antigens and then it responds. ?? Eliminating refined sugars could help. MODERATE sun exposure may help. What about antifungal meds? Who knows? It seems you can never really be rid of fungus. It grows in your gut and on your skin, scalp etc. but certain healthful practices can reduce them a lot. A good diet helps! Interesting speculation but not sure it has been proved or even investigated.

    • Thanks for your response! I do notice that my legs are usually first to show symptoms, but I can’t say if it is in the exact spots I had the infection because it was all over. I think it’s time I try eliminating certain things out of my diet to see if it helps my CU. There are many good tips on the forum but refined sugars is definitely a great place to start.

  3. I feel that if you were ever a highly active sweating person if for some reason you just randomly stop I think that’s when you start getting the hives

    • I think it could be more the sweating factor of the tanning beds than the actual UV exposure, but it could be a bit of both. I definitely did sweat a lot in those beds, now, even when I’m active I don’t really sweat at all.