I had cholinergic urticaria for more than 2 years now and nothing worked for me except for the sauna treatment. I have a portable sauna in my apartment I use it everyday. I wake up turn the sauna on take a shower then go inside the sauna.
However, the last couple of days I didn’t take a shower before I entered the sauna. I felt that the sauna was much hotter and I sweated a lot more than before. It’s been about 12 hours since I used the sauna and I still was able to sweat from my hands and head now without feeling itchy. (I still felt that I have CU but I didn’t feel itchy) I’m sure all of you CU sufferers will understand.
So basically if you’re using the sauna treatment like I am, try not to take a shower before entering the sauna. To be honest I feel that I don’t want to shower at all because when I take a shower CU will be more likely to get to me. I take a shower before I sleep though and feel a little itchy when I sleep. But overall your day should be a lot better if use the treatment like I do.
-Ali
This post was submitted by a reader.
Janet says
I get good results with a hot mineral jacuzzi. I gave chronic neuropathic pruritus.
Kewin says
This is great ! I just purchased all the foods this month to see if it works for me ! Next step is the suana!
DutchHivesGuy says
I have just ordered a portable Sauna (via the link to Amazon on this website) and as soon as the delivery takes place – which can take a while because I live in the Netherlands – I will also start a sauna treatment, to find out if it actually helps in my case.
In medical literature there seems to be a distinction made between different types of Cholinergic Urticaria, which may also explain why some of us respond well to sauna treatment, and others don’t.
In a recent article ‘Physcial Urticarias and Cholinergic Urticaria’ which was published in the journal of ‘Immunology and Allergy Clinics of North America’ (Vol. 34, Issue 1, Feb. 2014, p. 73-88), the following is stated regarding Cholinergic Urticaria (abbreviated as CholU):
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“Japanese studies suggest several distinct CholU subclasses: (1) CholU with poral occlusion, (2) CholU with hypohidrosis, (3) CholU with allergy against sweat, and (4) idiopathic CholU. There are several reports of cases that suggest that CholU could be caused by poral occlusion, which then leads to the leakage of sweat from sweat glands. Sweat contains numerous enzymes, such as renin-like substances, secretory IgA, IgE, and cytokines, including interleukin 1a and b, and interleukin-8 that, in turn, can induce local inflammation and may cause wheals. Symptoms in CholU patients with poral occlusion reportedly exacerbate in winter and resolve in the summer, suggesting that daily sweating in summer may inhibit the formation of keratotic plugs to prevent the occurrence of CholU.
It is well known that acquired generalized hypohidrosis (AGH) can be accompanied by CholU. A variety of causes, including autoimmunity to sweat glands or to acetylcholine receptors, degeneration of post-ganglionic sympathetic skin nerve fibers, and poral occlusion (see above) have been proposed as causes of AGH. CholU in AGH patients may be due to elevated local acetylcholine levels induced by their impaired sweat production. Consequently, excess acetylcholine may activate muscarinic CHRM3 on mast cells in the vicinity of sweat glands to cause wheals. Acetylcholine is a mast cell degranulator, and previous reports have demonstrated that subcutaneous injections of cholinergic agents induce sweating and the development of pin-point-sized hives in patients with CholU.
Several recent studies indicate that CholU can be due to an allergy to components of human sweat. Some CholU patients show immediate-type hypersensitivity reactions to their own diluted sweat after intradermal injections, and basophils from these patients react to autologous sweat and release high amounts of histamine in vitro. In addition, CholU patients, but not healthy controls, reportedly express IgE to sweat antigens. Very recently, a new allergen component from a fungus was identified in human sweat.”
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To be continued!
Hivesguy says
Thanks for your comment and support, DutchHivesGuy. I certainly hope it works out well for oyou. A lot of forum members have been talking about sweat therapy lately, especially via the sauna method. I’d just urge you to always use every safety precaution available, as there is always the risk of anaphylactic shock.
Keep us updated on how things go.
God bless,
Hivesguy