Allergic to my Wedding Ring?

Question

Hi everyone, hope someone can help here.

I got married in July and since wearing my wedding ring I'm having real problem with an allergy to it. My finger underneath is very itchy and red, and this morning it is almost raw. I've tried to make sure that my finger is dry after washing my hands etc, but it doesn't seem to make any difference. Sometimes it turns black underneath too, but that doesn't seem to be related to when I have a flare up.

Does anyone know if there might be some sort of coating I can have put on the inside of the ring to help this? It is also engraved inside so I'm cautious that that wouldn't be spoiled by this.

Oh, I should mention it is 14ct white gold. My engagement ring is 9ct white gold but I've never had an allergy to that. It also has never turned my finger black underneath.

I'll take it to be checked but I'd be suprised if it is fake. It was a reputable jeweller we went to and our good friend works there too - he definitely wouldn't rip us off! Hopefully the hand cream and/or nail polish will work!

Answer 1

Sometimes a thin layer of clear nail polish will work!

Answer 2

You can actually have an allergy to the wedding ring and not the engagement ring.

There are a few metals that can be added to gold to "bleach" and make it into white gold. In the past the most common metal was nickel.

Many people are allergic to nickel. If you have problems with inexpensive "silver colored " ear rings or other costume jewelery it could be an indicator that you have a nickel problem.

The new metals are platinum or paladium. They are harder to alloy and harder to work with than nickel. They are also very much more expensive than nickel.

The white golds that have used non-nickel whitening metals have been around for at least 9 years. Your engagement ring may use some metal other than nickel.

An allergist can test you for nickel allergies.

You can paint the inside of your ring with clear nail polish. It will not last long and will have to be re-coated all the time.
You can clean it with nail polish remover.

You can have the ring plated with "14K heavy white gold electroplate". This will obscure the engraving a very little bit, but not enough to keep you from reading it. Ask the jeweler who plates the ring for the chemical compositon of his white gold for plating-----no nickel. Also get a couple of quotes. It is likely to be more expensive than it has to be. Another thought that might be even better, might be to plate only the inside of the ring. Then 24K, pure gold can be used where it touches your skin. I've never heard of anyone that has an allergy to pure gold.

Hope this helps.

It would not be likely that the marking on the engagement ring is 9karat. In the US, karat gold is not allowed to be sold less than 10 karat. ( that is 10/24ths gold.) ( btw karat is for precious metals. carat is for weighing gemstones)

Answer 3

I have the same problem. I'm allergic to nickle, magnesium, palladium, and silver so it's extremely difficult to find inexpensive jewelry. If you purchased the ring in the last few months, the jeweler may be able to offer an exchange. This type of thing happens more than you know! Another option is to have the ring professional plated in rhodium. Rhodium is silvery white, so it won't look much different at all. Rhodium is in the platinum family and very few people are allergic to it. Rhodium plating generally costs $30-60, depending on the size of the ring. In my experience, it will start to wear off in about 2 years and will need to be plated again.

Answer 4

I have the same problem, though mine is 9ct. I'm not allergic to gold because I can wear any other piece with no problems, I just actually think I'm allergic to marriage (joke). No seriously I find a barrier type hand cream applied to your hands virtually solves the problem. I use Norwegian formula concentrated hand cream, you can get it in Boots and Superdrug. Hope it works for you too. If it doesn't then maybe you could have the ring made just a tiny bit bigger so the air is able to circulate underneath, obviously not so big that you lose it though.

Answer 5

it's possible that your ring may not be real gold, but gold-plated because allergic reactions usually come from the fake stuff. the only other thing i can think of is if you or the jeweller used some kind of cleaner or something on it, you could be allergic to that, but more likely you may have been ripped off. Perhaps you should consider seeing a jeweller and a doctor/dermatologist

Answer 6

I have the same thing with mine, I get little blisters, although doesn't go black. I'm sure your ring is not fake, although it's not common, I have reactions to gold, worse with yellow gold. I had mine cleaned a rhodium plated when the yellow started to come through - as it does and that was even worse! I do know for a fact that neither of my rings are fake! May just be one of those things - even my doctor said 'you can't be allergic to gold' - you can! My hubby moans that I don't wear mine, he'll have to buy me a platinum one instead!

Answer 7

Wow, I'm sorry to break this to you, but I think you may have gotten ripped off. That sound really typical of fake gold which a lot of people are allergic to. It might be some kind of metal which does leave your finger black.

Take it to a reliable jeweler (not the one you bought it from) and have them check it out for you.

Answer 8

i had a white gold wedding ring( i got it checked by a different jeweller because i was concerned). I was also very allergic to it. In the end i had to get it replaced and wear a yellow gold one instead. We soldthe white gold one and got the new one blessed

Answer 9

If I were you, I'd see your doctor first. It's highly unusual for someone to be allergic to gold.

You may, in fact, be developing a fungal infection from the moistness that develops underneath your ring. If this is the case, simple application of an anti-fungal cream should put paid to it.

Answer 10

suggest having the Wedding Ring Metal reviewed.

Pls find below Information for your Consideration.

Top 10 Causes of Skin Allergy
Jewelry Metals, Fragrances, Cosmetic Ingredients Top List

March 8, 2006 -- Jewelry metals and fragrances top the list of substances most likely to cause serious skin rashes, Mayo Clinic dermatologists report.

When you get a skin rash after contact with an allergy -causing substance (an allergen) doctors call it allergic contact dermatitis. It can be a devastating condition, says Mayo's Mark D. P. Davis, MD.

"Patients with contact dermatitis can get a very itchy rash from head to toe, or in a confined area," Davis says, in a news release. "If it's on the hands and feet it can be disabling, and patients at times can't do their jobs."

How do you know what causes your itchy rash? Using a panel of common allergens, doctors put a small amount on a patch of skin and see whether there is a reaction. It's called patch testing.
Davis' and other Mayo researchers patch tested more than 1,500 patients with a series of up to 73 allergens in their study.

The top 10 culprits:

· Nickel (nickel sulfate hexahydrate). A metal frequently encountered in jewelry and clasps or buttons on clothing.
· Gold (gold sodium thiosulfate). A precious metal often found in jewelry.
· Balsam of Peru (myroxylon pereirae). A fragrance used in perfumes and skin lotions, derived from tree resin.
· Thimerosal. A mercury compound used in local antiseptics and in as a preservative in some vaccines.
· Neomycin sulfate. A topical antibiotic common in first aid creams and ointments, also found occasionally in cosmetics, deodorant, soap, and pet food
· Fragrance mix. A group of the eight most common fragrance allergens found in foods, cosmetic products, insecticides, antiseptics, soaps, perfumes, and dental products.
· Formaldehyde. A preservative with multiple uses. It's found in paper products, paints, medications, household cleaners, cosmetic products, and fabric finishes.
· Cobalt chloride. Metal found in medical products; hair dye; antiperspirant; objects plated in metal such as snaps, buttons or tools; and in cobalt blue pigment.
· Bacitracin. A topical antibiotic.
· Quaternium 15. A preservative found in cosmetic products such as self-tanners, shampoo, nail polish, and sunscreen or in industrial products such as polishes, paints, and waxes.
Davis reported the findings at this week's annual meeting of the American Academy of Dermatology in San Francisco.
When a patch test is positive, the best thing for patients to do is to avoid the substance to which they are allergic. Treatment with corticosteroid cream can help -- but 3% of patients are allergic to the cream, Davis says.

SOURCES: Davis, M.D.P. Abstract, American Academy of Dermatology, San Francisco, March 3-7, 2006. Genebriera, J. Abstract, American Academy of Dermatology, San Francisco, March 3-7, 2006. Scalf, L.A. Abstract, American Academy of Dermatology, San Francisco, March 3-7, 2006. News release, American Academy of Dermatology.