Do you have a red, sore itchy rash after wearing that new bracelet? Are your eyes itchy and scratchy from that new mascara that supposedly stimulates lash growth? All these tears and itchiness could result from allergic contact dermatitis, a skin reaction to something irritating, be it the nickel-containing jewelry, fragrance or other substances, with which you've had contact.

dermatitisContact allergies today are more common than ever before, possibly because of the overabundance of chemicals in use in various areas of our life. In some people, immune system becomes so easily triggered, it produces acute reaction even to minor irritants making our life a misery.

If the culprit is an allergy, the skin doesn't usually react to the first exposure. It can take many exposures for the skin to become sensitive.

Sometimes the sensitivity to certain chemicals runs in families. If one parent is allergic, the child has a one in four chance of developing an allergy. If both parents are allergic, it is likely that two out of three children will be allergic also, scientists say. Read more of this post