WEBVTT - BrainStuff Classics: Can People Be Allergic to Water?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey

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<v Speaker 1>brain Stuff Lauren bog Obam here with a classic episode

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<v Speaker 1>from our archives. There's a much greater awareness these days

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<v Speaker 1>of allergies and sensitivities, which is great for those of

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<v Speaker 1>us who have, for example, specific dietary needs, but of

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<v Speaker 1>all the things that people avoid to keep themselves feeling okay.

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<v Speaker 1>Our question of the day is can people be allergic

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<v Speaker 1>to water? Hey brain Stuff, Lauren bog bomb here. When

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<v Speaker 1>Alexandra Allen was twelve years old, she did what most

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<v Speaker 1>kids do when they're on a family vacation. She went

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<v Speaker 1>for a swim in the hotel pool. Unlike most kids, though,

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<v Speaker 1>Alexandra had a severe reaction to her swim. Her skin

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<v Speaker 1>broke out and angry, itchy welts just a few short

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<v Speaker 1>hours after leaving the water. What began as an ordinary

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<v Speaker 1>summer day ended in the eventual diagnosis that would change

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<v Speaker 1>Allen's life. She shelved her dreams of living on a

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<v Speaker 1>sailboat and working as a marine biologist after discovering she

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<v Speaker 1>was allergic to water. An allergy to water seems like

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<v Speaker 1>an improbable condition, After all, water is a chief chemical

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<v Speaker 1>component in the human body. Accounting for at least six

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<v Speaker 1>of the average person's weight. Water whisks toxins out of

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<v Speaker 1>critical organs, ferries nutrients to hungry cells, and creates the

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<v Speaker 1>human conditions needed for ear, nose, and throat health. In short,

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<v Speaker 1>water is essential to life. In the case of water allergies,

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<v Speaker 1>only the skin is affected. People with this condition can

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<v Speaker 1>still safely drink water. It's only when water of any

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<v Speaker 1>temperature or origin touches the skin that a hypersensitive allergic

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<v Speaker 1>reaction occurs. The condition, known as aquagenic uticaria, is called

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<v Speaker 1>an allergy, but isn't medically classified as a true allergy.

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<v Speaker 1>It's actually an allergy like reaction that belongs to a

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<v Speaker 1>subset of physical r tucaria, a group of conditions characterized

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<v Speaker 1>by hives or welts that arise from stimulation of the skin.

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<v Speaker 1>In the case of aquagenic your tcaria, red swollen, itchy

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<v Speaker 1>bumps form when water touches the skin. This histamine reaction

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<v Speaker 1>isn't directed at the water itself, but is most likely

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<v Speaker 1>a reaction to a water soluble antigen that stimulates antibodies.

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<v Speaker 1>Any type of water, distilled, tap or rain will cause

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<v Speaker 1>an outbreak almost immediately and can make bathing or getting

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<v Speaker 1>caught outside in a rainstorm a tortuous proposition. Aquagenic Ured

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<v Speaker 1>caria is so rare that fewer than one occurrences have

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<v Speaker 1>been recorded in medical literature since the first cases were

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<v Speaker 1>described in nineteen sixty four. It affects women more than men,

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<v Speaker 1>and most often begins during puberty. It's usually diagnosed by

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<v Speaker 1>putting the skin into prolonged contact with water. In Alan's case,

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<v Speaker 1>physicians asked her to soak in a tub to diagnose

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<v Speaker 1>the condition. The cause of these water allergies still alludes experts.

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<v Speaker 1>One theory is that sweat glands could be the culprit.

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<v Speaker 1>It's possible that spet glands in certain people produce a

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<v Speaker 1>toxin that leads to an allergic reaction with water, while

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<v Speaker 1>researchers remain unshore of the root cause of the condition.

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<v Speaker 1>Most cases can be treated with antihistamines and controlled by

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<v Speaker 1>avoiding contact with water as much as possible. Today's episode

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<v Speaker 1>was written by Laurie L. Dove and produced by Tristan

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<v Speaker 1>McNeil and Tyler Clang. For more on this and lots

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<v Speaker 1>of other sensitive topics, visit house toffworks dot com. Brainstuff

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<v Speaker 1>is production of iHeart Radio. For more podcasts from my

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