The Reasons Why Some People Develop Sun Allergies
Although there wouldn’t be life on our world without the Sun, for certain people, this enormous ball of heated plasma makes living pretty challenging. There are some people who react to sunlight by breaking out in a rash or even painful, itching hives. Although the common name for this issue is “sun allergy,” similar symptoms can actually be brought on by a number of different illnesses that aren’t necessarily allergies.
Polymorphous light eruption, which affects around 10% of the population, is the most prevalent sun-related skin condition (PLE). A person’s skin around their chest and arms turns red and itchy shortly after being exposed to sunlight, and it can take up to a week for the symptoms to go away. It most frequently affects fair-skinned Caucasian women who reside in the northern regions of the northern hemisphere.
It’s interesting to note that PLE often worsens in the spring and early summer, when people are first exposed to sunshine. Symptoms lessen as exposure increases over the sunny months, but unfortunately return the following year. PLE appears to be a sensitivity to UV radiation, the short wavelength of sunlight that reaches our planet, though scientists are not quite sure why it develops.
A more severe form of sun allergy, known as solar urticaria, causes big hives on skin exposed to the sun in addition to a rash. The itching and subsequent growth of large welts during an outbreak can make it exceedingly uncomfortable to treat. Even anaphylactic shock is possible if a significant enough region of skin is exposed and reacts. For many who have this illness, sunbathing is the stuff of nightmares.
Immunoglobulin E (IgE), an antibody that also plays a role in other allergens such as pollen, food sensitivities, asthma, and others, mediates solar urticaria. Therefore, treatment entails using antihistamines to control the body’s allergic reaction as well as a steroid cream to treat the skin directly.
Actinic prurigo, a different type of sun sensitivity, is most common among people of American Indian and Latin American ancestry, particularly in Mexico and Central America. An extremely irritating rash that appears on sun-exposed skin, such as the face and lips, is the hallmark of this mostly hereditary illness. There is no known treatment, and the most common medical recommendation is to stay out of the sun as much as possible while also using the customary topical steroid creams to treat the rash.
Even if you are genetically immune to all of these illnesses, you may still experience sun sensitivity thanks to some drugs or topical treatments. One such drug is doxycycline, a popular acne treatment, although other antibiotics like sulfonamides can also cause it. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), including ibuprofen and naproxen, as well as some birth control pills, high blood pressure medications, and others, are also known to cause photosensitivity.
A sunburn-induced rash is undoubtedly inconvenient to deal with, but unlike some other allergies (looking at you, peanuts), it’s quite unlikely that you may experience anaphylaxis and pass away. So, always see the positive side of things?
