Hello, 2 months ago I got a 2nd job working for USA today and ever since I've been dealing with a problem I thought was Eczema but now I'm not sure. Are there chemicals in newspapers that could be causing this dry skin problem? Is there anywayto find this out?

It's funny you bring that up. I have been getting weird Eczema-like rashes on my hands for a couple months now, and I have no idea where it is coming from. I suspect it may have something to do with all the newspapers I read in the morning on the way to work.

I'm going to stay away from newspapers for a week or so and see what happens.

Hello, 2 months ago I got a 2nd job working for USA today and ever since I've been dealing with a problem I thought was Eczema but now I'm not sure. Are there chemicals in newspapers that could be causing this dry skin problem? Is there anywayto find this out?

I use gloves to read my newspaper. When my asthma was worse, I couldn't even have a newspaper in the same room.

It took me yrs. & not even dr's could tell me abt my sporadic daily sneezing. I had
allergy tests etc. = 0. Some places I'd never been to, made me sneeze. I woke fine
1 morning & started reading & sneezing + getting blotchy skin while on the patio. By
afternoon, the paper had been in the sun for 4 hrs. I read it in the hse. & I was fine?
I'm allergic to the `smell' of news-ink. I now air-out the paper in the sun before I
read it. If I buy a `new' paper, the ink will get in me & trigger blotches. Airing out the
paper in bright light, sets the ink. U can get elbow eczema reading it that way.

They create a lot of dust. I suppose it's also possible to have a reaction to the ink, which gets on your hands easily.

It's funny because the hands are one of the few spots I don't get eczema on. Maybe it's not the paper then. hmmmm

It's funny because the hands are one of the few spots I don't get eczema on. Maybe it's not the paper then. hmmmm

Wow, just today I went outside to get the paper for my mom and there was a thin layer of pollen on it. The funny thing is, I opened it up first to check the pollen count and started sneezing nonstop for about a minute. :p

That's too funny that you mention that - well, not funny, since I know just how it feels. I work for a newspaper in southcentral PA and am fine with "dry" papers, but we take turns going down to the pressroom to read the papers as they come off the press, to be sure there are no errors.
Funnily enough, I'm allergic to soy - in food, in haircare products, etc. Who knew we used soybean ink (very common in newspapers) to print with? Certainly not me - until my hands and arms got covered in hives and I couldn't drive home...
Now I have gloves. Inconvenient, yes, but much safer.
Glad I'm not the only one!
Joan in PA

offset presses use a chemical called a press solution that is very volatile, highly acidic. It prevents the ink from adhering to the aluminum printing plate except where there is an emulsion (image) on the plate. Newsprint paper is very porous and absorbs gasses from the solution then releases these gasses for hours. This is why papers laid in the sun loose their ability to cause chemical sensative persons to react.

IMost of my life I have sufferred with fits of sneezing in the mornings and only after getting my immune system destroyed by Aromatique potpouri and becoming very sensative to the newspaper did I realize that I had had a milder version of this sensativity all my life. It has been about nine months since I found and removed the potpouri, quit the newspaper and made my wife stop using snuggles fabric softeners and I am finally getting my chemical sensativity/breathing problems resolved.

hey I,m certain this is alergy
I was a printer for 12 years and always suffered with hay fever .when i left that job i was much better but didnt realise still, untill i noticed, reading newspapers brought it back imediatly.
I still read them but at least i know.The ink and varnish are very powerfull chemicals
hope this helps
reguards terry

Ever think of Sulfite Sensitivity? Companies frequently use sulfites to process paper so as not to allow ink smearing. I have this sensitivity and my fingers burn and swell when I handle newspaper for anytime longer than briefly, or if I don't promptly wash my hands after I touch one. If this is so, you would most likely have other items such as medications or foods that cause headaches, stomach disturbances, hives and rash with itching, etc...Good Luck...I hope this is not so for you, but if it is you can wonder no more! :)