Every couple of years between Christmas day and New Year's day I develop a case of anal itching. This is the only time of year that I get it so it must be caused by something I'm eating.

I think it's caused by either a combination of these foods: Reese's Pieces, cashews, peanuts, peanut butter, and/or eggnog or by simply eating too much junk.

This year I tried to be careful about what I ate and even ate salads for dinner for a week to make sure I was getting something healthy. I didn't think I had eaten too much junk and have eaten worse at Easter time so I can only conclude that it must be a combination of the foods I listed.


Can anyone tell me what I can do to help relieve the itching? I've been taking a hot bath (no soap) several times a day which does help when the itching gets bad. I've also been taking Benadryl which works pretty good. I'm drinking a lot of water because that too seems to help. Is there anything else I can do?

I'm also trying to avoid eating the foods that I believe caused this problem. But is it ok to eat other foods that I normally eat if I'm sure they didn't cause the problem? For example, I know that pizza and chili dogs aren't the cause of this so can I eat those while I still itch or will they cause a problem? I did eat some spicy bratwurst earlier today and that hasn't caused a problem.

Are your bowels changed? If you have frequent, messy, or large bowels you may be irritating your anus by wiping too much, which could cause itching and irritation. Which would be indirectly related to the foods you ate. If it's not because your bowels have changed, then how could food cause your anus to itch?