A recent research report via SkinsMatter made me think about why some of us react to stuff we absorb through our skin and other lucky people don’t.
The recent report from Danish researchers adds more weight to the belief that some people have a genetic mutation on filaggrin, a skin protein necessary for the strength and integrity of the mucosal barrier.
They concluded:
We know that filaggrin affects how permeable a person’s skin is to external factors at the molecular level
Our theory is that people with this skin barrier defect are at an increased risk of getting food allergies because microscopic amounts of e.g. wheat flour can penetrate through the skin.
Read the report on the study here:
Food allergy may arise through our skin
Filaggrin deficiency has previously been linked with asthma, eczema and allergies and actually I wrote about it myself in a report I did for SkinsMatter way back in 2009:
Thinny Skinnies – the low down on leaky skin and allergies
Anyway, it struck me that it could provide a reason why some of us can absorb an allergen via the skin and react where others can slap the same stuff on willy-nilly and have no problem. Could it be because those who do react have a genetic mutation on the fillagrin gene?? Possibly.
Want to learn more about filaggrin? I saw this useful article:
Note the interesting mention there of antibodies to filaggrin found in rheumatoid arthritis sufferers. Is it wholly a gene mutation then or yet another auto-immune consequence of gluten? Would that explain why some people seem to be fine for a long while and then suddenly start developing reactions to stuff via the skin? Who knows, but I wouldn’t be surprised.
Right, enough musing. Onward..