FIBERS ALLERGY: WHERE FIBRES ARE FOUND
COIR
Coir is a fibre made from the outer husk of the coconut. It is used to make doormats (the bristly type), floor matting and ropes. It is also used as a filling in mattresses and can be used in upholstery. It gives off few particles and rarely causes reactions. Unless you have significant exposure* to handling it, say at work, it is an uncommon cause of allergy.
Horsehair
This is hair taken from the mane and tail of horses. It used to be a common material in upholstery and furniture-making but is now much less used. If you are allergic to horses , you may be sensitive to horsehair used in furniture. Generally, older furniture is more likely to contain it than modern furniture. For most people, however, exposure to horsehair is low and allergy uncommon.
Jute, Sisal and Hemp
These fibres come from three plants and are commonly used in rope-making. Hemp has been recorded to cause allergy among workers handling it in production. Otherwise, sensitivity is not common.
Kapok
Kapok is a fibre that surrounds the seeds of a tropical tree. It looks and feels rather like a pink-coloured cotton wool. It is used for filling cushions and soft toys. Children are sometimes allergic to kapok in soft toys that they cuddle closely, although sensitivity to house dust mites and other types of filling material is more common.
Also known as flax, linen is a cellulose fibre in common domestic use for tea-towels. It can also be used for clothing (often in a blend with cotton), tablecloths and napkins, and for sheets. It is an expensive fabric, which creases easily and so exposure to it, apart from tea-towels, is low. Allergy to linen is rare.
Starches and resins are sometimes applied to linen, and these can cause sensitivity reactions. However, linen without finishes, as in tea-towels, rarely causes allergic reactions. Despite its creasing, it is hard-wearing and can be a useful fabric for people with multiple allergies.
Ramie
Ramie is a yarn made from a plant with fibrous leaves. It is used in clothing, especially knitted garments, often in blends with cotton or linen. It is uncommon and most people never wear it, so allergy is not reported.
Silk
Like linen, silk is an expensive and often impractical fabric in daily life. Silk has few everyday uses, apart from clothing, ties and accessories. It is a protein fibre, like wool, and is known to cause allergy, but because so few people have any significant exposure to it in everyday life, allergy to silk is uncommon.
Resins are not used on silk at all, since they accentuate the fibre’s natural tendency to break and abrade. Silk is therefore a very useful fibre for the chemically sensitive. Starches and sizes are sometimes applied, but these usually wash out.
*89\117\8*
