After swimming for 10 years with no problem, I recently developed a bad reaction to my goggles. Every time I wear them the skin around my eyes (and other parts of my face) swells and turns red, itchy, and scaly. I went through allergy patch testing at the dermatologist's, and they diagnosed an allergy to two groups of chemicals, Thiuram Mix and Carba Mix. These are rubber accelerators used to turn raw rubber into rubber products. I tried latex-free googles - it didn't help. I also tried Swedes, and I still get a reaction, although not quite as bad (maybe from the strap and nosepiece?) I tried a bungee cord, but it didn't help, probably because the chemicals are found in most elastics. I have tried to contact TYR and Speedo to see if they make any goggles that don't use these chemicals, but so far I've only gotten the email equivalent of a blank stare.
So, has anyone ever heard of or experienced this? Any ideas on what might work? I read older forum discussions from ~2008 where people complained of similar issues, but no one seemed to have a solution. Thanks for your help! For the chemists out there, these are the specific chemicals I'm trying to avoid: tetramethylthiuram monosulfide, tetramethylthiuram disulfide, tetraethylthiuram disulfide, dipentamethylenethiuram disulfide, zinc diethyldithiocarbamate, zinc dibutyldithiocarbamate, and diphenylguanidine.
We contacted a couple of our sponsors and here is what they told us.
FROM TYR: "Looks like the most hypoallergenic goggles we have are the Swimple/Big Swimple (more of a kids and rec goggle) as well as the Special Ops (popular with Tri and Open Water) and the Stealth Racing goggle. All are silicone based so might be less likely to cause a reaction."
FROM SPEEDO: "Regarding the Speedo Vanquisher & Swedish goggles: they are not made with any carbon mixes. However, we cannot say for certain whether they are made on machinery and equipment that does not touch carbon mixes." As for other Speedo models, they said that if you can tell me specifically which models you are interested in they can tell me whether those models contain your allergens.
Also, we have a contact at AquaSphere. If you could send me an email message, I can put you in touch with that person. My email is: Membership (at) usms (dot) org.
Anna Lea Matysek
We contacted a couple of our sponsors and here is what they told us.
FROM TYR: "Looks like the most hypoallergenic goggles we have are the Swimple/Big Swimple (more of a kids and rec goggle) as well as the Special Ops (popular with Tri and Open Water) and the Stealth Racing goggle. All are silicone based so might be less likely to cause a reaction."
FROM SPEEDO: "Regarding the Speedo Vanquisher & Swedish goggles: they are not made with any carbon mixes. However, we cannot say for certain whether they are made on machinery and equipment that does not touch carbon mixes." As for other Speedo models, they said that if you can tell me specifically which models you are interested in they can tell me whether those models contain your allergens.
Also, we have a contact at AquaSphere. If you could send me an email message, I can put you in touch with that person. My email is: Membership (at) usms (dot) org.
Anna Lea Matysek
