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
I appreciate your extra effort! I had also contacted Speedo and Tyr,but neither was very helpful. They basically told me that goggle materials are proprietary information. I may take a look at the Special Ops goggle, though. I have since found that an all-silicone goggle seems to work for me. I'll post more about that. Thanks again!
I appreciate your extra effort! I had also contacted Speedo and Tyr,but neither was very helpful. They basically told me that goggle materials are proprietary information. I may take a look at the Special Ops goggle, though. I have since found that an all-silicone goggle seems to work for me. I'll post more about that. Thanks again!
Yes, please post the information about the all-silicone goggle. We may have other members who have similar issues and it would be nice to offer them a potential solution!
Thanks to everyone who took the time to respond to this post! After several weeks I think I've found some solutions, and I wanted to record them for posterity, in case anyone else who has these allergies comes looking for information. I tried several Forum suggestions, including going old school and swimming without goggles! That lasted exactly one Masters practice, and I spent the rest of the day looking like I had been crying. The actual swimming without goggles wasn't as bad as you would think, though. It's just the recovery that was tough.
I tried the Barracuda foam-socket goggles that Bobinator mentioned, and while the company didn't answer my email request for information about materials, they haven't seemed to cause a reaction from my skin. Interestingly, though, the package has a warning on it that says the foam from the goggles may cause contact dermatitis; exactly what I wanted to avoid. The fit and feel of these goggles is pretty different, and they take awhile to get used to. I'm still having trouble preventing a tiny leak on one side. The ones I bought are these: www.amazon.com/.../B0024GLP8Y
The best thing I've found is all-silicone goggles made by Zoggs (who also didn't answer my email). These fit and feel like regular goggles, they seal really well on my face, and they're very inexpensive. But best of all, no skin reaction: www.leisurepro.com/.../zoggs-racespex-swim-goggles
I'm going to stock up on a few extra pairs just in case Zoggs changes their materials!
