You have to be scientifically literate and mindful enough to check the ingredients of the food you consume, and learn what they do once in the body in order to avoid being benignly poisoned. I've managed it and my overall health and activity level have greatly benefited. Why then, would it not occur to me to check the ingredients of medications, especially after experiencing increasing allergic reactions to most anything I've taken in pill form?
Three years ago, I was suffering from anxiety and mild depression to a degree that needed addressing. I went on Lexapro. The anxiety abated, but I became quasi catatonic. Next was Effexor. I looked up side effects and general user experience and found that it brings on scary withdrawal symptoms, due to the fact that the body slows production of two important neuro transmitters: dopamine and norapinephrine. On to Wellbutrin. This worked well, but alas turned me into a scabby itchy mess. I simply couldn't take even one pill without breaking out in red patches across my face that stung and itched like mad.
Thanks to my awesome job, my depression all but disappeared, and anxiety became manageable. Three months ago, the anxiety elevated again to where I was getting surges of panic and started catastrophic thinking spins. Cognitive Behavioral tricks like redirecting, concentrating on breathing and counting a series of 3 digit numbers backward helped somewhat, but I needed chemical intervention to keep from spiraling into an anxiety-ridden funk.
I'd been on Prozac 10 years before, and stayed on in for two years. It worked very well and I had no side effects other than rapid-fire deja vu for a small period during withdrawal. I started it again several weeks ago and it did a great job returning me to normal. Unfortunately, I experienced the same allergic response that I had on Wellbutrin. I suspect that the period of trying all those psychotropic meds kicked off the allergy.
My prescription was generic, and I thought the allergen was in the filler. I hadn't had this reaction when I was on the name-brand version before. I refilled with the name-brand Prozak, paying an extra $100 per month for the privilege. This time, it didn't matter. I quickly broke out again.
Other chemically disparate medications caused the same reaction: Xanax and Tramadol (my dog's opiate I took hoping for a good high). I took Vicadan, Excedrin and Benadryl but did not suffer any allergic reaction. When I took a B-complex vitamin and broke out, it became clear it had to be an inactive ingredient that was doing this to me. I also reacted to zombie Halloween makeup and sunscreen.
Through a process of elimination, I've narrowed down the culprit to silicon dioxide. Everything that caused the reaction had silicon dioxide. It is the only ingredient in the medications that caused the allergic reaction that was not in the ones that didn't. There was no other ingredient common to the irritants.
The reason I checked my food intake was to make sure I wasn't consuming anything that hurt my general health. I didn't check makeup or medications, however - didn't know it was necessary. It is. Also, why isn't silicon dioxide on the radar as a possible allergen? None of the medical professionals I spoke with came close to identifying it as the cause of my extreme pruritis.
Silicon dioxide may be 'non reactive' but does cause allergic reactions. It's in a ridiculous variety of things that go on or in our bodies as well and may account for many idiopathic conditions. And, let's face it, it's glass, and fully abrasive in substances like toothpaste. Think about it, look for silicon dioxide in ingredients, then prepare to be shocked and amazed at what goes in, on and through you that contains it.
