Can the toothpaste start an allergic rhinitis?

Can the toothpaste start an allergic rhinitis?

For the first time, a Swedish research team describes a case of rhinitis allergic to menthol. This patient suspectait of long time this flavor, already known to be at the origin of urticaria and asthma.

Rhinitis allergic to menthol

This description of rhinitis allergic to menthol was made at person a 44 year old suffering from a moderate asthma and a rhinitis.
Menthol is a very widespread flavor, largely used in the foodstuff cosmetic and, energy of the toothpastes to the chewings-gum. And menthol was already accused in the asthma and the reactions of urticaria.

Menthol, a flavor largely present in the cosmetic products

For a long time, this person had noticed that the rhinitis started under surprising conditions, such as for example during the consumption of one mint, after being herself washed the teeth or a shampoo. The common point with all these situations was the presence of menthol.
In order to make sure of the role of menthol in the release of the rhinitis, of the tests of provocation were realized. The subject was to wash the teeth with a toothpaste aromatized with mint, without preliminary treatment on the one hand, then after a two weeks treatment of containing oral antihistamine and corticoid, that is to say the traditional treatment of the allergic rhinitis.
In the first case, a rhinitis was started ten minutes after the contact with the toothpaste. On the other hand, no symptom was observed with the treatment.

This first case describes rhinitis allergic to menthol definitively was then confirmed by tests of cutaneous applications of menthol diluted in petroleum jello, mentholated toothpaste with 50%, chewing-gum to the mint and the oil of mint with 5%.

In practice, even if the antihistamine treatment and corticoid are effective, the assumption of responsibility of this allergic rhinitis always requires the ousting of menthol… It is advisable then scrupulously to read the labels of all the products likely to contain some, whether they are cosmetic food or products.