Allergic to bra

[Catherine145]

I recently bought a Victoria Secret padded demi bra.  I am also dieting so when my top began to itch I originally associated it with the fact that everything was shrinking.  I spoke with my sister and she told me that she had the same reaction to thier bras.  Is it possible that I am allergic the bra?  The entire breast itches not just the area around the band....what ingredient in the padding would cause this reaction?  I was curious since it seems that several brand are copying their materials.  

[lhfriend]

VS is not the only ones with this issue....last month I purchased Barely There bras three of them....and I am currently broke out all where the cup area is in the bra....I figured it was the fiber filling or the foam...I've washed them and it still is a problem. gonna pitch them.  using cortizone cream and they still itch.

[catgirl67]

Has anyone had a severe reaction to VS's PJ's.  Twenty percent of my body is covered with what looks like rash/sunburn from wearing my new pjs one night.  From my calves upto mu belly button and my forearms upto my armpits and breasts.  Am two dress sizes bigger due to swelling and the pain was awful. Did you know that the garnment business uses formaldyhyde to prevent mildewing during shipping?  I am so angry that VS allowed this awful chemical to get into my body.  And my three bras I bought from VS last September make me itch by the end of the day too.  There's $200 I spent altogether.  I have had to take some serious steroids to reduce my symptoms

[francaisey]

Got the itchy, red rash (more like a sunburn than a rash)  on the sides and under sides of my breasts, cleaveage and abdomen about 2 months ago.   At first, I thought it might be from gardening.  It didn't go away.  Seemed to get to worst when I worked out at the gym wearing exercise type clothing.  Tried anti-itch creams...then Hydrocordisone tablets that were prescribed.  The itch went away as did the rash- like symtoms.  Went to the gym a couple of days ago and did Zumba, wearing a top made with spandex.  Within an hour the rash-like symtoms and itch were back. I looked at the labels on my bras (not VS) and they all have spandex in them.  I haven't worn a bra in 2 days and have been wearing my husband's white cotton Ts hoping for relief.  I have been racking my brain trying to figure out what the problem is and thank God I found this forum!  I now know that there are more women out there like me having the same problem.  I am thinking that the problem is the spandex..

[fussy_hussy]

I have an itchy back where the bra straps are sitting. I was using Daisyfresh bras for 15 years and the style 1064 got discontinued. I loved that bra, it was so natural looking. So, I switched to another brand and now my breast and the back itches a lot.
Louise

[Katrina557]

I've been fighting the bra allergy for a couple of years.  The rash turned into full-blown eczema all over my body.  After finally going to the Mayo Clinic, I had allergy patch testing done and found that I am hyper-sensitive to formaldahye and spandex.  Turning to all-cotton underwear where the elastic is completely covered and cotton bras that have all of the stretchy parts covered in cotton is the only thing I can wear any more.  I recently purchased an expensive Wacoal bra as I needed a really great bra to wear under something special, and within hours, I was completely broken out in a rash.  Washing with an allergy free detergent won't help the bra situation if it is the formaldahyde and the spandex in the product that you are allergic to.  Most of the commercial laundry detergents that are "free and clear" still have formaldahyde in the ingredients.  Formaldahyde comes in a number of different names and they aren't listed as formaldahyde per se, they are listed under different technical names.  Find a detergent that is indeed completely free of dyes, perfumes and formaldahyde.  Your food coops will generally have something like this.  By the way, this came on in my late 40s.  My doctor claims that exposure to all of these chemicals finally overwhelms the body and the body can't fight them off any longer.  Formaldahyde can be found in shampoos and conditioners, laundry and dish detergents, and, well, you name it.  Your house is full of it and you don't even know it.  It was a major switch in my lifestyle and constant scrutiny to find products that are free of formaldahyde.  They are out there but you have to hunt for them.  And, they are not the commercial products you find in your local supermarket.  Most fabrics are treated in formaldahyde, therefore the problem with the bras.  The padding in the VS secret bras contain it and you'll never get rid of it, no matter how many times you wash the darned things.  

[Vickik97]

Apparently it's not just the Victoria Secret manufacturer - I too just bought a Bali bra from Macy's and within 2 hours, the symptoms started!  Burning, itching, etc.  I left work and went home to take it off and was amazed at the extent of the redness and inflamation that had already begun (only around where the underwire touches my skin).  It's taken almost one week of going BRA-LESS and putting triple antibiotic ointment on twice a day for it to clear up.  The bra was thrown away ..... don't want to take a chance of accidentally putting it on again; plus since I didn't save the receipt, it wouldn't be worth the trouble of bringing it back.  I don't know why more people haven't complained about this - could it be that only a select few of us are ultra sensitive to whatever is in these bras?