Bad Reaction To Hairwax

Hubby had been using a certain brand of hair-wax then, foolishly, decided to use try another over-the-counter brand.  It wasn't long after using the hair-wax that he started to notice a small lump at the base of his skull.  He thought it might be a blindie (a large pimple under the skin) or a cyst.  Some time later he notices another lump on his scalp about an inch or two away from the first one only this one is bigger.

Over a period of a few hours he finds more and more lumps and also notices a gland on his neck is noticeably swollen.  The lumps are painful to touch and even lightly touching hair in the area hurts.  His head is aching and throbbing and the lumps are red with sores on them.  Off to the doctors, the doctor prescribes some hair treatment for tinea / psoriasis and sends him on his way.

I grab the hair-wax in question and take a look at the ingredients.  Aside from water, glycerine, beeswax, alcohol, salt, wheat starch, castor oil, the rest reads like a chemistry lab:

Ingredients: cetearyl alcohol, bis-diglyceryl polyacyladipate-2, va/vinyl butyl benzoate/crotonates copolymer, tribehenin, ceteareth=33, isoceteth-20, propylene glycol, PPG-2-myristyl ether propionate, aminomethyl propanol, phenoxyethanol, acrylates/c10-30 alkyl acrylate crosspolymer, methylparaben, parum/fragrance, propylparaben, limonene hexyl cinnama, linalool, colourants, sodium chloride, magnesium chloride...

• Linalool: narcotic, respiratory disturbances, attracts bees, causes CNS disorder, toxic to animals, used in perfume, cologne, bar soap, shampoo, hand lotion, nail enamel remover, hairspray, laundry detergent, dishwashing liquid, Vaseline lotion, air fresheners, bleach powder, fabric softener, shaving cream, after shave, sold deodorant. 
•  va/vinyl butyl benzoate/crotonates copolymer is a polymer of vinyl acetate.

Alcohol is high on the product list and as you can see there are parabens in this product along with propylene glycol.  What concerns me though is the use of vinyl in this product.  It makes me think of some builders left over window puddy being stuffed into a container and sold as hair wax!

Interestingly enough my husband doesn't have especially sensitive skin.  In fact he's not one to fuss about what he puts on his body.  Yet the above blend of ingredients caused a severe reaction on his head and scalp.  Doctors expect it will take 2 weeks to improve and a little longer for his swollen gland to dissipate.  Glands swell up because the 'infection' moves down to the glands.  Glands swelling up are a sure sign the body has an infection / problem to begin with.

Needless to say hubby thought he had cancer and was quite worried, though doctors say he will be ok.

However, his hair started to fall out in these affected areas, causing bald patches. To this day his hair thinned out noticeably in those areas and hasn't grown back.

Have you ever had an adverse reaction to a skin care product?  Share your story with us.