Although this story seems like a story about an allergic reaction, it’s really one about dust collection.
As a novice woodworker, I built an English-style garden bench earlier this year out of Western red cedar. My shop was little more than a $99 Ryobi table saw, a few hand tools, and a decent workbench I’d made with them. My dust collection consisted of vacuuming the floor at the end of the day.
The bench came out very nicely. I handplaned it straight and square and smooth, and am still quite proud of it. But a funny thing happened when I was in the final stages of assembly. My entire body was suddenly covered with a ghastly, splotchy red rash. It went from my ankles to my chest, and although it was only moderately itchy, it was startling to see. At my wife’s urging, I consulted my doctor, who sent me to a dermatologist. He said it looked like a textbook allergic reaction, and he quizzed me about any new foods I might have eaten. There were none, and I left his office with both of us puzzled. He suggested that I return in a week if the rash hadn’t diminished. It did finally disappear, but only slowly, after seven or eight days.
Understand that I have never been allergic to anything, not even poison ivy. So I couldn’t stop thinking about that rash. After doing some research, I came across information about plicatic acid, which exists in particularly high concentrations in Western Red Cedar. I now believe that working with that wood and being covered with its dust—I used only a basic dust mask in the shop—triggered this reaction. Fortunately, the Ryobi died a few weeks later and I replaced it with the GI hybrid, which has decent dust control. When I move my shop later this year, I’m going to be particularly careful about DC. You see, my mother-in-law has asked to commission me to build a similar bench for her; this time I’m going to proceed more cautiously or use another species of wood.
Have others suffered from similar allergic reactions? What other woods should one be careful with? This was an incident all the woodworking books and articles I’d read hadn’t prepared me for.
Norman
Replies
There's a fairly comprehensive list at this link.
http://www.mimf.com/archives/toxic.htm
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It would indeed be a tragedy if the history of the human race proved to be nothing more than the story of an ape playing with a box of matches on a petrol dump. ~David Ormsby Gore
Thanks for all your thoughts. Nikkiwood, I've had no problems so far with soft & hard maple, oak, pine, poplar and a few different kinds of plywood, so I'm assuming that this is specific to the plicatic acid found in western red cedar.Dgreen, that link is impressive, and the info about wrc there matches my recent experience. I've bookmarked the list for future reference. Thanks for sending it.I'm curious to know how widespread these kinds of reactions are among woodworkers. As I said, it really came out of the blue for me because I'm one of those fortunate souls who rarely gets sick and, until now, has been allergic to nothing. A Google search turned up info about exposure to western red cedar among sawmill workers, for example, but most dermatologists seeing an allergic reaction think food and not sawdust. I wonder whether a respirator when sawing rwc would help.Norman
I too am alergic to western red cedar, and redwood. However, no reaction to domestic hardwoods such as oak, cherry, walnut, birch, etc. Zyrtec is effective for me in treatment of this.
Bill
Thanks, Bill. Guess I better add some Zyrtec to the first-aid kit . . . Norman
Two Points:
1. When taking an antihistamine, stay away from power tools. The concept of "non-sedating" is a relative term and some people are more sensitive to them than others. I, for one, get very groggy with only 25 mg of Bendadryl (diphenhydramine) whereas others can tolerate 50 or 100 mg.
2. There may be an antigen available for a desensitization treatment for red cedar. Another thing to be careful about is spalted wood, since the spalting is due to a fungus that is both allergenic and toxic when inhaled.
Benedryl is one of the more brain-affecting antihistimines, it's an old one and though it can work well, it's quite outdated. Claritin (generic/OTC is Loratadine) is non-sedating for most people. It's also a once-a-day dosage, so the first time around, it's a good idea to pick a day when he isn't woodworking.
TABLE 2 Reported Adverse Events With an Incidence of More Than 2% in Placebo-Controlled Allergic Rhinitis Clinical Trials in Patients 12 Years of Age and Older
Percent of Patients Reporting
Loratadine
Placebo
10 mg q.d.
n=1926
n=2545
Headache
12
11
Somnolence
8
6
Fatigue
4
3
Dry Mouth
3
2
forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
I didn't notice any breathing problems with the cedar, fortunately. My reaction seemed to be exclusively dermatological. My shop is jammed in a tiny basement room, literally in between the furnace and the oil tank, so it's a very confined space. Until recently I had zero dust control at all, and there was a film of sawdust on everything in the room (including the washer and dryer, much to my wife's chagrin). Fortunately, I use hand tools except for the TS and router. Sawing cedar 4x4s, I'd be covered with sawdust. In retrospect, I was asking for trouble, really. Let's just say I learned a valuable lesson about ventilation and dust control. I'm finishing the basement this year, and will build myself a new shop in a more open area in the process. I'll be putting in all the dust control I can afford. . .
Check out billpentz.com . What Bill went through just to work a little wood is stagering. I am in the planing stages to build one of his DC designs now.
Will
You are right about the clinical results. However, the somnolence can be idiosyncratic. When it comes to cutaneous reactions, however, dyphenhydramine is probably the most effective of the antihistamines, since it also has significant anticholinergic and anti-serotonergic activity. The more modern drugs are probably less sedating since they are more histaminergic specific, particularly for the H-1 receptor.
Gotcha!forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
"I wonder whether a respirator when sawing rwc would help." In your case, I think this would be an excellent idea. Your reaction was pretty severe, and if you can imagine a similar reaction by your lungs and bronchii...that's scary!
I wouldn't count on an antihistimine to do much in this case, the reaction is too strong, IMHO, for them to do much good. Benadryl is useful after any reaction, though, so it might be a good idea to keep some on hand in case you react drastically. Ask your doctor what dose you should take in such a case. Not good to thake it as a preventative, it's too likely to cause sleepiness or inattention.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Western Red Cedar is well recognized by allergists, particularly in the Seattle area as a very strong allergen. I think it is to that area that pollen is to the rest of the country. It is also a major allergen in Japan. Your doctor should check with the allergy/asthma department at the University of Washington. I used to know them all, but have not had contact with them in several years.
Your experience is the first time I've heard of an allergic reaction to cedar.
Aside from not working with cedar, my first thought is to suggest you explore what other common woods you might be allergic to.
It would be a shame to invest heavily in equipment and get yourself ramped up to do woodworking, only to find out you have allergy problems.
And given the severity of your reaction, I would not be too certain that a DC would solve the problem.
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"It is what we learn after we think we know it all, that counts."
John Wooden 1910-
Norman,
I, too, suffer from allergic reaction to cedar. Mine is not a contact allergy, as yours seems to be, but when I breathe its dust my bronchial tubes start to close down.
I used to work as the cut man on a carpentry crew, doing all the cutting of siding and other materials, so I was exposed to it for days at a time. Back then I never wore a mask so my exposure was pretty extreme. After a few days of siding a house I could hardly breathe.
Now, in my shop, I still get the same reaction whenever I cut cedar, even though my dust control methods are very much improved. My understanding of the situation is that once you react to it, subsequent exposures can provoke more extreme reactions. That seems to be the case with me, as cutting just a single cedar board will now bring on the symptoms.
The solution might be even better dust control - and that's a worthy goal. But an even better plan is that I avoid using cedar now. And that's something, given your reaction to cedar's dust, that you might have to look at too..
Zolton
I have some problems with cedar also (not as drastic as yours!). Also walnut and especially spalted maple (the micro-organism do it).
Several allergy threads pop up every year on the various forums. I'm glad to hear you took it seriously and are working on the dust control. An allergy can go from an "irritating rash" to an emergency room visit in the blink of an eye. Even a very mild rash is a warning from your body that its immune system is going into offense mode against the particular allergen.
Since you have had a pretty strong reaction to cedar, you may find that your body won't tolerate even minimal exposure. In that case, you'll need to protect your hands, face other skin areas that may get tiny bits of dust on them. Be alert for small irritations in those areas.
No experience with cedar, but I can't be aroung Walnut sawdust. I immediately get sneezy and stopped up and it lasts for days. Walnut is banned in my shop.
I think I would pay that doctor a visit whether the rash is all over or not. Last fall, I broke out in hives. After putting up with it for a day, my wife talked me into checking in with a doctor. Like you, I had no previous known allergy and there was no known reason for the reaction.
Although it didn't affect my breathing, they explained it usually gets worse if you get it again. I was told that a recurrence could shut off the air supply to my lungs and that I should keep benadryl on my person at all times and if at any time I should get the hives, I should immediately take benadryl and get to the emergency room as soon as possible.
Wow. You've given me something to ponder. Thanks for the advice.
Norman
"I was told that a recurrence could shut off the air supply to my lungs and that I should keep benadryl on my person at all times and if at any time I should get the hives, I should immediately take benadryl and get to the emergency room as soon as possible." This is the kind of escalation in reaction I was referring to. Happened to a friend years ago -- her ride to the hospital was in an ambulance. Went from mild reaction to severe with no intervening levels.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
Great Info on this post!
Claritin and Zyrtec are effective if taken before exposure; they help prevent, and lessen the severity of allergic reactions (as would Benadryl). As others have mentioned, Benadryl is more effective post exposure than the others (more sedating too). Also, Benadryl is more effective at relaxing smooth muscle (difficulty breathing).
My 2 cents worth is for the more dangerous allergic reactions. As others have pointed out, subsequent exposure to an allergen can cause a much more severe reaction called an anaphylactic reacton, which can be life threatening. For anyone with the possibility of this type of reaction to anything in the shop, there is an emergency product available called Epi-Pen (prescription needed). It is generally used for bee stings in those allergic to them. The "Pen" is an auto injector of epinephrine which will control bronchospasm until the emergency room can be reached.
Rabbet
Thanks, Rabbet. Nice Updike reference on the screen name, by the way. . .
Thanks on both counts
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