Garlic allergy

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title: "Garlic allergy" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["food-allergies", "immune-system-disorders"] description: "Type of skin allergy caused by garlic" topic_path: "general/food-allergies" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garlic_allergy" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Type of skin allergy caused by garlic ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b2/Garlic_Press_and_Garlic.jpg" caption="A garlic bulb next to a clove crushed in a [[garlic press"] ::

Garlic allergy or allergic contact dermatitis to garlic is a common inflammatory skin condition caused by contact with garlic oil or dust. It mostly affects people who cut and handle fresh garlic, such as chefs, and presents on the tips of the thumb, index and middle fingers of the non-dominant hand (which typically hold garlic bulbs during the cutting). The affected fingertips show an asymmetrical pattern of fissure as well as thickening and shedding of the outer skin layers, which may progress to second- or third-degree burn of injured skin.

Garlic dermatitis is similar to the tulip dermatitis and is induced by a combined mechanical and chemical action. Whereas the former mechanism acts via skin rubbing which progresses into damage, the major cause of the latter is the chemical diallyl disulfide (DADS),

Garlic allergy has been known since at least 1950. It is not limited to hand contact, but can also be induced, with different symptoms, by inhaling garlic dust or ingesting raw garlic, though the latter cases are relatively rare. Treatment includes avoiding any contact with garlic oil or vapours, as well as medication, such as administering acitretin (25 mg/day, orally) or applying psoralen and ultraviolet light to the affected skin area over a period of 12 weeks (PUVA therapy).

References

References

1. (2004). "Condensed handbook of occupational dermatology". Springer.
2. Thomas D. Horn. (2003). "Dermatology, Volume 2". Elsevier Health Sciences.
3. Eric Block. (2009). "Garlic and other alliums: the lore and the science". Royal Society of Chemistry.
4. (2004). "Use of gloves in protection from diallyl disulphide allergy.". The Australasian Journal of Dermatology.
5. (2008). "Fisher's contact dermatitis". PMPH-USA.

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