After a doctor’s visit, my aunt discovered she was allergic to nickel, a tough elemental metal that is mixed with the gold, with some copper, zinc and silver for good measure, to stiffen the end product and make it easier to shape due to the increased tensile strength of the metal. This has been a common practice for centuries after it was discovered that even 85% pure gold was very soft and would wear out quickly.

Copper is naturally occurring in the body, as is silver and zinc, but not nickel. So, it makes sense that nickel-containing jewelry is the culprit of the allergic reaction. This reaction is called Contact Dermatitis and can show up at any age. Once you have dermatitis, and your doctor has tested you to verify it is indeed a nickel allergy, you may find that your best course of action is to avoid nickel jewelry as this type of allergy often lasts decades.

So how can you treat this allergy without losing your precious gold? Unfortunately, white gold is white due to the nickel it contains. However, you may purchase 18 Karat yellow gold if it is nickel free. Here are some tips that may help: For gold rings, coat the inside with clear nail polish, about three coats. This should keep the metal off your skin, but will eventually wear off, and it may damage the ring itself. Coating earring posts is not recommended as it does wear off. Hence, use platinum or hypoallergenic posts.

An easy approach would be to sell all your nickel containing accessories such as white gold or gold filled jewelry. Then, purchase items that do not contain nickel, but are just as attractive. Copper, although a very base metal to wear, can be worked into beautiful pieces. They have to be well taken care of, though, and tarnish, especially when exposed to acids in the sweat. This can often result in a green stain on the skin where the jewelry was. Often copper jewelry artisans will use a clear coat of enamel or other barrier material on areas that touch the body to avoid such a reaction.