Run Report 001 – 9 minutes of itchiness

I did 9 minutes on the treadmill today, following the Couch to 5k guidelines – that’s not 9 minutes of running, that’s a 5 minute warm-up and then running for a single minute every 90 seconds (you walk for that 90 seconds). In other words, I barely got started before I stopped, because I was having two things happen:

1. Unbearable itchiness.
2. Shortness of breath.

What is the DEAL with the itchiness? This is INTENSE, too, it isn’t just mildly uncomfortable, it’s overwhelming. I was indoors, it wasn’t cold, so I know it wasn’t my body hitting the outdoor air or anything. This has happened before, almost always when running and the last time was when I attempted the Couch to 5k program in 2006. It was so bad that when I got home I’d be broken out in hives, and that had never happened to me before. Thank goodness we have the internet, our beloved and trusted source of important medical information.

On an online forum, someone asks my question:

when am working out, especially running exercise, my body itchs so bad that i’d be forced to stop. mostly the abs and thighs itch so bad and when i start scratching, it becomes worst…please help. thanks in advance.

People suggested prickly heat, but I know mine isn’t a heat rash. Someone else suggested that it was just blood circulating, which, I dunno, maybe, but I do other things the get my blood circulating and I don’t break out in hives or feel like I can’t breathe. But then I saw this:

I have this same problem, I will even start itching all over when I am out walking.  I mentioned this to my doctor and her response was that I am out of shape and the reaction is due to the blood circulating.  Well, that is all good and fine but it still happens when I am in better shape.  To make a long story short, I am a nurse and I was talking about it one day to a co-worker when one of the physicians came up to me (he had overheard our conversation) and he told me I was having a histamine reaction and that some people experience this for unknown reasons.  He said if I took an anti-histamine before I walk or work out then I shouldn’t have this problem or it will lessen it’s severity.  Well, he was right, it worked for me.  Now I just take an anti-histamine prior to working out and I am fine.  It is a strange phenomenom but one I have learned to live with. Hope the info helps you.

Huh. So then I looked that up. There is a rare disorder, exercise-induced anaphylaxis (EIA), that can create symptoms similar to mine, but that seems like overkill (pardon the expression). I don’t break out in lesions, I just itch a lot and get chest tightness. Still, this is interesting stuff, and it often has to do with food:

“These are people who will not have this reaction unless they exercise right after eating this food,” says Dr. Jacqueline Eghrari-Sabet, an allergist in private practice in Montgomery Village, Md., and a spokeswoman for the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. “Eating shellfish and sitting there? Nothing. But eating shellfish and exercising? For these people, it’s bad news.”

As you exercise and your heart rate speeds up, your blood starts whizzing through organs much faster, and therefore more frequently, than it normally does. With every trip your blood takes to your stomach, it’s picking up more, say, celery bits. For those with exercise-induced anaphylaxis, the normal amount of celery antigens picked up by the blood isn’t enough to bother them. But while exercising, the extra celery bits their blood is picking up causes an allergic reaction.

Running and jogging are the most likely to trigger an attack, but other strenuous activities like dancing, volleyball, skiing and even yard work can also cause a reaction.

But that doesn’t get you out of exercising:

Unfortunately for people seeking an excuse not to break a sweat, most dermatologists and allergists send their patients with exercise-related allergies right back to the locker room.

“If they come to me, I’m not going to tell them not to exercise,” says Dr. Bruce Robinson, a Manhattan dermatologist.  Instead he advises patients to pick a less strenuous regimen or a cooler place to work out.

Because the itchy sensation happens when body temperature suddenly rises, it can be eased by warming up and cooling down slowly, before and after every workout. Or try swimming for your normal cardio routine, which will keep the body temperature cool. If a food allergy is the culprit, don’t eat for a couple of hours before your workout.

Although serious side effects are rare, some experts believe, that exercise-induced anaphylaxis often goes undiagnosed. So if you start to feel itchy while working out, watch out. It’s probably best to avoid death by treadmill at all costs.

 

Hmmmm. Well, for now I’m not going to worry about it. I was just at the doctor for a possibly-broken bone (it was a bone bruise, not a crack), I don’t really feel like going back and complaining that I itch when I run, at least not until I’ve tried a few things first, like warming up more slowly. I’m also curious whether this will go away after a couple weeks of regularly attempting exercise. If it’s just a simple histamine reaction, maybe it will work itself out over time if I just don’t push too hard. I would try taking the anti-histamine beforehand, but those make my heart beat irregularly and I get pretty anxious.

I also found another webpage that talks about this and the worst food offenders:

Common foods that contribute to elevated histamine are seafood, cheese, peanuts, tomatoes, wheat, celery and corn. Food preservatives, infections or viruses, and medications or over the counter products such as NSAIDS and aspirin may also contribute or act as co-factors.

I eat a lot of cheese and corn, so maybe I’ll avoid those on the days I exercise.

More updates to come!