Construction
Did you know that in a study of 1147 cement workers who were interviewed by telephone, 166 of whom went on to be examined and patch tested, the prevalence of skin problems was partly associated with a poor use of gloves?
In the construction industry, there are many substances that can cause problems with the skin on your hands.
Causes
A few of these are: ‘wet work’, wet cement, epoxy resins and hardeners, acrylic sealants, bitumen or asphalt, solvents used in paints, glues or other surface coatings, petrol, diesel, oils, greases, degreasers, descalers and detergents.
Tips to protect your hands against eczema
If you work in the construction industry, there are some simple things you can do to help protect your hands against eczema:
- Where possible, eliminate or substitute substances or activities that cause hand eczema
- Make sure that you wash and dry your hands thoroughly
- Use pre-work creams to help make removing fluids easier, but remember that these don’t provide a barrier, and are no substitute for gloves
- Wear appropriate protective gloves
- Protect your hands by moisturising them regularly with an emollient (soothing and softening skin product), but use a product that is free from fragrances and preservatives - the fewer ingredients, the better
If you haven’t done so already, why not complete the my hand eczema questionnaire to find out more about your hand eczema, and to let us know what type of work you do?
We will update the website to show how many people in different professions suffer from hand eczema. You could help other people in your profession find out whether their job is commonly linked to hand eczema and reassure them that they are not alone.