Chemical Burns From An Innocent Fruit-Parents Beware

Parents are advised to be careful this summer, quite often parents will enjoy a small glass of wine or an ice-cold beer in the local pub, whilst their children enjoy the out-door play area in the beer garden, the children are usually bought a lemonade or a fruit shoot and often parents will allow their child to suck on the lime that is placed on the side of their drinks glass or family, many families will have barbecues this summer as well and quite often have a margarita

One mother allowed her small child to suck on the seemingly harmless fruit and within the hour her son was screaming in pain and had what appeared to be burns around his mouth and on his hands.

The mother had allowed him to have this small slice of lime which comes from Mexico well it’s juice is toxic if left on the skin and mixed with sun. Therefore, it caused a chemical like burn to this small burn. 

Any child or adult can get this chemical reaction with a lime and sun mix The resulting chemical reaction is called phytophotodermatitis , so if you do feel the need to suck on the lime juice ensure you wash any skin that has come into contact with the lime juice.

This chemical reaction can happen to any skin color or type. The lime makes your skin reactive to ultraviolet light, typically UV-A radiation, which can penetrate glass. If you’re at the beach you should have lathered on sunscreen anyways but if you’re indoors you might not be aware of UV-A rays

Symptoms include burning, itching, stinging, and large blisters can slowly accumulate. Symptoms usually begin within 24 hours of exposure and peak 48-72 hours after being exposed.

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