![]() Right from the beginning, aquagenic urticaria was as baffling to scientists as it is to the rest of us. “When I meet people there’s always a lot of confusion and all the usual questions – ‘how do you eat?’ ‘How do you drink?’ ‘How do you wash?’ The truth is you just have to suck it up and get on with it,” says Rachel. Even bona fide, chemical-free, many-times distilled water will set it off. The reaction is triggered by skin contact and occurs regardless of temperature, purity or salt content. For a start, the water in our bodies is apparently not a problem. At least 60% of the human body is water the average 70 kg adult contains around 40 litres. ![]() We’re reminded on almost a daily basis that water is life’s most basic necessity – so much so that NASA’s motto on the hunt for alien life is simply “follow the water”. It’s certainly unpleasant, but at this point you’re probably wondering how Rachel is able to survive at all. Otherwise known as aquagenic urticaria, the condition is like being stung by a bush of particularly pernicious nettles, combined with the malaise of hay fever, every single day. ![]() ![]() “It’s horrible, but if I cry my face swells up”. I feel really tired afterwards so I have to go and sit down for quite a while,” she says. “The reaction makes me feel as if I’ve run a marathon. Any contact with water whatsoever – even her own sweat – leaves Rachel with a painful, swollen and intensely itchy rash which can last for several hours. ![]()
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