Natural Gel Socks - Safe for Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS)?

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Columns - Green Living

Green Living - Questions & Answers

......with Debra Lynn Dadd

After recovering from MCS by removing toxic chemicals in her home, Debra Lynn Dadd went on to become a pioneering consumer advocate for health and the environment. Author of Home Safe Home, she also has a popular website containing a directory with more than 1000 links to nontoxic and eco-friendly products, a Q&A blog with many MCS bloggers, recipes for using natural sweeteners, and more. Debra is also available by phone for consultations. She lives in Florida with her husband, who drives a car powered by vegetable oil. Visit her website at http://www.dld123.com.

Tuesday, June 9th, 2009:

Natural Gel Socks

by Debra Lynn Dadd

Q:

I have extreme mulitple chemical sensitivities (MCS). My foot doctor urged me to get "gel socks" for my foot atrophy. Are you aware of any "gel socks" which are safe?

J.W.

A:

For those of you who are not familiar with gel socks (I wasn't), they are socks lined with a moisturizing gel for people who have extremely dry skin on their feet (such as diabetics). Typically gel socks are made from a blend of about 50% cotton, plus nylon and about 4% spandex for stretchability. The moisturizing gel is made from Mineral Oil and various plastics, including styrene, the plastic used to make styrofoam.

Mineral oil and plastics are made from petrochemicals. I don't recommend mineral oil lotions for this reason, and also because mineral oil tends to dry the skin, rather than moisturize it.

Just at the last minute, as I was working on this newsletter, I stumbled over some cotton H2O Plus Gel Therapy Socks with a lining of "antioxidant green tea, healing vitamin E and natural oils of jojoba, avocado and olive to improve skin texture and suppleness," but that was all the info that was given and I don't know if that's the complete ingredient list.

You can also make your own natural gel sock treatment by applying oils or lotions you know you tolerate, then slipping on Cotton Moisture Socks. This homemade treatment has been around for a long time. You can also do the same thing for your hands by applying lotion and wearing a pair of cotton gloves.