Safety first

[silbchris]

I've been baking for years but recently I've started getting red, itchy skin around my hands (fingers specifically) whenever I bake with certain types of yeast, and I'm wondering if it's an allergic reaction.

I don't want to touch the ingredients with my hands in bad condition for hygiene reasons, so I've been looking into powder-free disposable gloves like these since I can just toss them out after and they won't contaminate the food as hand creams would.

Does anyone have any tips for dealing with something like this?

 

[retired baker]

I've been baking for years but recently I've started getting red, itchy skin around my hands (fingers specifically) whenever I bake with certain types of yeast, and I'm wondering if it's an allergic reaction.

I don't want to touch the ingredients with my hands in bad condition for hygiene reasons, so I've been looking into powder-free disposable gloves like these since I can just toss them out after and they won't contaminate the food as hand creams would.

Does anyone have any tips for dealing with something like this?

Yes, exact same reaction, the gloves made it a LOT worse.
I also , like you, suspected the yeast.
It got so bad my eyes started to swell closed so I went to the emergency room.
They treated me with steroids and sent me to a dermatologist for testing.
A patch test showed an allergy to Thiurum.
Its a chemical used to vulcanize rubber, from gum to elastic.

The only way to find out the root cause is a dermatologist patch test.
It wasn't super expensive, $180 .

I still get the finger rash, but I know what it is and it doesn't bother me.
Flour on my hands is still an irritant.