Has anyone else been allergic to their Christmas tree?

[TornadoTrinity]

Last year, my nose was going bananas as our tree got a bit older. It took ages to work out what was causing it, but it was honestly miserable. I had to hide upstairs and make DH take it away! My nose recovered shortly after, but since then any cut flowers or anything will set me off.

I do have allergies anyway, but this was the beginning of me getting them indoors and certainly the first time I'd had it in the depths of winter

Do I need to get a fake tree? Or has anyone found a tree which doesn't cause this, having been allergic before?

Yes, I'm allergic to them, along with lots of other things. I'm not bothered though, as we have a nice fake one that does the job, without dropping needles.

Anyway, as a keen gardener I do think it's a shame to chop down a tree just to bring it indoors and watch it die. Trees belong outside IMO. You can have the best of both worlds by having a Christmas tree outside in a pot, with outdoor lights on.

Sue Heck.

My hands swell if I touch them. It's got worse over the years. We now have a fake one.

I didn't believe my husband was allergic to our Christmas tree when we first got together because I didn't realise he was basically allergic to all of nature. We

Sorry, posted too soon.

We have had a fake one for years but he has trouble if we go to someone's house with a real tree.

And yes, it was very disappointing to me as I grew up in a country where it is traditional to go out into a snowy forest and chop down your Christmas tree yourself. Still feel sad that we don't have that for our children (although it's not even a thing in the UK) but he can breathe so... 🤷

My BIL is allergic to some trees but not others - they get a Fraser Fir each year and he's ok with that.

Yes me too, rash and wheezing. It’s the pine tree resin also known as colophony, which is in loads of stuff. Pears soap, some paper, yoga chalk, esters of wood roisin in Fanta. It’s been a voyage of discovery!

Not once it's up, but I always get a type of blister all over when putting it up,even if I wear gloves

I think I'm mildly allergic to Christmas trees, last year I got puffy eyes and couldn't stop sneezing for a good 2 weeks but after that I was fine. I did contemplate chucking the tree in the garden but I didn't in the end. I'll be sticking with a fake tree from now on.

I have small vessel lung disease and real trees adversely affect my breathing so we have artificial trees .

DH gets a rash so we just have a fake tree

Like a previous poster, it took a while (3 Christmases and a blue light trip to hospital) to figure out why DD couldn't breathe every Christmas 🤦. One of her favourite toys was a Christmas present and it was a Spot the Dog soft toy. We named it Snot the dog as she was streaming. 🤦🤦

She was also very poorly when we went to Center Parcs and we lodged in a pine forest.

I can remember the year it finally twigged, a propert lightbulb moment, and I plonked 3yo DD in front off the iPad in another room and dragged the bastard thing out of the house into the garden. Within a couple of hours she was absolutely fine and we went out and bought a fake tree. An expensive Christmas that one!

She's a good few years past this now, would love to know if she's outgrown it but it's an expensive experiment.

My Dad gave us their old artificial tree a few years ago as my stepmother was allergic to the fake snow on the branches. We got rid of it last year as we were sick of feeling rotten every time we put it up! This year we’ve treated ourselves to a new artificial snow-free tree

I get a red itchy rash all over my hands if I touch a real Christmas tree. We always had a fake one as a child so didn't find this out until my 30s when helping a friend decorate hers.

For several years I was coming out in an itchy rash with irritated nose when I got a real tree. I discovered that I am allergic to a chemical that had been sprayed onto the trees rather than allergic to the tree itself. A lot of places these days spray the trees to keep the needles on for longer. It could be the same for you?

DF could barely breath after a week with her tree last year.

I have a few allergies and don't even want to take the risk. Fake all the way here.