This might be another angle on the recent discussion of Raynaud's

Starting personal -- my hands itch like crazy/turn red when dealing with 
frozen foods, or sometimes even with very chilly air-conditioning..  My 
face turns blotchy/itchy when exposed to winter winds and (for a 
year-round complaint) I had a couple of scary episodes when swimming in 
cold ocean water, turning bright red and getting faint.  My first 
thought was Raynaud's, but a more likely diagnosis, strange as it 
seems,  is an allergic reaction, a dramatic histamine-release response 
to cold.  Here are a couple of links discussing this:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/allergy/AN00693
http://dermatology.about.com/cs/hives/a/coldurt.htm
Evidently people can also have allergic hives/itching to all sorts of 
things, such as heat, or even their own sweat:
http://www.emedicine.com/derm/topic442.htm
http://www.peacehealth.org/kbase/nord/nord249.htm

Could someone have this kind of allergic response to cold on their 
nipples?  

If so, it seems that the first-line home remedies wouldn't differ that 
much from suspected Raynaud's pain, with  keeping the breasts warm and 
applying warmth immediately after feeds. At home, someone can microwave 
a gel pad or sock-ful of dry rice before the feeding and apply 
immediately.  A mother can also rub her hand briskly on her pants leg to 
heat it up with friction and then apply quickly. 

 One  test for cold urticaria, described here
ttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronic_cold_urticaria
is to hold an ice cube on the inner forearm for a few minutes and see if 
there is a dramatic reaction.
Would someone with Raynauds have a similar response?

Allergic response and Raynaud's both involve immune-system reactions.   
If someone did seem have cold urticaria *and*  nipple pain, would it be 
worth trying antihistamines?  I'm not crazy about someone being on 
medications if simpler, preventative measures would do, though people 
with hay fever do take allergy tablets pretty steadily during the season.

Low-thyroid also increases sensitivity to cold.  Does that have any 
relationship to Raynauds?

Just pondering -- thanks to the list for pondering with me.

Margaret Sabo Wills, LLLL, IBCLC
Maryland, USA
(Also interested in the current discussion on cold-vs.-heat for 
mastitis, even though the thought of cold compresses gives me the willies).

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