Antonio Maiocco, 13, fell ill with scarlet fever two years ago. Although he recovered, the illness caused him to become allergic to countless common, everyday things.
Whenever Antonio touches anything from his jeans to electronic devices that use batteries, his Xbox, and even some brands of toothpaste, his skin will turn red and start peeling off in large flakes.
When his mother, Lynn, first discovered that her son had developed new allergies, he had simply been in his room.
“His skin was just red and falling off,” Lynn described. “It was literally like he was a snake shedding his skin. There was pain in his eyes. Layers of skin were falling off him and lying over his bed. He couldn’t move, his arms and legs were all tied up like a pretzel. He looked like he had been burned or had acid thrown on him.”
Lynn and her husband immediately took their son to the hospital, but doctors said they had to wait another two months for Maiocco’s skin to heal before they could run any tests.
It was only in winter 2014 that Maiocco’s family was told that Antonio was allergic to blue dye – which is found in almost everything – as well as nickel and cobalt.
“It’s in toothpaste… Clothing is one of the worst things [Antonio will] react to. Jeans are really bad because they bleed so much dye,” Lynn explained.
Antonio’s reactions are so bad that even sitting on the bus next to someone wearing blue jeans could trigger his reaction. In the Maiocco’s car, Lynn has taken to covering seatbelt surfaces with clear nail polish, just to ensure that her son won’t have a reaction.
Everything in the Maiocco’s house that contains even a hint of blue dye has been banished to the garage, so Antonio doesn’t have to worry about this condition when he’s at home.
When they go out, Lynn brings seat covers, stationary, writing utensils, and cutlery to ensure that Antonio will be as safe as possible.
Lynn worries about the future, wondering if Antonio will ever be able to live a normal life without second guessing everything he comes in contact with, or whether his classmates will bully him at school.
Antonio, however, always tries to reassure his mom by saying that “everything will be fine and [they] can manage it.” There has never been a time when Lynn has asked how Antonio was and he didn’t respond with “I feel great!”
