What is the cause of the occasional itch?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the causes of occasional itching, with participants sharing personal experiences and various hypotheses. The scope includes potential medical explanations, environmental factors, and humorous anecdotes related to itching sensations.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested
  • Humorous

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants suggest that the cause of itching can vary widely, with personal experiences indicating different triggers for each individual.
  • One participant proposes environmental factors such as fleas, fiberglass insulation, or scabies as potential causes.
  • Another participant mentions dry skin as a common cause, suggesting that soap scum from hard water can irritate the skin.
  • A participant notes that skin cells produce a chemical when irritated, which can lead to itching, and shares that their own back itches when climbing into bed.
  • Some participants discuss the relationship between physical activities, such as carrying items or sitting at a computer, and the occurrence of itching.
  • There are humorous exchanges about unconventional solutions to itching, including using a chicken or forceps to scratch an itch while maintaining sterility.
  • One participant expresses a dislike for cotton wool, stating it causes them discomfort.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the causes of itching, with multiple competing views and personal anecdotes shared throughout the discussion.

Contextual Notes

Some claims about causes of itching are based on personal experiences and may not be universally applicable. There are also references to specific conditions and environmental factors that may not be fully explored.

wolram
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What is the cause of the occasional itch? one can look in a mirror and not see the cause.
 
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{itches shoulder} I dunno
 
I would hesitate to even guess in your case.
As for me, it's been a different cause every trip to the clinic...
 
Fleas? Fiberglass insulation? Scabies?
 
I like all the other answers better. I was just going to suggest something boring like dry skin or getting tickled by a hair or some such.
 
soap combines with hard water sticks to the skin (like the soap scum on shower walls) is one common reason---get a water softener, or that soap that isn't made out of 'soap' if that may be the cause

One way to tell if you have hard water is if you've got long enough hair to try this is:

is your hair 'squeaky' clean when its wet and you pull it? Its really caused by the soap scum stuck on the hair, the the noise (squeak) is like the resin put on a violin bow--without the resin, the violin wouldn't 'sound' hardly at all.

The soap scum on the skin soaks up the natural oils, dries out the skin, and causes the skin to 'itch'.
 
The chemical that causes the itch is created by your own skin cells. They produce it when they are irritated. Many different things irritate skin cells. The skin cells in my back get irritated pretty good just when I climb into bed. My wife scratches my back and I feel much better.
 
there you go, wolram--get rid of the itch by getting a wife
 
hypatia said:
{itches shoulder} I dunno


It is usually the center of my shoulders that get the occasional itch, normally when i am carrying some thing, this is were doors come in handy.
 
  • #10
Oooooo, I get an itch like that too. And scratching it doesn't give a lot of relief...at least, not for long.

A nurse told me it's probably a nerve thing, because I get mine after sitting at the computer too long.
 
  • #11
rewebster said:
there you go, wolram--get rid of the itch by getting a wife


No, getting rid of a wife is much harder than getting rid of an itch.
 
  • #12
it may be dry skin then--you're stretching that area (the skin) and if its dry, its being pulled apart (microscopically), irritating it, causing that chemical to be produced, which causes the itch---try some oil replenishing lotion for a quick fix
 
  • #13
wolram said:
No, getting rid of a wife is much harder than getting rid of an itch.


you could always get a chicken and spread some chicken feed on your back--its easy to get rid of a chicken if it doesn't do a scratch
 
  • #14
rewbster, it is no big problem, i may get an itch once a month, having said that my ear has started itching and my nose.
 
  • #15
wolram said:
rewbster, it is no big problem, i may get an itch once a month, having said that my ear has started itching and my nose.

you know that old saying,

when your nose and your ear both start itching, it's time to get a wife
 
  • #16
wolram said:
rewbster, it is no big problem, i may get an itch once a month, having said that my ear has started itching and my nose.

My nose only itches when my hands are full.
 
  • #17
edward said:
My nose only itches when my hands are full.

hmmm, funny----My hands only itch when my nose is full.
 
  • #18
wolram said:
No, getting rid of a wife is much harder than getting rid of an itch.

:smile:

edward said:
My nose only itches when my hands are full.

Mine waits until I've scrubbed in for surgery and donned sterile gloves and cannot touch a thing! You have to have REALLY kind coworkers to get them to scratch your nose for you when you can't.
 
  • #19
Moonbear said:
Mine waits until I've scrubbed in for surgery and donned sterile gloves and cannot touch a thing! You have to have REALLY kind coworkers to get them to scratch your nose for you when you can't.

I'm surprised they don't have a device, like a rubbing station, for this purpose. You know, like the ones you see in barnyards.
 
  • #20
Moonbear said:
:smile:



Mine waits until I've scrubbed in for surgery and donned sterile gloves and cannot touch a thing! You have to have REALLY kind coworkers to get them to scratch your nose for you when you can't.

or, you could use the door like wolram does
 
  • #21
Moonbear said:
:smile:



Mine waits until I've scrubbed in for surgery and donned sterile gloves and cannot touch a thing! You have to have REALLY kind coworkers to get them to scratch your nose for you when you can't.


A cruel one with a feather could make your life hell.
 
  • #22
rewebster said:
or, you could use the door like wolram does

Don't think I haven't considered it! That, or the sterile forceps work too...hold one end to stay sterile, and scratch with the other end you keep non-sterile. :biggrin:
 
  • #23
Moonbear said:
:smile:



Mine waits until I've scrubbed in for surgery and donned sterile gloves and cannot touch a thing! You have to have REALLY kind coworkers to get them to scratch your nose for you when you can't.

You're a surgeon?
 
  • #24
DaveC426913 said:
You're a surgeon?

Only if you're a sheep. :biggrin: :wink:
 
  • #25
DaveC426913 said:
You're a surgeon?

She also does weddings and bar mitzvahs.
 
  • #26
Moonbear said:
Only if you're a sheep. :biggrin: :wink:

It's something to do with their brains, isn't it?


Have you got a grant to what the relationship is between sheep and republicans?
 
  • #27
rewebster said:
It's something to do with their brains, isn't it?
Yep.


Have you got a grant to what the relationship is between sheep and republicans?

There are some questions I'd rather not know the answers to. :rolleyes:
 
  • #28
Moonbear said:
Only if you're a sheep. :biggrin: :wink:
So that's why you refer to the people you work with as cow orkers.
 
  • #29
DaveC426913 said:
So that's why you refer to the people you work with as cow orkers.

No, they're cow-irkers. :biggrin:
 
  • #30
rewebster said:
Have you got a grant to what the relationship is between sheep and republicans?

You're thinking of sheeple.
 

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