A DAD who developed a painful rash on his leg was shocked when he found he was allergic – to his iPhone.
Retail manager Mark Watson, 37, was delighted when he upgraded to the new iPhone 6 earlier this year.
But he became worried when just weeks later he started to develop a blotchy rash on his left thigh, which started to spread across his leg and become painful and itchy.
The father-of-one tried creams from the pharmacy but was forced to visit his GP when they rash wouldn’t go away and started becoming lumpy.
But Mark, from Stockton-on-Tees, Co. Durham, was astonished when he discovered he was allergic to the nickel in his new mobile after unknowingly kept in his pocket.
Worried Mark, who still has the bright red spot, said: “You don’t expect a product by Apple to give you a rash.
“And you just don’t expect to be allergic to your phone.
“I have never in my life had an allergic reaction to nickel, and before this it was a metal I associated with cheap jewellery.
“I just think it’s wrong that this could even happen.”
Married Mark has always been a fan of Apple products, and got the new iPhone 6 on a #44-a-month contract with Vodaphone in late June – his fourth version of the phone.
Two weeks later he started to notice a red patch, but never dreamed it would be caused by his phone, which he always keeps in his front pocket.
When it started to get worse he went to the pharmacy who prescribed a hydrocortisone cream, which failed to clear up the growing mark.
He returned and was given a fungal cream, but the mark refused to budge, and panicked Mark noticed it was becoming raised in the middle.
“I was starting to panic,” he said.
“It was getting bigger, and itchier, and more painful.
“I worried it might be a growth or an underlying healthy problem. It was worrying me.”
His worried GP had no idea what had caused the rash and ordered blood tests, asking Mark to think about any changes in his life which coincided with the blemish.
He suddenly remembered he had recieved his iPhone just weeks before it appeared, and searched on the internet where he found a forum about phone-related nickel allergies.
Baffled Mark contacted Apple who he said recognised the issue, but did not offer him a new phone.
He is calling on the company to make customers aware of the dangers of the rash-inducing devices.
“Now I don’t take it out with me if I’m going to be out and about for long, and I have to put it in my desk at work,” he said.
“When I spoke to Apple they said it would have been mentioned in their terms and conditions but I don’t believe it is.
“When I searched on their website for ‘nickel’ nothing came up. I think they need to address this.”
Last year a study was published in the US journal Pediatrics suggesting an increase in nickel allergies in children which could be due to laptops and phones, including the iPad.