Fire burns, acid burns, lava burns and sun burns, but who knew that you can get a burn after squeezing a lime? And if you`re thinking that the man to whom this happened to, must have had a genetic predisposition or some sort of skin disorder, then you could not be more wrong.
As it turns out, lime disease or margarita dermatitis can struck anyone with an appetite for lime flavored drinks during the summer. The man who managed to get second degree burns after making some margaritas for him and his fiancée to enjoy, is named Aaron Peers.
Peers was celebrating Memorial Day weekend with his bride-to-be, Alyse Golden and with a few margaritas, out in the lovely summer sun. As he was squeezing the limes to prepare the drinks, some lime juice dripped on his fingers, hands and arm, but it was only a day after that he noticed red burns on his hands which were accompanied by great pain.
After two days, huge blisters had formed on the spots in which acid from the lime juice had dropped. Alarmed by the continuous progression of the burns, Peers went to the doctor, who confirmed that indeed he is suffering from margarita dermatitis and he received treatment for his second degree burns.
The doctor told Peers that the reason why he got such severe burns was that the acid in limes, lemons and other citric fruits can irritate the skin quite badly and it can predispose it to burns, blisters and brown spots. Basically, it weakens the skin to the point that sun radiation can penetrate to the deep layers of the skin and cause burns.
He was also told that this situation is not as uncommon as one might reckon and that during the summer many patients present to a dermatologist to remove the brown spots that have gained this way. The brown spots that people get from overexposure to sunrays are called phytophotodermatitis and it can take years before they are cleared out.
Aaron Peers`s burns happened just the week before his wedding so unfortunately, not much, except Photoshop, can be done to save the gruesome appearance of the groom`s hands. The couple also said that they are planning to postpone their honeymoon in Hawaii because Peers needs to stay out of the sun.
Doctors advise preparing cocktails indoors and to wash your hands immediately and thoroughly with water if they are exposed to citric acid.
Image Source: foodiemisadventures