Let me tell you about the summer keto betrayed me.
Not the “my pants don’t fit” kind of betrayal.
Not the “wow, I miss fruit” kind of betrayal.
No — the kind where I developed a rash so aggressive I couldn’t wear deodorant for three months straight.
Yes. The whole summer.
The season of sunshine, sweat, and sticky children… and me standing like a Greek statue because my armpits had declared they were no longer taking questions.
But before the rash itself, we need to talk about something I didn’t understand until years later.
My Armpits Have Been Dramatic Since the ’90s
I’ve never been able to wear American deodorant for long. Even as a teenager, I had to rotate brands like seasonal produce — fine for a week, then suddenly my skin was filing HR complaints.
I didn’t know then that I was reacting to:
- aluminum in antiperspirants
- synthetic fragrance
- preservatives
- endocrine disruptors
- mystery chemicals with nine syllables
My skin was basically an early-warning toxin detector.
Then I lived overseas — and for the first time, I could actually buy deodorant I tolerated. Brands like the cleaner versions of Nivea or Simple were just… normal. Not “natural,” not “green,” just not loaded with harsh additives.
And my skin liked them.
When I moved back to the States, my sister-in-law became my underground deodorant supplier, mailing me the Australian stuff because my pits wanted no part of the American formulas.
So yes: chemical sensitivity has always been a plotline for me. I just didn’t understand the physiology until much later.
And Then Came Keto. And Hashimoto’s. And the Rash.
After my Hashimoto’s diagnosis, keto was everywhere — touted as the cure for brain fog, fatigue, inflammation, existential dread… everything but taxes.
So I tried it.
And within weeks, my liver said:
“Respectfully… no.”
What showed up was a localized rash in my armpits so inflamed I couldn’t use any deodorant:
- not the natural ones
- not the sensitive ones
- not the artisanal ones
- not even the clean overseas ones
My armpits tapped out completely — red, angry, raw, and deeply uninterested in participating in society.
My Personal Case
Because I’ve always eaten fairly clean, avoided synthetic fragrance, used minimal products, and kept my toxin load low, the rash stayed localized to my armpits.
Painful? Extremely.
But contained.
What I’ve Seen in Clients Since
For many people — especially those with:
- sluggish bile
- mold exposure
- chronic histamine issues
- heavy-metal burden
- autoimmune layers
- constipation
- synthetic fragrance overload
- years of antiperspirant use
…keto rash can spread along lymph pathways, showing up on:
- lower ribs
- under the breasts
- around the bra line
- the neck
- the clavicles
- the trunk
So while I didn’t get the full-body version, I’ve seen enough cases to recognize the pattern instantly.
This matters because people often blame:
- detergent
- heat
- yeast
- eczema
- stress
- hormones
- dairy
- deodorant
…when the real issue is detox overload from rapid fat metabolism.
Recognizing the map early prevents panic and helps you fix the actual root cause.
Why Keto Triggered It (The Functional Explanation)
Keto increases fat metabolism →
Fat metabolism increases bile production →
If bile is sluggish, thick, or overburdened, you get:
- histamine spikes
- detox backup
- toxin recirculation
- inflammation
- skin eruptions in lymph-heavy zones
With Hashimoto’s, everything is amplified:
- slower liver detox
- impaired estrogen clearance
- slower bile flow
- sluggish thyroid metabolism
- lymph congestion
- higher histamine baseline
So keto basically pushed an already-sensitive system straight into a drainage bottleneck.
And when the internal pathways can’t keep up?
The skin becomes the emergency exit door.
What Didn’t Work (Bless My Heart)
For educational purposes (and your future sanity), here’s what did absolutely nothing:
- switching deodorants
- reducing fragrance
- going “sensitive skin” everything
- aloe
- armpit masks (a mistake I will never repeat)
- changing laundry products
- pretending it was fine
- wishing it away
The problem wasn’t on my skin.
It was inside my detox pathways.
What Finally Helped
1. Supporting Bile & Liver
- lemon peel bitters (my recipe is here: Instant Pot Lemon Curd Bitters)
- taurine
- glycine
- magnesium
- castor oil over liver/lymph pathways
2. Lowering Histamine
- electrolytes + hydration
- temporarily reducing high-histamine foods
- quercetin-rich foods
- cutting back on caffeine
3. Moving Lymph
- gentle sauna
- rebounding
- dry brushing
- castor oil packs
4. Backing Off Keto Intensity
Autoimmune bodies need support before stress.
5. Fixing Constipation
If the gut isn’t moving, the skin will. End of story.
What I Wish Someone Had Told Me
If you have:
- Hashimoto’s
- autoimmune anything
- mold exposure
- high histamine
- sluggish bile
- chronic rashes
- chemical sensitivity
- hormonal overload
keto is not a casual diet hack.
It’s a metabolic stressor. It increases detox load. And if your drainage pathways aren’t supported, your skin will take the hit.
This is why I teach drainage first — always.
If You’re Experiencing a Mystery Rash Right Now…
Especially after keto, fasting, or detox?
Your skin isn’t malfunctioning. It’s communicating.
The message is simple:
Support liver, lymph, bile, and bowels… then proceed.
Your body is never working against you. It’s working to get your attention. Support the pathways, and the symptoms quiet down.