MySkinIQ exists because of Lindsey's hands. After we had kids, she developed severe contact dermatitis — her hands would blister and burn, persistently and painfully, in ways that made everyday tasks genuinely difficult. What followed was years of medical appointments, topical prescriptions, and treatments that, if we're honest, caused more suffering than they solved.

The answer finally came through patch testing. Lindsey's results were clear: Propylene Glycol was the primary culprit — a preservative and humectant found in an enormous range of personal care products — along with a handful of other common chemical ingredients. Her immune system had been reacting to something she touched every single day.

We assumed knowing would be the end of it. It wasn't.

The problem with existing tools

Finding products that didn't contain Lindsey's allergens turned out to be its own ordeal. The apps and databases designed to help people with contact allergies shop safely were either poorly maintained, missing the products she actually wanted, or too clinical to use practically. Ingredient lists are long, dense, and written in INCI nomenclature — the standardized Latin-based naming system that most people can't parse without a reference guide. Knowing what to avoid doesn't help when you can't quickly tell if it's in the bottle in your hand.

So we built the thing we wished existed.

Who we are

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Shane Hamilton — Co-founder Shane has spent his career in cybersecurity and product at technology companies. He built MySkinIQ's iOS app and backend infrastructure, learning software development through AI-assisted coding in order to bring the product to life without a traditional engineering background.
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Lindsey Hamilton — Co-founder Lindsey is a former product manager who spent years navigating contact dermatitis before patch testing identified the cause. She shapes MySkinIQ's product direction from the perspective of someone who has lived the problem — and who knows exactly what a real user needs from a tool like this.

What MySkinIQ does

MySkinIQ is a free iOS app that scans any personal care product — by barcode or by photographing the ingredient list — and instantly checks it against your personal allergen profile. Our allergen database covers 233 active contact allergens across 70 cross-reaction families, sourced from the North American Contact Dermatitis Group (NACDG) standard patch test series, the European Baseline Series, and peer-reviewed dermatology literature.

The app identifies ingredient synonyms (Propylene Glycol is also listed as 1,2-Propanediol, Propane-1,2-diol, and other names), flags cross-reactive compounds you may not know to avoid, and gives you a clear verdict in seconds rather than 20 minutes of manual research.

Our editorial approach

The articles and guides on this site are written by Shane and Lindsey, drawing on published clinical data from peer-reviewed dermatology journals, NACDG patch test surveillance reports, the American Contact Dermatitis Society (ACDS), and regulatory guidance from the FDA and European Commission. We cite specific studies and data where claims are made. We are not dermatologists, and nothing on this site is medical advice — but we work to ensure every factual claim is grounded in published science and clearly sourced.

If you spot an error or want to point us to new research, we'd genuinely like to know: [email protected]

Contact

General & support: [email protected]
Privacy inquiries: [email protected]
Response time: We aim to reply within 48 hours.

MySkinIQ LLC is based in the United States.

Medical Disclaimer

MySkinIQ is an educational tool, not a medical device. Nothing on this site or in the app constitutes medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult a board-certified dermatologist or allergist for concerns about contact dermatitis, patch testing, or allergen management.