Why Your Showerhead Filter Might Be Making You Itchy

That sent me spiraling into another Google rabbit hole. I wondered if my showerhead contained colloidal silver, but I couldn’t find any information to confirm it either way. I reached out to the company, Afina, to comment on this story and never heard back. While I can’t say for sure that colloidal silver was the culprit, the timing—and the reaction—definitely raised a red flag.

According to Dr. Nichols, an allergy test could help provide clarity. “Your board-certified dermatologist or allergist can perform a patch test to identify whether silver—or another material in the filter—is causing the reaction,” she explains. “It’s the best way to move from guesswork to a definitive answer and potential treatment, especially since sensitivities can sometimes be mistaken for allergies.”

Although I didn’t want to devote more time and energy to setting up an allergy test, I did want to try a different filter ASAP, so I started asking everyone from hairstylists to friends what they used, praying for a solution that could protect my color without trashing my skin.

Adir Abergel, celebrity hairstylist and creative director of Virtue Labs, speaks highly of Canopy Filtered Showerhead, calling it a game changer for eliminating mineral deposits in water that oxidize color and dull shine. “I tell all my clients about the Canopy. It helps you hold color longer and also seals the cuticle to maintain shine,” he says.

He also notes that it’s not just hair that benefits. “Using a filter helps my skin retain its moisture, making any oil or lotion I apply super absorbent,” he says. “My hair has had a positive long-term benefit too—I see it retaining brilliance, and my scalp doesn’t need to be detoxed as often.”

Dr. Engelman also co-signed Canopy’s showerhead. (She previously was an ambassador for the brand’s humidifier, but no longer works with them in a formal capacity.) Instead of colloidal silver, theirs uses calcium sulfite, KDF-55 (a type of copper-zinc alloy filter), and activated carbon to remove contaminants. When I reached out to Canopy, they confirmed that “they have not noticed any prevalent issues with negative skin reactions to date.”

And with those glowing endorsements, I made the switch. Within two days of installing it, the itchy rash started to clear up. My scalp felt calm. My skin wasn’t tight and dry post-shower. And most importantly, my color looked the way it was supposed to after my last hair appointment—which was a $600 two-part correction process with my new colorist, Julia Aslamazi, who managed to get it back to a less Lorax-orange state.