Mixing Corona and Lime? Beware 'Beer Dermatitis'

A refreshing Corona with lime carries the risk of a skin reaction—if you're clumsy about mixing the two. A condition that one doctor calls "Mexican beer dermatitis" is a discoloration that arises when lime juice is allowed to remain on the skin while you're in the sun, reports Reuters. Lime juice contains a substance called psoralen that makes the skin more sensitive to a certain wavelength of UV light.

The most common way to get it is to put a lime into a beer, turn it upside down, then get sprayed when you pull your thumb out. "People are worried that it's something serious," says one dermatologist. It's not. "You might have some brown spots you're been looking at for a few months. It's just a cosmetic issue." If you do get sprayed, just wash it off and drink up.
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