Before latex is manufactured into a glove, chemical antioxidants and accelerators are mixed in to give added strength. Because latex allergies show up only after prolonged exposure, most people won't suffer much more than irritation from their gloves before they realize they have an allergy. Reflecting the various causes and degrees of allergies, many variations of latex and non-latex gloves are available. Medical-grade cornstarch powder has become the standard for most gloves, eliminating the talc problem. Unfortunately, cornstarch absorbs the protein antigens in latex responsible for the latex allergy, making the gloves even more allergenic.
Many technicians choose powder-free latex gloves and avoid the powder difficulty altogether.
Since latex gloves are coated with the powder before they are removed from the mold, they must be treated with chlorine before they can be considered powder free. An inexpensive alternative to latex gloves is vinyl gloves. The chemical resistance of vinyl is about equal to that of latex, but fit and comfort aren't as good. Vinyl gloves have been proven more effective in protecting your hands from DMSO than latex, and they pose only a small allergy risk. For those who have a little more money to spend, nitrile gloves are a superior non-latex choice.