any remedies for eczema Please??

[KathyS]

My 10 year old son gets eczema every single year about this timea nd it lasts all winter. He has gotten it since he was a baby. I Have tried all sorts of things over the years and nothing helps! It always goes away in the spring on its own.

Does any one know of something he can use to clear it up or sooth the itching/burning? Natural remedie or something I can make from natural ingredients would be great...

Thank you

[SagMom]

We use Florasone Cream (Cardispermum) that I get from the health food store. My dd uses Cetaphil liq. soap and lotion and I use Dr. Bronner's soap in her laundry.

Lots of people here seem to be dealing with this so I'm sure you'll get lots of suggestions. Good luck.

[oceanbaby]

Acupuncture. I finally went when I was 12 after much eczema trauma. It was the only thing that worked. Not only the treatment, but also the cream that I still use periodically if I get an outbreak. I get it in almost any Chinese herbal store for about $1.00. It says Fluocinonide Ointment. I couldn't tell you what is in it because it is all in Chinese.

Do a search for eczema on this forum, including the archives. There has been a ton of info. But honestly the chinese lotion and acupuncture is the only thing that ever worked for me.

Also: No fragrance in soaps or anything else, no fried or spicy foods, lots of unscented hand lotion (I actually really like Curel, even after trying all the natural ones), all cotton clothing. Since eczema is severe dry skin, and he's getting in mainly in the winter, I would look at maybe providing more moisture his environment - maybe a humidifier? Mine wasn't seasonal so I'm not really sure about this. Also, eczema is an allergy, so maybe there is something that happens in the winter that he is allergic too - something in the heating system, a certain plant, the dogs being kept inside, something like that. It might be worth having some allergy testing done.

Good luck!

Edited to add: I just realized that you are little blessings resale! I love your site, and have ordered from you before. Such cute clothes!

[KathyS]

Edited to add: I just realized that you are little blessings resale! I love your site, and have ordered from you before. Such cute clothes!

Thank you! I'm tickeled pink that you shopped with me


I'm not sure if I could ever get him to go for Acupuncture. But all the other stuff I could try. Its so bazarr that he gets this every winter...and then it goes away?? It seems to really bother him this year. Lotions and creams just make it worse. The rash turns really red and it seems to burn his skin.

I just had a thought since Oceanbaby mentioned Acupuncture..what about The chiropractor? Do you suppose that would help? I've heard of stranger things

Thanks for the tips on the creams ladies..I haven't tried either of those and will look into them.

[SagMom]

Definately try a chiropractor--I'm convinced that ours has helped my dd. You might also look into food allergies--tomatoes, eggs and other dairy are supposed to be problematic for some.

[KathyS]

Hi Joan!

If it were food allergy related..wouldn't he have a problem with it all year long though? Just a thought.

[MysticHealerMom]

my homeopath cleared mine up. it's amazing how one thing relates to another.

[SagMom]

Originally posted by little_blessings
Hi Joan!

If it were food allergy related..wouldn't he have a problem with it all year long though? Just a thought.

My initial response was, "Of course, you're right!" But, I don't really know...could it be a food allergy that only flares up when other allergens or conditions are present? (Such as cold, dry weather or fall leaf molds and such?) I don't know...just throwing some thoughts out there.

[KathyS]

...could it be a food allergy that only flares up when other allergens or conditions are present? (Such as cold, dry weather or fall leaf molds and such?)

ugh! that could be true. I really hate to take him to the doctor for this...when he was a baby it was passed off as fifth's disease...and I was told it would go away on its own. I think the doctor just didn't know and wanted to get rid of me..LOL

A visit with the naturalpathologist wouldn't hurt though..she can take a drop of blood and quickly discover any food allergys which might be present. might be the best thing to do for a more permenant solution. In the meantime I need to try some of these creams on him and see if it can bring him some relief.

Thanks for the tips!

MysticHealerMom~ I fixed the problem with my link..thanks again for letting me know!

[amymarie]

I have had eczema most of my life and what I found works great for me is 100% calenduela ointment. Mine also gets way worse in the winter. Here are some other things I do you could try...only let him bathe every other day, water especially hot is very drying. Make sure to put lotion or cream or whatever you use on within a few minutes of getting out of the shower or bath. Wherever the eczema is be sure it is covered when its cold and windy out. Hope he gets better.

[lillacoix]

Hi Little Blessing,
Ezcema is usually caused by an essential fatty acid deficiency. Also can be caused by an essential fatty acid imbalance. Here in the USA - we eat way more foods that contain Omega 6 fatty acids, and too little of the Omega 3 fatty acids. First thing I would do is go to your health food store and buy some organic flax seed oil - you can get it in capsules too. Flax seed is very high in Omega 3. Now, there is some controversy about how well the omega 3 from flax seed oil is assimilated by the body - and some say it doesn't get assimilated very well, so there are other sources of omega 3's - from fish (but I don't like to eat fish now because most fish nowadays is contaminated with mercury and other serious pollutants which are very dangerous to our health - and if you get farm raised fish, you'll get cleaner fish but you won't get the essential fatty acids you need). There is also walnut oil, canola oil (which I personally think is dangerous and don't like to consume), olive oil, and more that I can't think of right off the bat. Also, you can find fish oil capsules that have been purified to remove the contaminants - but personally, I would start with the flax seed oil first and if that doesn't work for your child after a few weeks, then switch to a fish oil capsule from your health food store that clearly states on the label that it has been purified to remove contaminants. I believe Carlson Labs makes a good, clean source. Other thing to give your child to help with ezcema is good bacteria, that contains acidophilus and other strains of beneficial bacteria. If you are interested in more info about brands I would recommend and try first - please email me at [e-mail] I would and could say a lot more here - but I am really tired (almost my bedtime now) and I don't want to overwhelm you with too much info right now. Please email me. I hope this helps. Take care.
Lisa
Oh yes, just remembered:
check out www.mercola.com and do a search about ezcema and also on omega 3 fatty acids. You'll find tons of info on both topics. This is an excellent alternative health website and very popular and very good info - although Dr. Mercola acvocates fish oil from a clean source rather than flax seed oil - but, I still think you should try the flax seed oil first.

[lillacoix]

duh, usually I check my spelling and realized I didn't even spell eczema correctly in my last post (I really need some shut eye - lol!!).

[ilex]

I just spoke to my nutritionist about this today, for myself, and she said that evening primrose oil or borage oil is the best thing for eczema. All of the tips above are great too. When I was little my eczema was so bad and I would scratch my hands raw at night, so my mom would cover my hands in penaten cream, wrap them in plastic wrap and put soft cotton gloves over that. I wouldn't be able to scratch and in the morning my hands would be so soft. I know it's not the most natural remedy but...

I think I would go see a naturopath about this too though, it definitely sounds allergy related, and yes some allergies flare up at different times of the year, it also depends on how your immune system is handling things and since winter is a time of battling bugs, the immune system might be a bit more compromised. So another thing you could do would be to support his immune system while you are treating the eczema. Which would help combat the eczema as well.

[Groundhog]

What worked for dd's eczema was calendula cream and homeopathic sulphur. Hers gets worse when the weather starts to change or if she's been washing her hands a lot. It gets red and hot and will sting if you put anything on it. We also have some Chinese herbal ointment (made by Spring Wind, I think) that dh brought home but we've only used it once so far.

[lillacoix]

I found some very good info for you from Dr. Mercola's website just now - on how to clear up eczema. I know there are a ton of other articles on healing eczema from his website, but the link I am giving you here is just for this particular article on eczema. When you click on this link to read this article, be sure to go to the top of the web page to the "search" box that Dr. Mercola provides, and type in "eczema" and it will bring up all of the other excellent articles he has on how to get rid of it and the causes. Here is the link, and I hope this will really help you out.

http://www.mercola.com/2002/jul/17/eczema.htm

GOOD LUCK!!

[KathyS]

lillacoix

Thank you very much!
Kathy