Eczema on Cheeks

[kbuglove]

My 4.5 month ds only has eczema on his cheeks and under his chin. I've been trying to find a food allergy without any luck. We only use natural detergents, soaps and so forth as well. My pediatrician said today it would not be a food allergy since it's only on his face and probably coming from the strong digestive enzymes of his drool. Others agree that since it's only on his face then it's probably environmental. I'm just super confused, I've taken so many foods out and put them back in. I've changed detergents and soaps, His poops are normal but his sleep is terrible he wakes every hour or two. His eczema started around 3 months and has gotten better and worse but never fully gone away. Nothing topical helps. Now I'm so confused I don't know what to do next.
Allergist, Dermatologist, Acupuncturist, homeopath, chiropractor?

Ughh, this is so frustrating!

[Joshuasmom16]

Does he suck on things a lot? if so, it could just be from drool. I know my DS' cheeks get very red b/c he constantly has something in his mouth (teething toys). Over night and in the am, they are clear. Does this happen with your DS?

If it is eczema (usually it feels rough), it could be from almost anything! foods, environmental, detergents, or for no reason! it's very confusing!

[kbuglove]

Yeah it's def. eczema, bumpy and dry and rough. Doesn't go away.
I know so many things, I can't figure it out and feel so confused.
Don't even know who's best to see?

[Joshuasmom16]

when my DS started with eczema at 2 mos, pedi said no big deal, just use hydrocoritsone and cut out dairy. Then it got worse over time (did not use hydrocotisone but did cut out dairy) and finally got so severe it was all over his body and we then saw the allergist at 6 months and now we know he's allergic to peanuts, cats, eggs and possibly soy & dairy.

I don't know if your LO is too young for allergy testing or not, but it definitely eased my mind to know what I was dealing with. Having said that, now that I'm completely free of all his allergens and have been for over a month, his eczema still continues sporadically but overall is significantly better. (so sometimes testing doesn't give you all the answers...) other mamas will prob. have other advice...

[Chinese Pistache]

What kind of lotion do you use in his face? A lot of natural lotions contain problematic ingredients and irritants. That said, once we identified my dc's allergens, her eczema went away (in our case, it was corn and dairy).

[karin95]

Go with your gut. If you don't think it's just drool (sounds unlikely to me, too), then keep looking. We had our son allergy tested (CAP-RAST) at 6-7 months, so 4.5 months isn't too young, I think. Get a referral to a pediatric allergist and tell them you want a CAP-RAST test. Then you'll know where your starting point is.

also, if you're just trying an elimination diet, realize that you have to wait a long time to make sure that you've cleared everything from your system and your babe's system. For dairy, it's at least 2 weeks. And you should be vigilant and stay away from all forms of the foods you're eliminating. also cross-contamination, especially of dairy and nuts, should be avoided.

If his cheeks/chin are red or at all weepy, then he probably has a secondary infection. Put some triple-antibiotic ointment on it twice a day until it clears up. That will definitely help the eczema clear up easier.

[changingseasons]

My DD's eczema started out only on her face, and hers is definitely food related. She now has some behind her knees, and other little spots on her body, but to look at her, the only obvious spots (and the worst spots) are on her cheeks.

[stellimamo]

kbuglove-
I totally could have written your post! Only my ds is 4 months and its his cheeks forehead. Does your ds' weep too? I've taken to puting socks on his hands to keep him from scratching so hard he bleeds. No amount of fingernail clipping was working.

[rhiasmum]

My dd's eczema's always just been on her face and she does have food allergies. I have used the hc on her to control it and then use hydrolatum to keep her moist.
My ped kept telling me it wasn't allergies. I just called and asked for a referral to a ped allergist. They gave it to me no problem.
Dairy takes a month to totally leave your system I've been told.
Good luck!

[matey]

Originally Posted by kbuglove

I've been trying to find a food allergy without any luck.

I am interested in what you tried.

My ds started with cheek problems too. His body had some small dry patches here and there, but his cheeks were like your sons. The dr. told me it wasnt an allergy too, and against my gut feeling, we put him on steroids for a week. He looked better for the week and that was it. Later, I took out all dairy and he has been relatively clear for almost a month.

[kbuglove]

Thank you ALL SO MUCH for your support and advice and so forth.

We've gone every avenue with this.
Especially since it did start spreading to trunk of body and get worse.

We are taking major probiotics and doing gut healing. I had to supplement with formula for my ds around 2 and half months for a while cause I was having a MAJOR low supply issue. I know this totally had a big part in starting his eczema.

I did the Elimination diet and just started getting super confused so I found a rec. for a good ped allergist. We went yesterday and found out ds is allergic to milk, casein, dairy, soybean, peanuts, egg white, egg yolk, and sesame seeds. My poor dear, that's way more than I thought

So I'm going to be super strict and cut all this out.

She also said when eczema is super red and weepy that it has staff. So she said to put 3 drops of clorex bleach in bath and make water like a chlorinated swimming pool do this for a couple of days and all the red should go away. Not sure how I feel about the bleach?

She said best way to keep it with moisture is Crisco. Yuck but I did try and it works wonders.

We are also having an eviromental issue because he was breaking out all around his trunk, face and neck. The whole diapered area skin was clean and fine and his scalp too. So it's something those areas breaking out are coming in contact with. SO it's detergent, or soap, shampoo or so forth.
She said this too could be mainly on his cheeks since he lays his cheeks on me to nurse, and then the salvia with food allergy hits that area too.

So I have to dilute detergent and put a drop on a gauze pad and paper tape to his back for 72 hours. If he get a red reaction he's allergic and to find another one. YOu can do this patch test with anything you are guessing an allergy like almond milk, cooked egg, so forth.

She said for a while, while we find the right detergent to only wash his clothes in water, and not in the detergent contaminated washer. This I think
will be tricky.
A good website for detergent removal is here:
solveeczema.org

I'm also taking lots of flax oil too and drinking aloe vera juice.

I took him to a chiropractor, but she wanted to see him 3 times a week for a while and I thought it was too much for him. So she kind of scared me away.

He's already sleeping WAY better after I've only stopped all foods for 2 days.

[changingseasons]

Wow- I've never heard of the bleach thing. I don't know how I would feel about that either. When DD's eczema is open and weepy, I just make sure that no one else holds her or touches her skin to keep it from getting infected.

That's exciting that your LO is already showing improvement!! I know it seems like a lot, but be glad that you have a relatively small list of 'bad' foods (ours is HUGE).

[matey]

I too would be nervous about the bleach. That sound scary. I have heard of using crisco before. What kind of allergy test did you doc do? I thought they couldnt really do much at such a young aga so I am interested.