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Dealing with eczema naturally
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Author Topic: Dealing with eczema naturally
Momay
Member posted 08-26-2000 05:31 AM
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My 19-month-old daughter has been diagnosed with eczema. I am struggling with trying to help her and trying to avoid so many drugs and creams. Frankly, I just cannot trust doctors who say that hydrocortisone is just fine to use on a long-term basis. It scares me to think of any side effects from using it too much. So we are trying to figure out how to deal with it naturally.
She had an allergy test that showed a slight allergy to bananas, soy and our cat I purchased some essential oils but am unsure how to use them correctly. Has anyone here dealt with eczema without using all the prescription products? I would love some advice! Thanks!
Jasmine
Member posted 08-26-2000 09:13 AM
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Hey Momay,
I dealt with it breifly. MY son had a nasty case of what they said was eczema at two months. It covered his face, neck and shoulders. It was very yellow and crusty in spots. This was my approach; first cut out possible food allergens from my diet, didn't work for me. Stopped using detergents on his clothes, lotions on him, and bathed him only every three days. There are some over the counter creams you can buy like Aquafor, and Eucerin, which are specifically for this skin problem. I just used Aloe. Straight from the plant. It seemed to work well to soothe his skin and keep it moist which is really important with this condition. The only thing is with aloe you have to apply it alot because it doesn't stay on the skin like commercial creams. I don't know where you live but natural hot mineral baths are also supposed to help. Fortunatally the main draw to the town I live in is the hot springs so we can go soak. Whatever the reason my sons eczema has cleared and not reurned as well as his very thick cradle cap. I hope this helps. You might want to invest in a large aloe if you don't already have one. Good luck.
Jasmine
Sherri
Member posted 08-26-2000 11:55 PM
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My son had eczema caused by a dairy allergy, and I get severe eczema on hands, elbows & knees from soy. Aloe fresh from the plant feels... I can't describe how wonderful... it's RELIEF! I have 4 plants in my home from those days.
My doc also told me about Sweet Oil (olive oil) to remove the old flaky patches of skin. I applied a few minutes b4 my son's bath or my shower, and the then skin just washes off while bathing. I think the oil also helps protect the skin from drying-out & irritation from soaps & chlorinated water.
If I remember anything else (it's been a few years since we dealt w/ this) I'll post again. Good Luck!
lauren
Moderator posted 08-27-2000 07:25 PM
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I have eczema, and my son has it too. What has worked for us is 1)eliminate dairy products 2)add flax seed oil (capsules or oil directly mixed with food) 3)more protein and 4)Aveeno (oatmeal based) moisturizer, available in most pharmacies. The first 3 suggestions came directly from a naturopathic physician. The last, remarkably, came from a nurse practitioner, but it has also worked wonders.
Cynthia in Arabia
Moderator posted 08-29-2000 02:39 AM
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Sherri, why does your doctor refer to olive oil as sweet oil? I would have thought almond oil to be called sweet oil since it's also known as sweet almond oil.
~Cynthia
Cynthia in Arabia
Moderator posted 08-29-2000 02:51 AM
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I've had five of my six children suffer from eczema as infant. For the first four I listened to the doctor and used boric acid. That worked up to about 4-6 months of age.Then he prescribed cortisone creams which made it magically disappear. At varying ages I was able to discontinue the cream.
My fifth baby didn't have a spot of eczema. When my sixth came along and started breaking out I decided I wasn't going to do anything more than keep it clean. It was gone within a month.
I sometimes wonder if what we thought to be eczema was just baby acne - the rash an infant gets from the hormones of the mother passing through the milk as everything tries to get back to normal after birth. Perhaps by treating it with medications for eczema we only made it worse. Just a thought.
~Cynthia
chrisziggy
Member posted 08-30-2000 11:16 PM
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recipe idea from "Aromatherapy for Babies and Children" by Price and Price Parr
eczema massage oil:
30 ml (1 ounce) sweet almond oil
10 ml carrot oil
10 ml calendula
the following essential oils
3 drops geranium (pelargonium graveolens)
3 drops lavender (lavandula angustifolia)
2 drops bergamot (citrus bergamia)
can be used on all affected areas of the body with a light massage accompaniment.
you can also make an oatmeal bath by griding up oatmeal into a fine powder and adding to the bath water. you can also put a drop or two of any of the above mentioned essential oils into the oatmeal powder before adding to the bath. if you need help finding oils feel free to email me, i'll help you out, i am a clinical aromatherapist get only therapeutic grade oils and buy mine in bulk
*smile*
chris
breamisha
Member posted 09-18-2000 09:36 PM
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My daughter has had eczema since she was a few months old. (She is now 3) I am convinced it was triggered by amoxicillan. My son also got it when he was a few months old--ALSO after a bout with amoxicillan. She now has dairy allergies which trigger eczema and loose stools. He has been free of it until the last couple of weeks--I suspect his MMR vaccine. (He is now 16 months) So, here I am, looking at info. on more alternative forms of medicine and vaccinations, since my pediatrician, as caring as she is, has been NO help whatsoever. But, that is the long answer to how have we treated it! With Caitlin I have controlled it by first using an elimination diet to figure out what was triggering it. In her case, we suspect casein, the cow protein in all cow's milk products. So, she now drinks goat's milk, eats goat cheese (colby, cheddar, feta, chevre soft white cheeses) and eats sheep's milk yogurt (better flavor, I think, than goat yogurt). To treat the skin I use Aveeno oatmeal baths when she has a severe outbreak, Lubriderm lotion (sometimes with vitamin E oil mixed in), and hydrocortisone (1%)ointment sparingly. (Sometimes benadryl creme is helpful too.) There ARE consequences for long-term hydrocortisone use. Don't let your doctor fool you. It causes thinning of the skin which can lead to cracking and a secondary bacterial infection setting in. (Which needs to be treated with antibacterial ointment--prescription Bactroban has been the most effective for us.) So, the best medicine, in this case, is prevention. Try to figure out the root cause and then stay away from whatever it is. We went to see a pediatric gastroenterologist for my daughter and he said that the gut has its own "immune system" almost--and you can have a reaction to foods that isn't considered as a true allergy so it doesn't register highly on a blood test, but you can still have allergic responses like hives and eczema. It's good to minimize exposure to the offending item also because the more exposure kids get to it the more allergic they become. If you can eliminate it from their diet (assuming it's a food thing) until they're older, sometimes they can develop a tolerance for it as their immune systems mature. Good luck!
Chris
Cynthia in Arabia
Moderator posted 09-19-2000 02:36 AM
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Just to clear up my goof in my previous post - four of my six children had eczema as infants. And get this - they were the two who have not had vaccinations!
~Cynthia
[This message has been edited by Cynthia in Arabia (edited 09-22-2000).]
Momay
Member posted 09-19-2000 05:42 AM
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Well, I'm not sure if her vaccinations were the "cause..." She only seemed to develop eczema when we moved overseas. We think it's a combination of different food and the water. It's really harsh here in the Czech Republic. Whenever she gets a bath, her skin is terrible...We even shower her down instead of putting her in a tub. Nothing has worked. We used a natural cream we found here with aloe and seaweed. That worked for a while but not every time she has an outbreak. We are at a loss...a lot of the things you all have mentioned are not even available in this country...
Ness
Member posted 09-19-2000 07:51 AM
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I have been an ezema sufferer since I was a child. My mother tried the elimination diet, alternately trying wheat free, dairy free, soy free etc.. to no avail. We tried countless creams and natural remedies, some helped some made it worse. I would get patches on my hands, elbows and beside my ears. I was a sufferer mainly during the winter months in Ontario but stress would often trigger it. At 24 I moved to Vancouver and my ezema disappeared. Although doctors give you many causes, geography or environmental causes is not one that most people think of. My suggestion if you're going to be in Czecho for a while is try natural, try alternative. Cortizone has way too many side affects. Best of luck.
p.s My mother in law is in prague
Ness
Momay
Member posted 09-20-2000 02:58 AM
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Thanks, Ness...We have decided to just stick with natural for many reasons, one being the side effects that may occcur. We just try to ward off any dry skin by keeping her "lotioned up." That is all we can do right now...we are looking for a humidifier and flax seed oil. Perhaps your MIL would know where to get those things?
Ness
Member posted 09-20-2000 08:19 PM
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Momay,
Sorry for getting back to you so late...it's just been one of those days. I don't know if you're in Prague or not but I spoke to my mother in law and she said she may know of one place you could try. She also goes to some kind of healing guru? In Prague I'm sure he's considered a somewhat witch doctor. I've never met him and don't know what type of schooling he's had, so I can't give you my opinion but my mother in law swears by him? So she may suggest it........you decide. My mother in law is also not that great at giving directions so try to get an address to the store if you can, but she does have a good heart and always means well. She told me to please pass along her name and number to you in hopes that she can help. Her name is Danka Parr (Parrova) she can be reached sunday-thursday nights at (4202) 71722194 in Prague.
She runs a large factory so during the day she is too hard to reach and on weekends often goes to the country. She also inquired if anyone spoke Czech in your house for direction purposes? Anyway I hope this helps, let me know how your seach goes.
Ness
Momay
Member posted 09-21-2000 08:12 AM
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Ness! Thank you so much!!! We are in Prague, yes. In the center. I will give your MIL a call, although we do not speak Czech well...I have someone who could call for me. Email me sometime! I would email you, but your address isn't listed...mine is
karastj@hotmail.com Thanks again!
breamisha
Member posted 10-13-2000 08:00 PM
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Does anyone else suspect vaccinations as having caused an eczema outbreak? I am beginning to wonder about this myself.
Cynthia in Arabia
Moderator posted 10-14-2000 03:01 AM
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Oh yes! I definitely suspect vaccinations. And there is info on this. I'll try to find it and post here.
~Cynthia
samali
Member posted 10-31-2000 04:58 AM
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My 41/2 year old daughter had very bad excema between 4 and 8 months. I tried everything natural I knew, Chinese herbs, homeopathy, aromatherapy, acupuncutre, allergy testing, aloe, herbal creams, dust mite protection, Oat meal baths, altering our diets........what an effort it was! I am not sure exactly what helped. It all just eventually vanished.
An interesting observation though. When spring came around in October (we are from Australia) I began to take her nappy off much more. i think that the freedom from all those toxins entering her blood stream did her skin the world of good.
I also read an article last year about a woman whose baby son had chronic excema. She tried everything then finally decided to take her own course of action, which led her to reducing nappy use. His skin improved dramatically.
We have not vaccinated our daughter. She was demand breast fed and is still feeding occaisionally. I was really surprised and upset that even after all this she suffered from excema so badly those months.
Another friend of mine found that after weaning her son at 20 months his excema got VERY much worse.
All the best and good luck
Keep breastfeeding and loving your kids
Samali
Momtwice
Member posted 10-31-2000 05:40 AM
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In our family food allergies cause exzema, ESPECIALLY cow's milk.
victoria
Member posted 11-06-2000 08:21 PM
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Since we' ve returned to the Southern region, my son will from time to time have a small eczema break out, I've had success with bathing him with a good calendula soap, Weleda makes a great one, than while his skin is still moist, smoother him in Weledas' calendula cream for babies. Both can be found at your natural/whole foods stores.
jamie
Member posted 11-13-2000 03:34 AM
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My daughter is 11 months old and we have been dealing with eczema for a while now. It is getting better, tho often it is hard to tell if she is just growing out of it, or if its whatever treatments we are using!
One thing I have found is that rotating treatment (lotions, oils, bathing products, hair products,etc..) seems to help somewhat. What I have found that sesms to be helping, is this...
We don't bath her too often, every other day or 2. She love the bath, so we do put her in the bath to play a bit more frequently than that. If she is dry or has been itchy I will often rub her with olive oil (almond oil is good too, but I am afraid of a nut allergy right now..) BEFORE the bath, (she is mixed (black and white) and her hair is very curly, so I often put the oil in her hair too!). I use natural soaps either specifically for children or regular olive oil soap or such.... After her bath I use a combination of Jojoba oil and evening primrose oil (about 1oz jojoba to 16 drops of evening prim-rose). I also take a evening prim-rose suppliment (either capsules, or I mix the oil in with food), since I am breast feeding. this really seems to have helped. I would like to give some to her, but I cannot find any information on giving this to infants and the quantity that would be appropriate... any suggestions?
1 other observation I have had... At night she will often wake her self scratching, and often it has correlated with teething pains as well, when I give her the Homeopathic teething meds, she stops itching as well! It has Chamomile in it, so I suppose it helps soothe... Its been wonderful!
Good luck!
Dolphin
Junior Member posted 11-17-2000 02:21 AM
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My son got the first outbreak of eczema when he was two months old. At the time I had no information regarding vaccinations and allergies. He was exclusively breastfed and still is (he is now 2 years old). We tried everything, so many creams (medicated or not). It was awful. I tried to keep creams at a minimum and avoid too much bathing. Cetaphil lotion helped a lot (his thick craddle cap too). His eczema almost cleared when he was about 5 months. Later, when he received his 3rd dose of DTaP he got a Hyporesponsive Hypotonic Episode (almost lost consiousness-stayed in the hospital overnight for check up and observation). I was totally terified by realising that if the HHE had happened at night it would probably have resulted in SIDS! I started investigating everything, reading whatever was available. Now he gets eczema in tiny patches here and there and not so often. I now believe that his first outbreak was due to his 1st Hep shot. I think that his body is using his skin to detoxify itself from all the toxins (vaccinations etc). I try to avoid bathing too much and use only non soap cleansers at minimum amount. Just my story. My best wishes to you.
megerina
Member posted 11-20-2000 02:38 PM
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What we were told was excema turned out to be fungus of some sort on our son's leg. We used lotramin and it took about a month but cleared up. He now has a cold and the stuff is back in the same place again, so back to going easy on sweets and such and using an antifungal again.
If the rash is "raised" it might be worth your while to give antifungals a try.