Eczema, Part II

Z., I feel your pain about the ezcema. I have used an ointment that was an RX from my pediatrician. Basically, it's peanut oil. Maybe buy some from the grocery store. Spray the infected area with water and then rub on the peanut oil.

The weather plays a big part in the breakouts. Especially if it's cold one day and fairly warm the next.

Good luck.

S.

my oldest had mild eczema as a toddler/preschooler. it could be this crazy weather. Was it 5 on monday and now its supposed to be 60? the point at which I insisted on seeing a dermatologist, we were having weather similar to what we are now - super cold for a couple days, unseasonably warm for a couple of days, etc. The dermatologist said spring and fall tend to be the worst for most of his patients because of weather changes. For us, we think it was some kind of environmental allergy that he's mostly outgrown. Zyrtec (an antihistamine) cleared it up the itchy spots quickly - I mean w/in 1-2 days. then we worked on prevention.
Just because products are all natural, doesn't mean they aren't causing the problem. my daughter has an organic shampoo we started using a couple months ago - well it caused my son to flare up for the first time in two years! And we didn't even use it on him, he was just in the bathtub with her!
For my son, California Baby and Aveeno products did well. So, beware anything scented and stick to the mildest lotion, shampoo, etc you can find that meets your criteria (i.e., natural, organic, whatever).
For laundry - nothing scented. And get rid of dryer sheets. We've gone to using the balls (as seen on TV!) and I keep fleece and anything else w/lots of synthetic from the dryer. I hang them in the laundry room and they're usually dry by the time the load is done anyway. There is very little static, even here in Colorado. In nicer weather, I line dry - but if your little one's do have allergies, that may exacerbate things. For sheets and towels, I do a vinegar rinse for softness (just put the vinegar where Downy is supposed to go). For all loads, I do a double rinse - not super environmental friendly, I know, but it makes clothes much softer and takes care of skin issues.
Also, don't forget your cleaning agents - nothing scented and no essential oils, plug-ins, or scented candles. We've gone to vingar, baking soda, and borax for almost all cleaning (I'm still working on my husband for a couple things).
Good luck!

Our doctor said for the laundry thing, all natural doesn't matter, you just have to get rid of any kind of scent and softener. As far as causes, it's typically a food thing, but can also be environmental. Our son's is worsened by seasonal allergies as well as animal allergies. Also, being in such a dry climate makes it worse. You should check into National Jewish. Our doctor there is great, and I don't know anyone who doesn't love the help they've gotten there. They can do testing for you so you don't have to try all the food elimination stuff in the midst of trying to keep up with life. They usually start with skin tests, and then if they need more info, blood tests. The skin test really isn't as bad as I expected. My kid who freaks out at everything freaked out. My kid who doesn't care about anything, didn't even wince. So, you might be able to guess how your daughter would do. You may be able to get by with only taking one kid and test out what you find out with both of them. I'd try the baths and see where that gets you. The 10-15 minutes is the key to adding moisture to the skin. Less is drying and more is drying. I don't know why. That's just what the doctor said, and our history would say there's a lot of truth to it. GL!

HI Z.,

I didn't get to read part one, but I have children with asthma, allergies, one with eczema and two that get rashes frequently as allergic reaction to certain creams. I am a mom of 6 ages 18 months to 16 years. I have had to do different things for each and play detective. For my children, I have switched over to moisturizing their skin with olive oil when they get out of the shower or bath. If you don't like the scent you can put organic lavender in it or another organically grown essential oil. My children through all their allergies, have NEVER had a bad reaction to essential oils, but then again I've only used Young Living oils on them because they are pure and not synthetic at all. Some people have tried to judge young living because they are a network marketing company, me I don't care, their oils work and really trying it believing. They are more expensive than other oils, but if you talk to any Naturopath doctor, they are the best and they are definitely the real deal and pure. I joined young living not for the money side of it, but just for my family. I went to one of their meetings they had and got some free samples and they work. The more I used, the more I started reading and I don't think a day goes by without us using one oil or another at some point, whether for burns, muscle aches and pains, or rashes, or cuts or headaches (which we get often due to certain allergies). I am telling you this because my oldest daughter who had eczema her whole life until the past 2 years would suffer scratching and itching all the time, especially in the extremes of weather like cold or hot. I did try to see if it was food allergies and we've determined she's allergic to milk, but even with that out of her diet, she still would be miserable with the eczema. I tried changing one thing after another and after all these years, she hasn't had a problem with it. We did the olive oil for a moisturizer on the skin after bath or shower with lavender oil, which helped heal the skin and prevent infection and then there is an oil blend that is called purification that worked well for her to keep it at bay. She also tried taking in more Omega 3 oil (she takes Omega Blue which is from Young living, but I guess you can get the pills from whole foods or at another grocery store that will work just as well). BUT my friend's son responded well to the lavender and not as well to the purification oil and he never did take any fish oil. Personally, I don't like the smell of purification oil which has lemongrass in it, which to me reminds me of a pledge furniture polish smell LOL, but I love the smell of lavender. Each person is different, and you have to experiment with what works for your child. My kids all respond to different things and have different allergies, but since switching to olive oil as a moisturizer and getting them off synthetic stuff on their skin it helps. Now, it may help to buy organic soap, it's more expensive, but it won't have mineral oil in it and you can get something that is good for the skin like made with oatmeal. I buy Young living soaps, but you can also get something natural at Whole Foods or sometimes the natural sections of King Soopers or Albertsons. Just letting you know what worked for me. I hope you can find out what is wrong. Did you take your children to an allergist? That may help to pinpoint if the allergies are possibly environmental too and which foods that cause them. The tests look scarier than they are. I am including a link where my friend had an article she wrote about eczema. Debra is amazing and so resourceful and there are some good tips in there, some of it you are already doing. I promise I'm not trying to push these oils on you. I just am sharing my personal experience on what has worked on my kids and family. http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs013/1101540839093/ar...