Eczema Help

[Raidra]

Finally, after months of mentioning Lachlann's facial rashes at doctor's appointments (his skin would always magically clear up the day before an appointment), our pediatrician saw Lachlann's rash on his face and said it's a form of eczema. He told us to get an OTC 1% cortisone ointment (not cream) to use twice daily for no more than 7-10 consecutive days. He didn't say anything about a dermatologist or allergies, etc.

It really started appearing about 11 days after we started giving him rice cereal. Because it was so long after starting, I didn't think it was due to that, so a few days late, I started oatmeal, and a week after that, we tried applesauce. All that was about a little over a month ago. He hasn't had any solid food in the last two weeks. His face was pretty clear on Monday, but started looking red and bumpy two days ago, so I don't think it's related to the food.

Should I just use the ointment and leave it at that, or should I be doing something to figure out what's causing it? I don't know anything about eczema, nobody in my family or my husband's family has had it. Colwyn never had any rashes of any type, so this is all new to me. :)

ETA: Any advice you can give me on treating/preventing his eczema would be hugely appreciated. He also has severely dry skin on his scalp--the only thing that helps that is Aquaphor, which we had also been using on his face with some success.

ETA again: Oops! I forgot to mention that Lachlann is formula fed. Sorry!

Thanks!

[brittone2]

I've heard good things about using probiotics (buy a good quality one that is refrigerated...we use Baby Jarro which you can get at Whole Foods). Also essential fatty acids are supposedly helpful. If you are interested in looking into those things you might want to check out the archives at mothering.com for some ideas. (especially under Health and Healing and maybe do a search for a great thread called The Power of Probiotics that is awesome and very very long). I think these things treat the core of the problem more than just a topical cream, kwim?

I wouldn't be crazy about long term use of hydrocortisone, kwim? It thins the skin, it lowers the immune system a bit, etc. Obviously in the short-term you have to do what you need to do to get him some relief but I wouldn't want my DS on it long-term if I could avoid it.

Someone mentioned something not too long ago about Arbonne products helping eczema. I used to use them with DS (no eczema but sensitive skin as a baby) but stopped using them when I ran out and switched to something a little more natural. It might be worth investigating though.

[holliam]

I've been meaning to do exactly what Beth mentioned, but I have not had a chance to fully research it yet. So, I think I'll just listen to Beth. LOL

But, we had a hard time with Mari's skin for a while. Her neck, cheeks, torso. It was awful! Doctor said it was ezcema. So, we realized that she had very dry skin and was reacting to all her bath/lotions. We were exclusively using California Baby and Burt's Bees products which I thought were natural and safe. But, alas!

So, I spent some time researching ezcema on MDC and finally concluded that some people had success with Cetaphil liquid wash instead of soap and Cetaphil lotion.

We switched to them both and got a humidifer in her room, and it's made a world of difference!

We had to use a prescription cream during the worst flare-up because cortisone did not even work, and I did not want to use anything like that long-term.

One caution though. Cetaphil lotion (not the wash) does include macademia nut oil, and Lachlann may be too young for you to feel comfortable using it.

My next step is to start probiotics and move to a more natural lotion. Beth, any clue if shea butter would work?

Holli

[brittone2]

Hmmm...no idea on the Shea butter. I wish I knew!! Logan had a rash from switching soaps when he was 2-3 months and the doc diagnosed it as eczema but it never happened again. She didn't believe me it was from the soap (insert eyeroll). We had to use a prescription strength hydrocortisone cream on him (2.5% I think) because it was sooo bad but we got off of it as soon as we could.

I think flax oil is beneficial too (from a dietary standpoint) if you want to investigate that.

The power of probiotics thread at MDC is really good and I'm sure you can get some more answers there about the shea butter. I have no idea if it would work. It seems like it would?

[stcelia]

My DS has eczema. THings we do that help:

*No fragrence no dye laundry soap.
*Soak in tub every night in warm, but not hot water. No soap. If it seems necessary I'll wash him with Cetaphil (or a knock off), and probably less than once a month we wash him with a real soap/shampoo.
*Pat dry after tub, and then apply a thick layer of Eucerin (or store brand knock-off), then dress for bed. If he has a really bad case of eczema going, we'll use aquaphor.
*a little sun exposure helps a lot.


I do watch for food allergies. Pickles seem to be a problem. A lot of times I don't know what causes a flare up, but if we stick the regimen above, most folks never have any idea that he has a skin issue.

Be very careful using the cortisone cream, especially on his face, because it thins the skin. IMHO, I would want that to be the last resort. I suppose, though, it depends on the severity of the rash.

Hope some of this helps.

[barbarhow]

Evening Primrose Oil!!! It works like magic on eczema. Jack had some horrible patches of thick eczema on his back-it only took a couple of days of the oil to clear it up completely. Prick the end of one of the capsules and squeeze the oil out onto your finger and then apply. Works wonders.
I personally wouldn't use the hydrocortisone on the face-and would definately try the EPO first.

[AdoptChina]

I have 3 kids with eczema...each reacts a bit differently, but all react to the dry winter weather. For one of my kids more frequent, quick baths followed immediately by moisturizer (aquaphor, eucerin cream, vanicream lotion etc) works best....for the other 2 less frequent bathing works better. We use All Free & Clear detergent and Downy Free fabric softener (w/out the softener our clothes are too stiff and scratchy and make the eczema worse...luckily my kids don't react to it). We have several RX creams to use when the flares get really bad but try not to use them too often. Since he is so young I wouldn't use anything with nut oils/butters (like the macademia nut and shea butter) b/c you don't want to risk an allergic reaction (and the fact that he has eczema makes him more likely to be a person who may have allergies).

[kamal]

This is a great thread for me since I am always on the lookout for info on eczema for my DD. In addition to Aquaphor, less soap while bathing and a humidifier in her room, I also avoid citrus for her temporarily while the latest flare up clears... I was told citrus MIGHT worsen eczema and while all of us (including DD) love 'odinges' we have decided to try this as well for a while -desperate for solutions, as you can see !.

But the aquaphor and humidifier help a lot. I used to use Elidel for flareups but not any longer.

I also second the probiotics.

I have read Shea Butter can help and while I have bought some, I haven't yet started using it on her.

Thanks for all the helpful information, everyone.
Kamal

[chlobo]

No kidding. This works? How many times a day? Just once or mroe than once? DD is having a winter flair up. I'm reluctant to run a humidifier in her room every day but might if other measures don't work.

[barbarhow]

I used to do it twice a day. I remember last winter my DH gave me three days to get it cleared up before we would take Jack to the doctor. It was gone in 2 1/2. Works wonders. A search for eczema/EPO will give you some good threads on it.
Barbara-mom to Jack 3/27/03, a Red Sox fan
and Anna 5/12/05, my little Yankee fan!

[Tondi G]

I have had good results using the Aveeno Baby Soothing relief Moisture Cream

http://www.aveeno.com/productListAction.do?pid=7000

Aidan was getting really dry and Eucerin wasn't doing the trick. The Aveeno worked FAST! It has even helpd Mason's dry patches he has had on and off for quite some time!

I got it at Kmart!

~Tondi
Mommy to Mason 7/8/01 and Aidan 5/4/05

[Raidra]

I'm so glad I posted here first, before using the cortisone cream! I think I'll try a few things first before going that route.. I have a whole jar of EPO, so that'll be first. :)

A lot of you mentioned baths.. is that just for the moisture? I don't think a bath would help us since it's only on his face.

I don't know anything about probiotics.. I may call my pediatrician and ask him about it. I hesitate to give him anything orally since he's so young, only on formula, and, I dunno.. I worry about treatments that don't have a long track record of being safe. It seems like every new treatment they tell us to do gets declared unsafe months or even years later.

[AdoptChina]

the reason bathing helps some kids is because when you take the kids out of the tub and you immediately put the lotion on you seal in the moisture (the soak & seal method :) ). I dont know if it would help if its only on his face (I mean, I guess you could wet his face first but I dont know if that would do any good?....anyone else try it?)

[brittone2]

I think the old advice was to not bathe that often but then something came out saying short but more frequent (and not hot) baths worked well.

Personally, I think probiotics are very very safe. We all have that healthy, normal bacteria in our intestines but some people don't have enough and that can create an imbalance. Obviously if you aren't comfortable with it, I don't blame you wanting to talk with your doc. I don't think most docs know much about their use and/or whether they help with eczema though.

You can actually just moisten your finger tip a bit, dip it into a little of the powder, and put it right in their mouth that way or add it to the formula.

ETA some links: (if your doc isn't familiar with probiotic use you may want to send these to him). THere are many, many studies that have come out recently.
http://www.drgreene.com/21_1908.html

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=12876412&query_hl=2&itool=pubmed_docsum

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=12589361&query_hl=2&itool=pubmed_docsum

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=11069570&dopt=Abstract

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=16313688&query_hl=2&itool=pubmed_docsum

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=16240154&query_hl=2&itool=pubmed_docsum

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15823690&query_hl=2&itool=pubmed_docsum

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15727582&query_hl=2&itool=pubmed_docsum

[Dee150]

With DS, I didn't really look into allergies for many months. He had a 'drool patch' to the side of one cheek while he was exclusively on breastmilk, but it was really mild. And then with supplementing with formula there was a gradual start to patches around his mouth. Like the OP's experience with the rice cereal, this was so slow I didn't connect the two. Well, after many months, and despite allergy testing not indicating anything, I have a list of foods he does not do well with. Kiwi fruit, berries, avocado (all of which I used to feed him rather liberally!), wheat, dairy, & nuts. It really got worse before I started eliminating some things. Also, we saw pretty good improvement when we switched to Aubrey's Organic Baby and Toddler Moisturising Lotion (slather it on after every meal/snack and whenever it seems dry) - good stuff...organic, no artificial fragrance, no parabens. This really helped even before all the elimination. One other cream I use is Weleda Calendula Baby Cream. Calendula helps with the itching. And I got really good about trimming his nails. Now on most days, the patches just look like dry, somewhat flaky skin- from the angry red rash that seemed to spread a little more after each 'outbreak', this is pretty good. Hopefully, they will all outgrow this soon!
(Sorry this was so long!)

[AdoptChina]

Be careful with those 2 lotions if your DS is allergic to wheat and nuts...I think the Aubrey one has wheat germ oil and almond oil, and the Weleda one has almond oil in it.

[StaceyKim]

my ds had eczema and we couldn't figure out what was causing them
the ointments helped clear it up but it would come back
so we saw an allergist (after going to several dermatologists) and discovered he has some food allergies. much to my surprise, eczema is a sign of a food allergy. his eczema is cleared up since taking away the foods he is allergic to. of course he occasionally gets some dry spots here and there but it is MUCH better now.
gl!

[manda7_23]

Geesh i never realized how many children suffer from eczema until i started looking into it! DD has suffered with dry red patches that are most certainly eczema since about 4 months. The Derm. gave us .2% hydrocortisone cream that does work but i refuse to use it any longer b/c of the harmful side effects and the fact that it is just supressing it instead of healing. I have discovered some foods that she is definetely allergic too, but we have an appt. with an allergist also.

I am looking into a homeopathic regimine right now, adding flax seed oil, etc. CAn you put the evening primose oil on the face? Also, can't they take it orally? Does anyone know what the dose for the flax seed oil is? I know it's 1 tsp. for adults but not sure for children. Good Luck, hopefully we will all be past this soon!

Amanda

[Dee150]

Thanks for the heads-up. We have been using it for a while now and the eczema's been the best behaved with this stuff so far- but could definitely be better. So maybe I'll try the EPO. Aquaphor and Eucerin really didn't get it better, but would keep it from getting worse. And some of the stuff I read up said that some kids may be allergic to the protein in the nuts/ wheat/ dairy but may not react to the fat. Shea butter does not make it worse- but he definitely has trouble with almonds, walnuts etc. But then again, I suspect he doesn't do well with olive oil, so really- its so hit or miss with him. But I will definitely try other things from this thread- I think I've gotten to where I'm just getting scared to let go of my 'regimen' as it has worked when other things didn't. Time to try to make it better!