One of my good friends is battling eczema with her 6 month old, solely breastfeeding child. For anyone who has suffered from this, or had a child who suffered from it, you know how hard it can be to both cure and function with. My friend has tried different dietary measures, such as taking out dairy, gluten and soy, but her little babe keeps getting worse and is quite uncomfortable.
Different homemade lotions and such have been somewhat helpful in the past (she makes a lotion bar similar to Madeon: Lotion Bars, which many have found very helpful for this skin condition), but at this point she really needs to address the root issue. And to do that she needs to find out what that root issue is!
From my own personal reading, I know that many find relief after healing their gut on a diet, like the Body Ecology Diet, or the GAPS diet. But since I haven’t personally dealt much with this issue, I feel like I am very limited in what I can recommend. But I know that many of you have dealt with this condition with success and I am hoping you have suggestions to offer.
Would you be willing to share what has helped you and what hasn’t? We would love to hear anything and everything that you think would be helpful. Thanks in advance!
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My only advice is that I was shocked when I went through this with one of my sons – I had not realized that it could take up to 6 weeks of no dairy for that dairy to entirely leave my system and therefore breastmilk. So I would ask how long she avoided the possible allergens before giving up. In babies, medical studies say that dairy is THE most common cause of eczema. At least 7 years ago when it was my baby that was the word. I hope they find a solution fast. My son has been eczema free for seven years (as a baby he was so bad that we didn’t even take his picture for nearly a month because his face looked so bad, how sad is that?!) but suddeny he has developed a spot on his face again – after seven years. I’m hoping this is not a sign it is starting again.
My 8 month old daughter has had eczema for about 3 1/2 – 4 months now. I agree with what Jessica said… I think every baby/child has different triggers and ways to combat them. When her eczema first appeared, I began taking action right away. Since I breastfeed, I tried eliminating certain foods, but that didn’t seem to help at all. As far as a healthy gut goes…. I think mine is in pretty good shape. Before I got pregnant I did a 2 week colon cleanse, ate a healthy diet afterward (I only eat natural, organic food, juice as much as much as possible, and eat as much of it raw as possible), and I take probiotic daily. So, an unhealthy gut doesn’t seem to be the case, and I haven’t found any foods she is allergic to yet.
After trial and error this is what I’ve come up with (for my baby). I tried wearing only organic cotton on her… didn’t help. I was already using a dye and perfume free laundry detergent, and a natural perfume free soap for bathing… so I knew that wasn’t the case. I tried making her bath water a little cooler, and that seemed to help a little. Heat is definitely a factor. I make sure she doesn’t get over heated in the bath or with having too many clothes on. Stress is definitely a major factor… she began teething, and it was worse than ever until her bottom 2 teeth came through. Then it began to get better, but didn’t go away. I also noticed that it would get better after we would leave the house for awhile (indoors or outdoors). My conclusion there is that she may be either allergic to our cats, or to the dust in our very old house.
I’ve tried different topical agents on her that really help…. coconut oil works pretty well, flax oil works pretty well (though it stains clothes), but the one that works the best hands down is just pure vitamin E oil (natural plant-based). I buy the JASON brand vitamin E oil that’s for topical use. It provides the best relief from the itchiness, and makes it heal the fastest. I always try to keep her skin lathered with something as much as possible, and I put evening primrose oil in her bath (relieves itchiness). I put a little flax oil (pure, unfiltered) in her food …. the omega 3’s are anti-inflammatory. I’ve also been taking my baby out in the sun (when it’s out) for at least 15 minutes per time, and that’s definitely making it better!
It has been, and still is an on-going battle for me. I’m still trying to identify any new root problems while continuing to treat it day by day. I think every baby/child is going to have different culprits, and treatment plans. I hope some of this helps, and I wish everyone the best of luck!
My daughter has had excema since she was 6 months old. It’s not constant. She does have a peanut/tree nut allergy, but she is never exposed. I kept her inside a lot in the winter months up until this winter. After I had her Vitamin D level checked and found that it was on the very low side of the ‘normal’ range, I started putting her outside in the sun every day. I did that throughout the summer and continued into the cold months. Her excema has been MUCH better. She has had hardly any trouble with it.
When it does come up, I often use Flanders diaper cream.
Hi, Kim! So sorry to hear about your friend’s baby. My son had horrible eczema for over a year (he’s 20 months now). At it’s worst, he had a scaly rash over 90% of his body. For us it was a combination of figuring out his food allergies and using a lotion bar. His eczema still flares sometimes and usually it’s b/c he has found something on the floor that he isn’t supposed to eat. He has older siblings who aren’t always neat. You can see his before and after pics here: http://nurturedfamilylife.blogspot.com/2011/03/lotion-bars-incredible-before-and-after.html
I know a lot of people love GAPS and similar diets, but for us it was just too limiting and expensive. I’ve eliminated the culprits and am praying he will out grow the allergies soon. Good luck to your friend!
I am a nutritional therapist, orofacial myologist and Buteyko Breathing practitioner. I can say that if any child is breathing through their mouth, it will cause eczema among many other things. The eczema will turn into asthma if allowed to continue. The only way to permanently eliminate eczema is to nose breath and to learn to breath less. Besides the problems this will prevent it also prevents the teeth and face muscle problems that can lead to orthodontics which is usually no help. Breathing and swallowing right are vital to health. Here is where the nutrition is also helpful. So the only way to cure the eczema is to see a Buteyko Breathing practitioner and have help teaching the brain to need less air which is what the nose breather does. Then there are all the other things the nose breathing does for our health. I am working with a patient right now and her daughter about this age has battled eczema for years, since an illness when very small. The breathing was the last resort which is too bad and the diet. They will see a difference in a few days. Check it out Buteykobreathingclinic.com.
I did a lot of experimentation with diet and different lotions and creams (including very natural stuff) to little effect with my daughter’s eczema.
The only thing that finally cured it was moving from South Carolina to Canada! I assumed at the time that it must have been a dust/allergen issue in the SC house, but when we went on vacation to the Caribbean recently, it started coming back again.
So it seems that heat and humidity were ultimately to blame, and once we moved to a drier, cooler climate, it magically cleared up. Not everyone can just pick up and move, of course, but seriously think about running a dehumidifier all year long and turning down the thermostat.
I would recommend using extra virgin coldpressed coconut oil for the babies skin .
If I was the mother I would go on an elimination diet cut things out and see if the babies skin improves ,I would also suggest that she go and have allergy tests because she may be eating some foods that are not agreeing with her and then affecting her baby !
I send them both lots of love , it must be very distressing for her and her precious baby .
perhaps she could have a few days on only raw fruit and vegetables and take special note of any improvements or flare ups , she could also start a food journal and take special notice of her babies skin , she may start to see a pattern . I hope that is of some help .maybe some food for thought . sending prayers . ask god/universe for guidance, also tell her to follow her intuition , and getr her to ask her baby what foods are bothering them , it may sound really werid but try it ,you will probably be saying the baby cannot talk ,I know that , that’s where she needs to open up and use her intuition . please try it .you have nothing to lose and it just may help heal the baby .after all that’s the aim here ! Sherrie
I had eczema until I was 20. I had an allergy test and turns out it was yeast (both bakers and brewers). There were other allergies, however, everytime I ate something with yeast my eczema came back.
There are so many causes of eczema. I don’t know how early babies can be tested (I think sometime after one, and still it’s not all that accurate until 5 or something).
What a frustrating time for your friend. So hard to see your little one suffer. My son and daughter had eczema starting around 6 months. My daughter’s trigger was soy, my son’s was tomato and strawberry. Once it flares up, it seems to take a while to go away even once you eliminate the triggers. For my daughter, within 1 week of starting on probiotics and vit c, she was almost completely better. My son’s case was so severe. I would go to get him out of his crib and his sheets were streaked with blood. He also got better with probiotics, vit c, and also flax oil. I don’t have a reason why they worked , but they did.
It may be necessary to provide the baby with supplemental probiotics (bacterius infatitis). Eczema can be related to poor population of beneficial bacteria in the baby’s intestinal system, which is why dairy and gluten sensitivities are also common. So, she may want to look at doing some good bateria supplementation for her son. The GAPS book describes the probiotic connection in good detail.
The thing with eczema is that it is caused by something toxic in the body – so that could mean many things – food, environmental, a product you use, vaccines, etc. You have to do some research to figure it out. You don’t want to suppress it with lotions, creams and medications. Instead, try baths with 1/4 unfiltered apple cider vinegar (this draws out toxins) and a little bit of organic olive oil (which will soothe the skin and not suppress). Sometimes it’s a hard thing to figure it out. We thought for over a year that our daughters’ severe eczema was caused by food, then we figured out that it was toxic mold that was causing it. We unknowingly were living in a house with toxic mold for over 2 years. I’ve seen coconut oil mentioned above, it’s great, but just make sure that coconut is not the issue, many have a food sensitivity to coconut. Also, getting good quality omega 3 into your diet (fermented cod liver oil is a great way to help) can help with eczema. And last Bioplasma by Hylands (homeopathic cell salts) can help with eczema a lot.
I know you *probably* won’t see this, but I’d love to get more information about this if you have it! We believe that detergent is to blame for our children’s eczema, but there is a tiny nagging voice that makes me think it’s mold-related, though when I google, I can find VERY little about eczema and mold. It’s mostly allergies/asthma that are talked about in relation to mold. We do have mold on the bottom of our basement walls that I just recently noticed. We are intimidated on how to tackle it and have spent $2000 just in the last two weeks on things to try to improve our children’s awful skin (all new products, a water softener, a Berkey, organic clothing, sheets, etc.), so I can only imagine that paying a mold specialist to come out and remove that mold will be incredibly expensive, but reading this post from you gives me a little hope! If you happen to see this, could you possible email me or even reply here? I’d love to know how you found out and what you did to remove it. Thank you so much in advance!
All allergies are caused by a bogged down liver. Sadly babies can start young with liver trouble. Not sure about a 6 mo. old but I would pursue liver strengthening and if any kind of gentle cleansing can be done.
Hi! My husband has eczema and we started making homemade raw coconut cream that he eats daily..(has lots of Lauric acid similar to breastmilk) its been helping him out …email me if you would like the recipe!!
Jen, it would be nice to see the recipe… innaradzi@yahoo.com… Thanks much!
I, and several members of my family, have had amazing success with NAET treatments. A practitioner uses muscle resistance testing to determine food or substance intolerances and uses a form of acupuncture to treat (as in eliminate!) them. My cousin’s baby has been treated successfully so it is possible to treat babies (without needles). As with any type of professional, some are more qualified than others, but it would definitely be worth looking into. If nothing else, the muscle resistance testing would determine what the possible allergens are!
one question – did you and/or are you still allowing vaccinations? if so – stop, if you did allow them till now, demand a full accounting of the ingredient list of the adjuncts in the vaccines your infant was given (did they contain mercury or aluminum) and proceed to treat accordingly.
the comment above about babies and liver trouble highlights this – please consider – how could we have survived as a species if infants already had liver problems? DIET is very important – there are good suggestions here (NO SOY, NO GRAINS, NO COW MILK – try goats milk) but PLEASE LOOK INTO THE VACCINES!
My daughter had a pretty bad case of eczema when she was only 15 mos old. I had moms come to me and ask me if she was ok or if she had the chicken pox. The pediatrician wanted to put her on steroids (i refused) and this is when I began our journey of healthy living. I began taking her to a naturopath. He said she was allergic to wheat, dairy, corn, soy, her diapers and wipes and bandaids (the adhesive is made from poisonous materials like petroleum). I immediately took her off all those things and used tushies diapers (he told me most all diapers contain the poison formaldehyde although it isn’t easy to prove this but I was able to google it and figure out it was true), made my own wipes and started her on probiotics. We also used a cream (and still do even though her eczema is gone, it is just wonderful for anything skin related) called Rapha Remedy with the P73 wild oregano in it (google it). It is pricey but for us, it was worth its weight in gold! So, after all these changes, she cleared up. It took quite a while. My husband grew impatient as it was so difficult to see his little girl look and feel so yucky. I prayed to the Lord for my husband to hang in there. I’m glad he did b/c she did get better but it wasn’t instantly. She has not looked like that since then and she is 4 years old now. She will get a little patch every now and then if she has been given something w/o my approval first. That to me is proof she has those food allergies even to this day. I can give her some of those foods but very sparingly w/o a breakout. I also make sure that when she does get those foods that they are organic and raw (dairy). She does very well with raw goats milk and cheese. We gave her the probiotic called 3-lac (globehealthtrax.com). The more I read about this stuff the more I believe that it stems from the liver and gut. She was VERY jaundice at birth. I hope you can get more good info to help your friend out!
Blessings to you and thank you for a wonderful site!
Just to add my own experience with eczema. I had it in patches on my body and finally ended up having my hands covered in it so it looked like I’d been burned. Last spring I started drinking nettles infusions for seasonal allergies and after a few months my hands cleared up completely. I stopped the nettles in the fall and slowly my eczema started returning. When I realized the connection I started the nettles again. At the same time I learned about the detox pathway controlled by folate (which when not functioning contributes to eczema/skin disorders among other things), MTHFR (folate) genetic mutations (with which the body doesn’t utilize folic acid, needs the real stuff, folate). More food folate, in baby’s diet, or through mom’s milk, might help with proper detox if that particular detox pathway isn’t functioning well.
I would love to read more on folate. Can you tell me more or tell me where you did your reading. My daughter has also suffered from eczema since she was two months old and I would love to read more about what you found. Thanks. You can e-mail me privately if you want. bassoon80 (AT) gmail.com
my oldest had terrible eczema (which appeared way before her first vaccine) all over her little body and she has several severe food allergies but the eczema continued long after her allergies were identified and eliminated from the breastfeeding diet and eventually her diet. shes a full blown “allergy-kid” despite a very healthy and whole diet, probiotics, etc. she is allergic to cats and we got rid of the cat and that helped with all of her symptoms, including the eczema but it really cleared up once a dr explained the Soak and Seal to me. Basically, you need to really hydrate the skin in a bath (or shower) for at least 15 minutes. Within 3 minutes you need to Seal in the moisture. The dr recommended a heavy petroleum based eucerin or something like that- where its practically pure petroleum jelly. just light oils will only soften the skin, not hydrate it (there is no water in oil) we used the heavy pet product until it was under control and then i started making a heavy body butter (shea & coccoa butter whipped with coconut oil) that does the same thing even though its basically oils but really dense oils. this was all between 4months-1.5 years. its all under control now (shes 3.5yrs) but her little hands and wrists still flare up from heavy washing (and poor rinsing!). we use very gentle soap & shampoo, nothing scented, etc. i double rinse her clothes if i use a stain remover. no chemical sunscreens, etc.
I think the cat was a huge trigger for her whole system but she also flared up during all those first virus’. her skin was painful to look at but its amazing now. i dont know if the probiotics played a role but we still do them and she still eats great so it might not help with the eczema but it helps with everything else 🙂
i hope the bebes skin gets under control- its so painful to watch them itch! i read somewhere that basically all kdis with food allergies have eczema, but not all kids with eczema have food allergies so once she gets the bebes immune system sorted, hopefully the culprit isnt food and he can feast away on all the glorious cheeses out there!
I have struggled with eczema in a very light form since I was a child. I do notice that staying off of gluten, dairy, and sugar do help. What I have found to help the most is staying off of acidic foods like tomatoes, citrus, kiwi, etc. Even though potatoes are not considered acidic, potatoes are my biggest culprit. I hope your friend can find some relief for her baby, it is so frustrating as a parent when we can not help our children.
My son (6) has had eczema since day 1. It’s very frustrating, especially when Drs. only solution is steroid cream. I’m sorry for all the little kids who have to live with this, it’s miserable. We had my son tested for every allergy under the sun and everything came back negative. Still for us taking out gluten and dairy did wonders though, he still breaks out on occasion. For us the best lotion is coconut oil. He loves it because he smells good. Melt a little cocoa butter in and it smells like a mounds bar :D. Every other lotion or cream burned his skin and would have to be washed off. Another thing that has worked for us is making sure his clothes are 100% cotton.
I believe deep down it is a gut issue. Once school is out for summer break we are going to try raw milk. He also drinks water kefir (which he loves) and eats a lot of fermented foods.
I am interested in hearing of anything that works for her son.
My daughter battled eczema for several months u til I took her to an allergist when she was 14 months old. She did a skin test and it turned ot that she is allergic to dairy, eggs and nuts. In addition to avoiding these allergens, a lot can be done with skin care. This is what the allegist told me:
1. Control dryness: bathe once a day, warm to cool water, never hot. Make sure to rinse with fresh water after bath! Use dove soap bar (white). Pat dry with cotton towel (should still be damp). Immediately after patting dry, apply Vanicream (a lotion that you can find at walgreens and other drug stores). stop all other creams and lotions (most creams have natural products derived from plants that can cause allergies. Vanicream is free of all of this!). As a shampoo she recommended California baby, unscented.
2. Control itching: cotton linen. No flannel, fleece, polyester. Wash sheets in hot water. No bleach, fabric softener. Use hypoallergenic detergent.
3. Control inflammation bu avoiding allergens (food she is allergic to)
4. Control secondary infections: always use soap with cool bath, always rinse with fresh water after bath. Keep heat in house at 70 F or lower.
Since we implemented all of these strategies her skin has completely cleared up!! The dr said that 75% is about skin care!
Good tips! I would put in a word of caution about the Vanicream – many kids are sensitive to petroleum products. My son is allergic to them, which unknowingly made his eczema worse when we started with prescription lotions as an infant. His eczema is caused by multiple food allergies, but petroleum products still make him break out. None of the natural, plant oil based creams and salves I make have. Allergies can be really tough to pin down, especially in kids. Best of luck to your friend!
What helpful responses! I am blessed and thankful for all the good suggestions and for Kimi’s kindness in posting this question for my sweet daughter. I intend on getting radical with our diet (I thought I already was, but now know I need to pursue this further to see if that is the root issue). Thanks again everyone and God bless you!
Mark 1:40-45 (New International Version, ©2011)
Jesus Heals a Man With Leprosy
40 A man with leprosy[a] came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.”
41 Jesus was indignant.[b] He reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” 42 Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed.
43 Jesus sent him away at once with a strong warning: 44 “See that you don’t tell this to anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.” 45 Instead he went out and began to talk freely, spreading the news. As a result, Jesus could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in lonely places. Yet the people still came to him from everywhere.
Footnotes:
a.Mark 1:40 The Greek word traditionally translated leprosy was used for various diseases AFFECTING THE SKIN.
b.Mark 1:41 Many manuscripts Jesus was filled with compassion
Jesus heals ALL who come to HIM, He loves you!!! Just ask Him 🙂 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith–and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God–Ephesians 2:8
Amanda, thank you for that.
My son started having symptoms of eczema at 5 months old (after 2 rounds of vaccinations before I knew better!). I believe it was a gut issue with him – he was c-section and then we had a long battle with thrush. Initially I treated it topically with coconut oil, and supplemented internally with cod liver oil and a probiotic from the health food store. It only worsened. I did not make any changes to my diet and he was exclusively breastfed. My mom suggested I try a different, more therapuetic probiotic she found at a local naturopath’s office. It was neonate by pharmax, which you can find online. His eczema cleared up within several days (it was amazing!), and didn’t recur through infancy and toddlerhood as long as I kept him on that probiotic. We do eat a whole foods diet and I was very careful when introducing foods to him. He doesn’t appear to have any allergies that I’ve been able to pinpoint.
He’s 3.5 now, and this fall we’ve seen a recurrence of the eczema– just mildly behind his knees. He’s had no dietary changes that would have triggered it, so I’m just managing it topically at this point and trying to figure out why it’s back. We live in MT and it’s very dry in the winter. We spent a week in Mexico and the eczema completely disappeared while we were there even though he was eating a crummy diet on vacation. So, I’m thinking/hoping that it’s just a dry skin reaction.
One thing that I didn’t see mentioned in my quick scan of the comments was increasing EFAs, either through mom’s diet and/or with supplements. When I did a quick search, several sites suggested increasing fish, avocados, flax, etc. and using Evening Primrose Oil. It’s worth the research.
My friend’s son had terrible eczema all over his body from about 2 months on, they tried everything and finally resorted to prescription steroids. Now he is a teenager and finally figured out staying away from animal dander and cats controls it. My brother also had it as a baby and it was a dairy/ wheat problem.
Hi. Have you read ‘Jenna’s Journey’ by Rachel Tomkinson? She cured her baby with really bad ezcema by eliminating the trigger (gluamates – from soy, tomatoes etc) and processed foods and healing foods like lots of butter and raw milk. My friend has done the diet and it has worked for them. Good luck!
Hi, when my daughter had skin problems, and we didn’t know what foods where the problem, a kinesiologist helped us to find out what was right for her. They can of course not work with the baby directly, but it works through the mother (who is holding the child). It may be worth a try, it only took an hour or so for us to diagnose, and it saved my daughter a lot of suffering!
My son had eczema as an infant. His dr. felt that it was only “infant eczema” and would clear up by the time he was about 18 mos. She was right. He is two and does not have it anymore. When he did have it, I treated it topically with WiseWays Herbals Eczema Care Salve. A friend with terrible eczema said that salve worked great for her. I only applied it to my son about 3x a day and it disappeared quickly.
My twins had pretty bad eczema as babies and it lasted for probably 18 months or so. They are now 6 1/2 and it’s never come back. I gradually eliminated gluten and cow dairy from their diet and introduced flax oil and fermented cod liver oil. They didn’t have any sugar (not even sucanat) until they were 3 years old. Now they occasionally have things sweetened with honey, maple syrup or sucanat, but very rarely any type of refined sugar. They are now drinking raw cow’s milk since I can no longer get raw goat’s milk where we live, but it doesn’t seem to be causing any adverse reaction.
The thing that I think really made the difference though was a homeopathic remedy I gave them after which it cleared up and has never come back. Since homeopathics are person-specific it wouldn’t do any good to say which remedy, but finding a good homeopath or naturopath to help subscribe one would be my suggestion. I find making changes to their diet to be very important, but I’ve also found that some things I’ve only really been able to take care of using homeopathy.
My sons Eczema is from our wood buring stove. I tried all different dietary changes and nothing helped so I took him to the doc and they said the ash from the wood furnace can trigger it. Some eczema is from internal triggers and others is strictly environmental which I think is what makes it so hard to figure out what is causing each persons’. For us, we stopped using the wood for a week or so to get his eczema under control and now I just use Aveeno (the one with the dark blue accents not the eczema or baby or the normal green kind) which I looked up on the Skin Deep Cosmetic Database and its ingredients are pretty safe. I would like to try the MadeOn lotion bar tho to see if that would work. But for now his eczema is gone he will get a patch occationally if I didn’t put lotions on him after his bath. We are stopping the use of our wood furnace this week (cause you know it spring even if it doesn’t feel like it and we are all out of wood) so I am excited to not have to worry about his eczema for spring and summer.
Oh and I give him Cod Liver Oil and it really seems to help which I think is why I can get away with a day of missing the lotion and he is still okay. I just get the Nodic Naturals baby kind right now but am hoping to get some of the better stuff next time I need it.
I don’t have time to read the other responses right now, but wanted to let you know what I have learned. My homeopathic doc told me that my daughter’s eczema was caused by her MMR vaccination. He gave us a homeopathic MMR (drops under the tongue) to cleanse her of the original vaccine. Also, our allergist told us to soak in a TEPID bath every day for at least 30 minutes (not hot–this dehydrates the skin) so that the moisture can soak into the skin. Then, slather the body with a good quality lotion to seal in the moisture. This cleared up my daughter’s skin within days. (we didn’t want to use steriod creams and the other stuff the pediatrician gave us!!) Hope this helps!
I would also like to add that when you choose your moisturizer, make sure it is free from mineral oil or petroleum products (ie: no vaseline and such, which are petro-chemicals!! These are banned in other countries like Australia & Switzerland for their link to cancer, yet the U.S. companies still use it in every personal care product out there) Check your labels carefully, looking for ones that do not contain any of these. They can be listed under many, many different names, so I would look for “no mineral oil or petroleum” etc. You should be able to find them online or at your local health food store (Whole Foods, etc). My daughter has had great luck with LUSH products (she is 15 yrs old and has suffered with eczema since she was 18 mos.) Best of luck to you!
She could try a mixture of plain kefir and sesame oil if they had on their hairy area of head. According a person who had eczema on her head.
GAPS or Body Ecology diet. If you don’t heal the inner problem all the topical/avoidance/and changes that you make are in vain. The problem is just masked/helped but it will only turn into other problems as they get older. Both my daughters have had problems… only the GAPS has treated it , other things helped (lotions/avoidance) but now I feel confident that we are getting to the bottom of the problem. We no longer have to “avoid” and we don’t have to put on “lotions”. Eating whole is key, and eating GAPS is vital.
I forgot to tell that she must use these mixture externally, as an ointment on the skin.
I can only share our experience with our son (who is now 15). When he was 2 years old he developed eczema on his thighs, rear, and stomach (about the time he was weaned and began on cows milk–I only realize this in retrospect). later it began to show up on his arms as well. It itched and was miserable. We took him to the Dr. and tried prescriptions creams but nothing worked. YEARS later (he was probably at least 8 or 9 and still struggling with eczema) an acquaintance mentioned to me that her daughter had eczema till she took her off of milk, after which time it cleared up. We experimented and sure enough, that did it. He was able to tolerate fresh, raw goats milk without problems, but the cows milk–which was pasteurized organic milk from the store–gave him trouble-so I thought it was a cows milk allergy. Later I read that it’s often the pasteurization process that creates problems for people because it alters the protein molecules in milk, making them difficult for the body to deal with (and foreign). About that time a wonderful, small organic local dairy began selling raw cow’s milk and when we tried it he was fine! I can’t say it would work for all children, but the pasteurized cows milk (as opposed to raw milk) was the culprit for us. It’s a miserable condition and I pray that the solution is found soon for this sweet little one!
My younger son started having eczema when he was around 1 month old. It spread from one cheek to the other, then on his chin, earlobes, showed up on his tummy, down his legs – I was horrified!! Turns out my gut health was shot when I was pregnant with Gavin. He was basically detoxing. The eczema continued to get worse until he was about 6 months old. He was getting regular chiro adjustments and it was at my chiro that I met another chiro who specialized in children. She mentioned how my older style carseat had uneven padding supporting my child’s back. Once I evened out the back of the seat, his eczema disappeared within a week !! I was shocked. Totally speechless. Interestingly enough it came back a few months ago (on his cheeks, some on his tummy but not as bad as before) when he got sick. He ran a fever for a few days, was pretty sick. Once he got well, the eczema disappeared. He’s now 14.5 months old. The only spots he has are a few tiny bumps (barely visible) on his tummy. I try to keep him mostly grain/starch free with few snacks here and there. He does have dairy but no soy. Since I’m doing full GAPS (I’m BF him as well) I’m keeping Gavin 99% GAPS as well. I hope your friend finds relief soon!
My youngest had it horribly. She tested positive RAST and blood testing for every allergen tested. She was very often on steroids and antibiotics as most of her skin surface eould blister, peel and bleed. her major triggers were environmental, not food. Dust mites (we were living in an historic building during the worst of it) were huge. She couldn’t tolerate dairy unless it was raw. Plants, trees, dander, so many triggers.
She is 11 now and only has flare ups when she’s eaten a couple meals of processed food in a row.
my sister-in-law was having problems with her one daughter. Although she was using a “natural, allergen-free” detergent, I suggested she stop that & try soap nuts. And it helped.
my children are fructose intolerant. they cant have any sugar or fruit, whole wheat or brown rice and most veggies. just a thought bc i know nobody thinks of this kind of intolerance.
I have had 2 babies with SEVERE eczema. Anything I learned was through experience. The first one was and still is allergic to almost everything. Organic meat and most veggies excluded. As a baby fruit was still a huge problem after all common allergens were purged from my diet. My current daughter seems to be ok with fruit as a baby. She is allergic to all common ones (coconut, all nuts, eggs, wheat, dairy, soy, pork, most all grains). Her eczema was still bad until I cut out rice. That was the last bad one. During the misery of dealing with it when it is painful and waking her up at night, and scratching until she is bleeding, I learned a few things. A humidifier in her room is very important. Olive oil baths are EXTREMELY important. Chlorine is very harmful. I would soak her in the sink filled with filtered warm water and about 1TB olive oil. I would stand over her and keep pouring it on her for 20-30 min. I would do this once a day. My boy needed it 2X a day. When they come out, just lightly pat them dry in crevasses. After a week or so, you will notice softer skin and less itching (although they still itch in the bath). Hope that helps.
These necklaces claim to help: http://hyenacart.com/stores/inspiredbyfinn/index.php?c=63&p=50010
I have one for my baby for teething and it helps so I would think it would help to some extent with eczema. Also, liquid Vitamin D and Arbonne Baby Care products (baby wash, lotion, and diaper rash cream…they work wonders! The diaper rash cream isn’t just for diaper rash). Those options bring relief during the weeks it takes to experiment with food allergies.
I just got back from a dr’s appt about my daughter’s eczema. He said it is so hard to rule out what causes flare ups because there are literally 100’s of things that could trigger it. He said if there is any contact at all with any non-organic substance (in soaps, laundry detergents, perfumes, makeup, polyester clothing, carpeting), then it could cause a flare up. It isn’t just food that is the problem.
My friend’s child had really bad eczema. She was able to treat it by diet. She has eliminated wheat, tree nuts, peanuts, shellfish, dairy, eggs, nightshade veggies (eggplant, tomatoes, peppers, white potatoes), and fish.
I posted yesterday already, but I wanted to add a caution about NAET therapy. It’s the accupuncture treatment of food allergies (accupressure for little kids). I had it done on both my son and daughter for food allergies. In the case of my son, the food allergy came back after a month, and for my daughter it came back after a year. I’ve heard that 1 year is fairly common. I know some people swear by it, but for us it was a lot of money wasted. However, I will say that when the NAET doctor did the initial testing of individual foods, her assessment was spot on. She was able to tell us exactly what they were allergic to without drawing a drop of blood or a single skin test. It was amazing!
Teresa
I’ve heard many good reports of Melaluca’s “Renew” lotion helping tremendously…
Another cause might be yeast, which transfers from mama to baby via the breast. If mama and baby can get on a really good pro-biotic, things might clear up skin-wise. A friend had this issue and pro-biotics cleared it up for her and her daughter. My son had diarrhea as an infant, and pro-biotics were what cleared that up for him and for me (I didn’t even realize I had a yeast issue!).
hazelaid.com
Its amazing.
Get the book, “Healing Psoriasis” by Dr. John Pagano and follow it. It works! My husband and I personally visited the author for treatment. At one point in time, my husband was so bad that every inch, literally, of his skin peeled off. He had “snow” falling from his shirt sleeves, and I had to vaccum every where that he sat or walked. It took him a little over a year to heal. But it was the diet, soley, that worked. Part of the diet will be for mom to stay away from tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, and eggplant. I’m sure baby will heal within a few months.