Author: John Russell
Eczema, or Atopic Dermatitis, is a chronic, itchy skin
disease that usually appears on the inside of the elbows
and knees and on the face and the wrists. Infants are the
most common sufferers of eczema, and most will be free of
the disease by the time they're eighteen months old. But
children, as well as adults, can develop it at any age.
Eczema is an allergic disease; it's more common in people
who have other allergies, particularly asthma and hay
fever. The best approach for controlling eczema is similar
to that of controlling other allergies. The first step is
to try to identify allergenic foods. Some people will
dramatically improve when they eliminate allergenic foods
from their diets. Some allergenic foods are eggs, milk,
dairy products, chocolate, peanut, soy, potatoes, and the
glutens found in wheat, oats, rye, and barley. An
allergen-free diet should be followed for 4-6 weeks in
order to allow improvement. In infants, cow's milk is the
most common allergen, so it's important to breast-feed
babies as long as possible.
In addition, if the parents of a child are allergic to
certain foods, the baby may carry that allergy as well and
those foods should be avoided. It's not uncommon for babies
with eczema to develop chronic ear infections. You should
also eat fatty fish like salmon, herring, and mackerel at
least twice a week. It has also been found that the food
additive tartrazine can provoke eczema in some people,
although the reaction is not common. Tartrazine, or FD&C
Yellow Dyne No. 5, is found in many foods.
There is a great deal of evidence that people with eczema
have a problem with their digestion of essential fatty
acids. Over half of eczema suffers improve when they take
evening primrose oil - as a supplement as well as
topically. Evening primrose oil can relieve the symptoms of
eczema and help to normalize the digestion of essential
fatty acids. Vitamin C and bioflavonoids are extremely
useful in controlling this condition. Vitamin A is very
important to the health of the skin and can be very useful
in the treatment of eczema. Zinc is especially helpful for
people with eczema. Many eczema sufferers have been found
to be deficient in zinc and, in fact, zinc is an important
mineral in the fatty acid metabolism.
In addition to supplements, there are some practical
measures that you can take to relieve the symptoms of
eczema:
- Do not use hot water for bathing or showering. Use warm
water.
- Use bath oil to soften skin. Use a nondrying soap
substitute instead of soap.
- Do not use over-the-counter ointments that contain
benzocaine or antibiotics.
- Avoid lanolin in skin lotions, cosmetics, cleansers, and
the like.
- Try to avoid temperature extremes and any activity that
will involve excessive sweating.
- Aerobic exercise is beneficial to eczema and other skin
ailments. Just be sure to take a warm shower after exercise
to wash away sweat.
- Avoid any oily or greasy ointment that prevents skin from
breathing.
- Try to wear cotton and other natural fibers next to your
skin wit the exception of wool, which you should avoid.
- As stress can exacerbate eczema, practice stress
reduction techniques.
About the Author:
John Russell of IH Distribution, LLC brings you health,
anti-aging and skin care products from around the world.
Find fabulous skin care tips and great articles on a wide
range of topics for women at
http://www.hormones-beauty-
