What exactly is eczema? What causes it? Why does it only effects certain areas of your body?
Saturday, September 4th, 2010 at
2:48 pm
I had eczema since i was 4 y/o. A dermatologists told me that my eczema was caused by sudar and food coloring. i only get rashes near joints ex. back of neck, inside of elbows and knees, over and under my eyelids and sometimes under my arms
sources and sites also would be helpful.
Tagged with: dermatologists • eczema • elbows • eyelids • food coloring • joints • knees • sudar
Filed under: Eczema Articles
Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!
I have atopic dermatitis;I’ve had it for over forty years and I have lots of experience in treating the condition.The first thing you need to do is to be properly diagnosed by a dermatologist.If you already have been there are lotions and medicines that help treat the rashes.Eczema can affect the skin all oner your body,not just certain places,I’ve had it all over my body over the many years I’ve lived with this consition. Doctors really do not know why eczema exists;they just know that it’s a genetic condition that predisposes the skin towards hypersensitivity.They do know what can trigger a rash.So have to avoid lots of things.
1.Get rid of all soaps and scented products.Soaps are drying and take away the protective moisture barrier that atopic skin already has very little of and switch to Cetaphil cleansers.The cleansers come in lotion and bar forms.Aveeno Collidal Oatmeal powder is good for the bath;there is also Aveeno Colloidal Oatmeal bath/shower oil and shave gel.After cleaning you then can apply any medicines,but you will always have to apply a moisturizer,every time you clean.Cetaphil Cream moisturizer and Eucerin Cream are the most popular among dermatitis patients.
2.Atopic Dermatitis means having hypersensitive skin.You cannot use most skin care products available because they are too harsh;even baby oil and baby lotions are too harsh.Stay away from all scented products and highly colored products.Do not use any thing with AHA acids,sugar acids,retinol,peeling agents,lanolin,benzocaine or any"-caine" derivative,greasy ointments, petrolatum( like Vaseline),ointments containing antihistamines,anything containing alpa-olefin sulfonates,secondary alkane sulfonates,alkybenzene sulfonates,fatty alcohol sulfonates.
3.Wear soft fabrics;dermatologists prefer that their patients wear all natural cotton,silk,linen fabrics that allow the perspiration to evaporate away from the skin.Your own perspiration can trigger a rash!If you wear wool,it must be lines are you need to wear a layer of soft fabric between your skin and the wool(I do both at the same time,lined wool,tee shirts,camisoles,long underwear).Detergents and fabric softeners all need to be unscented and gentle.Your sheets and blankets need to be soft and unscratchy.
4.Anti-perspirant deodorants need to be unscented and formulated for sensitive skins.Shampoos that are good are tar-based Neutragena and Denorex,and non-prescription strength Nizoral.Conditioners just have to be moisturizing.Scalpicin is a clear lotion that can help with scalp itch.
5.You will need to wear gloves when doing wet work;these rubber gloves have to be worn over cotton liners that are available in the beauty sections of pharmacies.Fabric gloves need to be worn when you are doing dusty ,dry work.Latex gloves need to be worn when you handle potatoes,garlic,onions,citrus fruits,tomatoes and pineapple.These foods contain highly irritating juices;I forgot to wear my gloves when I was chopping onions,once, and I thought that my hands were on fire!I had to ice them.
6.Over the years,some medications have become available over the counter;these are the hydrocortisone or corticosteroid creams.Cortaid is the best of these;Cortaid makes a special moisturizing formula which my dermatologist made up especially for his patients.Precription cortisone cream,Prednisone,Lidex are doctor precribed medicines.I do not recommend Protopic or Elidel,two prescription medicines that are currently being investigated to increased risk of skin cancer.I have found that the Cortaid with moisturizers and liberal use of Cetaphil moisturizing crream does just as well as any of the prescriptions I’ve used. The hard part is accepting that some rashes will go away,while others will take years to burn out;my worst flare up was on my hands and lasted for four years.I was on prescription medicines and visiting the dermatologist during the whole awful episode.
You will need to take an antihistamine because dermatitis is an autoimmune disease that usually is accompanied by allergies(hayfever) and asthma.
8.If you ever get an oozy rash,you can dry it up by using Bluborro astringent powder;just follow the directions to make a wet dressing.Drying the ooze helps the medicine work better.
9.Wear a sunblock containing avobenzone or zinc oxide.
10.Read up on atopic dermatitis/eczema;just get writings by qualified doctors(dermatologists only).
11.Keep nails short and clean.Do ot scratch and try not to stress.Being highly emotional makes things worse for the skin.
Source(s):
Eczema Free for Life by Adnan Nasir,M.D. and Priscilla Burgess
Your Skin:From Acne to Zits by Jerome Z. Litt,M.D.
Your Skin:A Dermatologist’s Guide to a Lifetime of Beauty and Health by Frederic Haberman,M.D. and Denise Fortino
The National Eczema Association has a printable booklet available online(just ignore ads for the two medicines under investigation)