Eczema

• Low strength hydrocortisone creams are available from pharmacists in UK. Not sure about other countries. These are okay but recommended for use on face. General non-perfumed plain emollients / moisturizers are useful for the dry / scaly / itchy bits. I find it helps to watch my skin closely & see what's going on... Water blisters under the skin are often the irritated, recent eczema which later becomes scaly / drier as the blisters break the skin & it dries out.

• Also, if you want to go the cheap route, you can use plain old Crisco shortening. You can buy a huge can for less than one jar of Eucerin. You can also buy the generic version of Eucerin at Wal-Mart for about $4. You should bathe, then slather yourself with the Crisco or cream before drying yourself off for the best effect.

• Also, consider getting an allergy test. Although having one done is sometimes cumbersome, and even a pain, you can discover what foods, animals, carpets, or even trees cause your Eczema flare-ups. I use to love going for a morning walk in a neighborhood filled with Cherry Blossoms. But, every time I went walking, I would ferociously itch to death. Well, it turns out, the Cherry Blossoms were the source of my pain. I also discovered I had an allergy to whole wheat and tomatoes. If you can?t afford to have an allergy test done, consider keeping a journal. Keep a log of everything you eat, wear, and do on a particular day.

• One over the counter treatment for eczema that I would recommend is Zenmed's DermCare System. It provides a soothing relief and is specifically designed to heal and restore damaged or problem skin and for treating and preventing outbreaks of eczema or dermatitis.

• Also, load up on Zinc, B Complex, Fish Oils, and Grape Juice. These supplements will help your dry, itchy skin from the inside out.

1. First you want to avoid all irritating products, you want to launder your clothes in dye free, perfume free detergent, double rinsing & avoid fabric softeners.
2. Second you want to use a perfume free, dye free, lanolin free & oil free soap such as Dove Pure & Gentle or Basis (I highly recommend Basis....Wal-Mart sells it, near the neutrogena products).
3. Third you want to constantly hydrate your skin, with liberal amounts of lotion (I find Curel to be one of the best for people with Eczema). You always want to apply lotion within 3 minutes of stepping from the shower (before your pores close)and when you dry yourself off just pat yourself dry, leave a little moisture on the skin it helps absorb the lotion.

During a "flare-up" you can try 1% Hydrcortozone Cream, this is safe enough to use on any area of your body (we use it on our 14 month olds cheeks), but you DO NOT want to use it for more than 5-7 days as it makes your skin very thin & then prone to tearing & infections! If that does not work your doctor can prescribe a 2% cream however that cannot be used on the face. During "flare-ups" you may want to switch (or add to your routine) a thicker, creamier lotion such as Cetaphyl or Eucerin (both are quite costly though). Two very helpful products we have found (either available from a dermatologist's office or over the internet) are Robathol, an oil you put in your bathwater when your skin is extremely dry & sensitive (we switched my son's bath from Johnson & Johnson's to Robathol & both my husband & I shower with Robathol) & to follow-up the bath, Vanicream, a lotion you can apply to your entire body (it's nice & thick like Vaseline, which our dermatologist also recommended) but it does not have that icky smell, nor is it greasy & it absorbs into your skin, so you can put clothing on over it rather quickly. We found these on the internet cheaper than the doctor's office.....I googled the names of the products but settled on the national allergy supply company for both of them! Something we have found quite helpful if your Eczema happens to be on your hands or feet is to coat them with a very thick cream or Vaseline & for your hands wear cotton gloves or socks on them while you sleep, for your feet (especially if the heels seem to crack open) give them a nice thick coat of something, your choice, then wrap saran wrap around them, sealing in the cream & all moisture, secure it with some masking tape, then slide a sock over it. It gets a little hot and uncomfortable but after a few nights there is a tremendous difference.

Hope that was helpful. It's pretty much all over-the counter with the exception of the 2% cream, however I personally think a prescription I have is the absolute best to wiping out a flare-up, usually in one treatment, I get a huge jar for my $20.00 co-pay & it lasts me about a year!

• I suffered from eczema so bad on my face that I couldn't leave my house for weeks. Here's what you need to do: 1) Apply coconut oil (pure coconut oil from the grocery store) multiple times a day (it is anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-viral, and very healing for skin); 2) Spray your skin with Avene thermal water at least once/day (get it at drugstore.com); 3) Take Omega 3,6,9 supplements; and 4) Avoid anything with fragrances, chemicals, as described below (I now use Weleda Almond moisturizer); 5) Take exceptional care of your immune system - remove allergens from your home, get plenty of sunshine and vitamin D, get sleep, control stress, eat foods that help your immune functioning. Eczema is a systemic problem that rears its head when your body is not balanced. I hope you feel better soon.

• This has helped heal my kid's eczema. After years of searching for an antiseptic and anti-itch product for my son's eczema, we found it in the first aid aisle at Walgreen's: Safe4Hours first-aid antiseptic protectant. Because of the layer of protection my son doesn't itch and we have seen a real marked improvement in irritation. I am so excited that he finally has relief from all the itching. It has no fragrance, and not only does it moisturize his skin, the antiseptic kills bacteria for 4 hours so his open skin won't be infected. It may not work on all eczema cases, but it has truly worked for us!

• You need to stay away from almost all products, they have fragrances, dyes, chemicals, preservatives, and other ingredients that are not only irritating but harmful and damaging to the skin and body.

• I had suffered for years from problematic skin, I tried basically everything. Nothing worked, I then began extensive research of the skin, how it functions, and how it responds to different ingredients, and what it needs to repair itself.

• The skin has 7 layers (3 main,4 sub-layers) and what you need is something that can repair your skin from the bottom up.

• My daughter and her best friend both suffer through bouts of eczema. Recently Trista's mom told me about Hero stick, a product by TruKid. After about 2 weeks of using this, her eczema has decreased both in irritation and inflammation, significantly. Their ingredients include old-school herbs like, Balm of Gilead, Plantain, St John's Wort, and comfrey. (all well known for their healing/anti-inflammatory qualities.)

• I'm an 18 year old male and I have suffered from eczema my whole life. I have found the best way to treat it is to keep your skin guessing. Change up your ointments and lotions once every two months. I usually switch between 2 different lotions. Gold Bond Medicated Body lotion w/aloe & vitamin E and Eucerin lotion (in the jar so its more thick). For anti flare up medicine I go to the doctor twice a year and get a new one and switch between old ones and new ones I've gotten. Doing this makes it so my skin does not build up a tolerence of any of the products I use. Try it!

• I'm an 16 year old female and i have suffered with eczema all my life. I have been using E45 cream or foam which helps to moisture skin while gradually getting rid of my eczema. this product works 100%

• I've had eczema since I was a child and the only thing that has ever worked for me is Aquaphor. It's made by Eucerin and it looks like vaseline, but it provides immediate relief, and you can get it at any pharmacy

• Stop using strong shampoo/face wash/ etc. Use gentle gylcerin soap or soapnut liquid instead. Go to sleep early and stay as stress free as possible without being escapist. Keep your blood clean by eating food that's easy to digest. Consider some sort of alternative medicine to help your body balance out.