4 BIG Reasons Why Your Child Has Eczema and What to Do About Them
Nearly one in three children is diagnosed with eczema. Many children grow out of eczema and it is thought to be because they are growing out of allergies. This can be true for some which is great!
But, that doesn't mean that you can't do something about it while it's there. It is also important to note that some children do not grow out of eczema in which case they will need lifelong help managing it.
However, if you, like me are super curious as to what could be causing your child's eczema there are several things to try to see if they help. They might not be the root cause of what is going on in your little's body but then again they may be! I will show you how to help them in easy, cheap, and effective ways. The plus side is, even if these are not the causes they will not hurt your child.
COMMON CAUSES OF ECZEMA
1. Dry Skin - This is pretty common sense and is what people think of when they think of treating eczema. This is a legitimate cause of eczema especially if you notice your child always gets eczema around the same time of year (consider temperature and humidity changes). There are three suggestions I have for this.
#1 - Add a cool mist humidifier to your child's room when he/she is sleeping. This will help to keep them from getting dried out during the night. When you r body becomes de-hydrated it takes water from "nonessential" areas such as skin to help your organs and vital parts function. A humidifier will help.
#2 - Drink lots of water during the day. You can't be hydrated if you aren't drinking a lot of water. Sorry, there's just no other way to make it happen. Soda, juice, coffee, and energy drinks are no substitute for plain water.
#3 - Try coconut oil on the dry patches. Obviously do not do this if your child has a coconut allergy. It will help to keep the patches from becoming more dry from the dry air and, if they are oozing or raw it will help to keep bacteria out as it is antibacterial. It is also soothing and cooling which should help your child itch less.
2. Lack of Good Probiotics - This is something I don't think we often think about when we think of eczema. But, it does make sense. Probiotics help to balance the yeast and bacteria in our bodies. Since eczema can be caused by an overgrowth of yeast, it follows that probiotics that would bring back into balance the yeast on your skin as well as in your digestive tract.
The one thing that I have found to be the most effective for children is milk kefir (the exception being children with dairy allergies who can drink water kefir instead). Kefir can be flavored to make it sweeter, consumed plain as my son does, put in smoothies, and made at home (see recipe here).
Kefir has been proven in several studies to be one of the most successful foods/products at repopulating the gut.
I have a personal testimony of how great kefir is. My son has eczema on and off and I couldn't figure out what was causing it for quite awhile. Then it occurred to me that every time I stopped giving him kefir for a few weeks, he would get eczema covering his whole back, upper arms, and around his sides.
So, this last time when I noticed it I started giving him kefir the next day and within three days his eczema was completely gone!!!
He doesn't drink it every day but every other day or every third day and still no eczema! Now, this is just his story but I am fairly certain it is the kefir that is keeping his yeast in line so we will not be stopping it any time soon.
3. Allergies - There is so much information coming out about allergies these days that it is dizzying to keep up with. However, when most of us think of allergies we think of anaphylaxis (the most severe reaction that can cause swelling, difficulty breathing, rash and untreated death) but, there are many more types of allergies and reactions that can happen in our bodies.
Some of these called IgE are the allergies that are anaphlyactic. IgG allergies are what we would call the others for the most part. These are not life-threatening but can make life miserable. These can only be known through testing (still not 100% accurate). Allergies to foods, animals, things outside, and chemicals can cause eczema.
The best way to handle this one is to see if you can eliminate exposure to the allergen which is difficult in today's day and age when you can be allergic to literally anything!
However, it is usually helpful to make a diary of when eczema appears, spreads, and where it is on the body to help narrow down what could be the problem. Also list any unusual things about the day that it appears, any new foods, and new detergents, any high allergens (can check the weather channel) as a good place to start.
4. Clogged Liver - This is one I also didn't realize until recently. Your liver processes the toxins in your body. When you liver gets clogged your body has to eliminate toxins another way so usually that is through your skin. The best way to handle this is to unclog your liver!
Unclogging your liver is actually not too difficult but should be done under the supervision of a medical professional. It is pretty easy to do with herbs in a safe, natural way that benefits your health. Some herbs that will detox your liver are dandelion, and milk thistle.
Take little bits every day as they can have a laxative effect. I accidentally gave my son a tiny bit of diarrhea so trust me, you'll want to take it easy with these.
I hope these help you to help your body and your children's bodies! Eczema is no fun and I hope this helps your little's feel a little bit better. Over the counter medications can have harmful side effects, so I hope this info helps you be healthier and safer!
Blessings!
Kelsie
(The Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.)