Healthy Green Moms

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After 14+ months of racking my brain to resolve my daughters pesky baby eczema we have finally won the battle! Olivia’s skin is finally as it should be. Perfectly smooth and clear. No more red scaly patches, sandpaper texture skin, bright red lines in her creases or irritating itch. {Sigh} It is a small issue in so many ways, but seeing it resolved is such a big relief for me.

I consulted my doctor 3 times over 14 months and each time Cortizone and medicated creams were suggested as the best way to cure the symptoms. I declined that option because I knew the eczema still bothered me more than Olivia and it afforded me additional time to find a solution.

All the while, I kept thinking that a topical solution is not going to cure the eczema. It’s coming from the inside. I found out that many experts consider baby eczema to be related to food allergies, even foods in mothers milk. Interesting enough, the largest patch of eczema was on her stomach, corresponding to her digestive system.

Want to know how we finally beat it?

We removed all cow dairy from our diet and switched over to all goats dairy! We first noticed the eczema when she was just 2 weeks old. Although we did not introduce a cows milk at 12 months, I overlooked how my own dairy consumption could effect her through nursing. I don’t drink milk either, but I didn’t even consider the yogurt in my diet because I view yogurt as being a “good” dairy. I love yogurt!

14 months later, after exhausting every possible external irritant, we finally made the switch to goats dairy, including cheese, milk and yogurt. It was a matter of days for the eczema to clear up and disappear. We use a goats milk for Liv that has exactly the same fat content as cow dairy. Liv is now over 16 months old and the baby eczema has not returned. (Just a note that a milk based formula may be enough to trigger eczema as well.)

Although the root cause was food allergy related, I discovered that there are helpful things you can do to minimize symptoms and reduce nasty flares. Here are a few additional suggestions for managing baby eczema:

1.  Remove Environmental Irritants

• Launder baby clothes in an unscented, non-toxic, biodegradable and hypo-allergenic detergent. Use very little detergent and allow the agitation of the water to clean the clothes instead so that there is no soap residue.
• Use an organic crib mattress pad to provide additional protection from irritants in conventional crib mattresses or purchase an organic crib mattress.
• Invest in a few 100% organic cotton or bamboo receiving blankets
• Avoid using unnatural synthetic clothing, especially sleepers, as they can irritate delicate skin & baby eczema. 100% Cotton or 100% Organic cotton is best.

2.  Manage the Itch

• Reduce baby baths to a minimum. Retaining moisture is a problem for eczema and baths tend to dry the skin. Instead, keep baby’s diaper area clean with washable soft baby cloths. I realized that I was over bathing my newborn. Once I reduced the baths to 1-2 times a week, her eczema improved.
• Keep baths lukewarm, as warmer baths increase itch and irritation.
• Keep baths short. Longer baths tend to dry out the skin.
• Avoid using mineral and seed bath oils and foaming bubble baths.
• Use soap sparingly, especially on newborns. How dirty can they be? Keep in mind the ingredients of many conventional baby soaps. I searched high a low for a quality baby wash that is free of toxic ingredients.
• Avoid products with artificial or synthetic fragrance. Even pure essential oils can be irritating to baby eczema so use caution with these products and do a spot test.

3. Keep Baby’s Skin Moisturized

• Moisturize immediately following a bath while the skin is still damp.
• Moisturize often, 4-5 times per day. This is why it is essential to use a safe baby cream, because the skin literally drinks up the ingredients.
• Keep searching for a suitable baby cream. I have tried nearly every cream, including Vaseline and Eucerin. I never thought Vaseline would cross my doorstep in a million years. While it worked for a few days, it did not last and I just did not feel right about using it, regardless of the outcome. Only now have I finally chosen this cream and this lotion. If you are dealing with baby eczema you already know that very few lotions and creams are effective in not irritating the dry red cracks on the skin.

4. Monitor Diet

• Consider dairy, citrus, and wheat in your diet if breastfeeding.
• If baby is on solid foods, keep charts of foods that you introduce to see if any cause additional flares. For us cow dairy, peppers, carrots, strawberries and citrus caused increased flares.
• Now that the cow dairy has been eliminated, all other food sensitivities are gone.

Baby eczema can be very complicated and no single cure works for all. In my own experience a process of elimination was required to get to the root cause. I worked on the environmental factors first and then closly observed the internal factors, namely her diet. This is where we were finally rewarded with our cure. I hope these suggestions will lead you in the right direction for curing your baby’s eczema.

Tags: Birth & Baby, Natural Remedies

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