Baby eczema and washing liquid question

[Al&Em]

Hi all

My little boy is nearly 6 months and really suffers from baby eczema. We've been to the GP several times and have been trying steroid cream and various moisturisers but it doesn't seem to clear up very well - just when it's looking better, it flares up again. It's worst in his armpits, backs of knees, under his chin and belly, where his clothes rub the most, so am wondering if it would help to change our washing detergent? We currently use Fairy non-bio but can anyone recommend another very gentle washing detergent that we could try? Or is it a case of just trying a few and see which one, if any, helps?

Thanks

[melbourne groover]

There was a really good thread on this a while back, worth maybe having a look. My advice would also be to try and get to a dermatologist. My son had eczema that started small and was getting out of hand but once we saw a dermatologist it cleared up almost immeadiately. Her advice was get there sooner rather than later as it is much easier to deal with earlier. My experience is the GP was very unwilling to prescribe anything effective, this may not be your experience though.

Good luck!

[bumpy]

My little boy came out in eczema recently - for what seemed like no apparent reason. I decided not to go down the steroid route and instead saw the homeopathist on Lordship Lane http://www.dulwichtherapyrooms.co.uk/#/homeopathy/4522469338 and also used a cream called SOS by Barefoot Botanicals. If you preferred they offer a 15 minute FREE consultation http://www.dulwichtherapyrooms.co.uk/#/clinic-management/4523173233

[Beagle]

Are you using Fairy Liquid or powder? If I use powder we get a flare up but liquid/Liquid tabs seems to leave less residue and reduces this. I also completely avoid fabric conditioner as seems very irritating for baby and other half who has terrible eczema.

Sounds like the issue might be more complex than just washing powder but sometimes the little changes can help so worth investigating all routes.

[sanity girl]

My boy has eczema which is under control as long as I use cream after every bath. I switched washing powders after he got a bad flare up when I used ecover washing powder (apparently it can be problematic as it has essential oils for perfumes) - I now use daz but in very small quantities and I usually do an extra rinse cycle to make sure there is no residual detergent left in the clothes. I prefer powder to liquid as it is less prone to build up and doesn't leave that nasty scum in the washing machine that liquid does after a while. Also, I find it cleans better! (I am obsessive about my laundry, can you tell :))

[Saffron]

Also check the skin creams the GPs as given. If any of the products have SLS/SLES*, put them straight in the bin. New research from the States has shown that these surfactants can make eczema worse. (Our GP didn't know this and gave us these creams as a first line of defense! Get to the dermatologist ASAP.) Plus, best to avoid products with the preservatives called parabens.

*sodium lauryl sulphate, sodium laureth sulphate

[Ramble66]

Not for washing but for treating try oatmeal baths. Google oatmeal and eczema and you'll get loads of info. Aveeno cream is good too.

[canadianlisa]

Hi

My little girl has suffered from excema ,mainly on her face and back, and it did seem to make a difference for us switching to ecover. I find the scent of this very minimal. I do occasionally use Fairy non-bio but actually find it quite scented in comparision. She is now nearly 2 and it is much better, think really due to time. I also found purepotions (google it) worked well for her as a moisturiser, more so than diprobase which we were prescribed and seemed to make things worse. Interesting info Saffron re the SLE/ SLES. Best of luck, it is tricky.

[millie42]

Poor thing. Both my sons have had very bad eczema and the way forward for us was in FINALLY identifying what the triggers were for the outbreaks. Previous to this we tried everything and spent a small fortune on products and seeing dermatologists. I was then recommended to use someone in Sydenham who did this very successfully and their eczema has now pretty much gone. If you would like their details please feel free to pm.

I personally avoid any steroids or petroleum based topical creams.

[bumpy]

Oatmeal in the bath worked a treat - don't forget to put it in tights or similar..! :)

Rock salt was also suggested to us to help with London water

[embo71]

I changed washing powder to Ecover liquid (and now use Ecover powder) and def. no fabric conditioner in my daughter's washing. Her eczema has not been seen since!

[GinaG3]

I think when it comes to washing liquids this is trial and error. My daughter has eczema and it runs right through my whole family. ALWAYS (!!!) stick to non-bio and always liquid. At the minute we have come to the conclusion Persil small and mighty non-bio is the one that causes less irritation. Have used Ecover, which suprisingly flared up her eczema a lot! The best brand I found that kept the eczema at bay for months was Sainsburys own brand non-bio liquid. It was brilliant. Then I switched supermarkets and havent found another since, until I trialled Persil small and mighty. Another thing to consider it scented fabric softner, if you use it, its a bad idea. I always stick to Comfort pure for fabric softner.

As I said at the beginning though, its all trial and error, I have loads of half used bottles of tried, tested and failed washing liquids under the kitchen sink. Each eczema sufferer will react different or be more sensitive to certain things. For bathtime too, its ery important you find the right products, once again I have a million and one tried tested and failed bottles in the bathroom. I use infacare or simple moisturising bath and halos and horns or simple shampoo. Until my daughter was 1 year we didnt use any soap products in the bath, just simple water as anything would 'hurt' her skin. A good cream is essential after bathtimes, I find diprobase the best the best and has been the cream of choice for my whole family. Try to stick to the same products over and over, and try not to switch as a simple chop and change of products can cause flare ups too. As with eczema the key is to keep it moisturised all the time, and not to let it dry out.

Hope some of this helps. Best of luck.

[Al&Em]

Thanks all for the advice and tips. We're currently using Hyrdromol cream (sodium pyrrolidone carboxylate but does contain parabens I've just noticed), Dermacort steroid cream and Oilatum in the bath. We tried Aveeno before this and though it was lovely it did nothing to clear up the eczema unfortunately. So sounds like we're using all the wrong things! Will try and get a referral to a dermatologist.

As for the washing liquid, we'll try Ecover and go from there... We stopped using fabric softener a while ago but will try the extra rinsing too.

It's weird because neither of us (or our parents) have ever suffered from eczema or allergies... So I guess I was just hoping that the cause must be something irritating his skin that he's reacting to, like our washing liquid, and therefore changing that would be the solution. But sounds like it won't be so simple...

[swagstar]

Anything non bio should be fine for the skin. My husband has suffered from eczema for all of his life and has just started using aveeno which he is finding really good. He does say however that nothing he has used has ever worked 'forever' and the best cure for him is not being in London air. Steroid creams are bad as they thin the skin.

There is a good book he read called the Eczema Solution, which he found very helpful.

[sophiechristophy]

Al&Em - when did the eczema start? Is it a recent thing? I'm asking because I was wondering if it might coincide with the introduction of solids? In Patrick Holford's Optimum Nutrition for your Child, he says that eczema can be caused by a wheat or dairy allergy, combined with a lack of essential fatty acids (found in oily fish and seeds). Might be worth asking the dermatologist for food allergy testing to see about wheat and dairy.

The other thing is a friend was told her little boy had eczema by her GP, but when she saw the dermatologist (she really had to bully her GP to get a referral so be ready to get bossy!!), it turned out that all the creams she had been using were pointless because he actually didn't have eczema, but had a zinc deficiency, which can have symptoms that appear like eczema. As soon as he was given a zinc supplement, it cleared right up.

[Yak]

I'm sure you're probably doing this already, but I found cutting down the number of baths per week really helped, as well as showering very thoroughly after swimming. We also use aqueous cream for washing rather than soap etc in the bath. Good luck - it is horrible to see them suffer, isn't it?

[SBot]

Hi there, that sounds very similar to my daughter, she is now 15 months. We have Epaderm and Diprobase from the doc. I bathe every other night in Kids Sanex, we were prescribed Oilatum but that flared it up. I wash all our clothes in Tesco's own liquid tabs but use Fairy Softener or Lenor (they are both exactly the same product, made in the same factory!!!).

Once she came off formula, SMA, her skin improved amazingly, so looking back I think she had a bit of an allergy/sensitivity to the formula.

Also certain foods can make her 'spotty'.

Hope this helps

Sarahx

[Pam50]

http://www.eczema.org/

The National Eczema Society was a lifeline when my daughter had the condition many years ago. It might help you to have a look at their website. Best Wishes, Pam

[bobbly]

I found surcare helpful, i also used oats in the bath. The lady at Northcross roAD sells pure shea butter, and that is brilliant for moisturising the skin without awful chemicals. Just so happened that found out my son also has food allergies, once these were discovered his 'eczema' disappeared. sometiimes i think there is a confusion between an allergic reaction and eczema, though in your case, sounds like its in the prime places whereas my sons was not, but was still classified as eczemma.

[Gubodge]

Armpits, backs of knees, and neck creases are pretty common places for infantile eczema because of the warmth and damp, not necessarily clothes rubbing. That said, try Surecare and don't use any fabric conditioner.

[mummynegin]

Just to back up some comments already made, try to get a referral to a dermatologist to make sure you get effective creams. Also consider food allergies. My son is allergic to eggs. Once we found out when he was about 7 months old and I stopped eating eggs (I was breastfeeding him), the eczema cleared up within a week. He's 2.5 now and still gets small patches of eczema, but it's very well under control and we rarely use the steroid creams now.

Try as much as possible to avoid using products with sodium lauryl sulphate and sodium laureth sulphate. Other than washing his hands with soap, the only products we use on our son is to wash his hair max twice a week with dermalogica sensitive face and eye wash (very expensive, but actually we don't use a huge amount of it, so a large bottle lasts for months) and Aveeno cream and Aveeno oil. I found that bathing my son made the ezcema worse, even if we used prescribed bath oils. When he was a baby, I would take him in the shower with me once a week. Now he has 2 showers a week and only has a bath occasionally, as he enjoys playing in the bath.

We used ecover delicate liquid to wash my son's clothes until he was about 2 years old. I've switched back to fairy liquitabs now, as the ecover delicate doesn't get stains out, but the fairy does irritate his skin more.

I've found Aveeno cream to be the best moisturiser for my son. It won't clear up the eczema, but it will help keep it away once the steroid creams have cleared up the eczema. The dermatologist gave us a much more effective steroid cream that clears up the eczema after one or 2 applications, whereas we were using the 1% hydrocortisone cream that the GP gave us for a week at a time before having a week's break and each time it would improve the eczema, but not clear it up. The dermatologist's view was that it's better to use a stronger steroid for a few days to get rid of the eczema patch within a few days than to use weaker ones for weeks...

[Al&Em]

Thanks to all for all your advice and recommendations. We managed to get a referral to a dermatologist from our GP, without even having to insist - must have been bad! We also got a prescription for some diprobase cream to try but we've gone back and tried the Aveeno again and his skin has suddenly got a lot better - things are looking up!

We've also bought some Ecover, so will give that a go and see if it makes a difference.

Haven't started weaning yet but planning to start next weekend but will take it slowly and give isolated foods to better identify any reactions/allergies.

Thanks again and hoping it will keep getting better :)

[Saffron]

We like Aveeno too. As it turned out, my daughter doesn't have eczema, but she does have sensitive skin which is prone to rashes. In her case, it's irritation rather than allergic in nature. A small tube of Aveeno lasts us a long time. If you are using it daily, ask if you can get it on prescription. I have heard from a friend with eczema that you can do so. Not sure if anyone mentioned it (there is an extensive thread on it somewhere...), but whatever laundry detergent you choose, there are two more things that help: (i) use less detergent, and (ii) always give your laundry an extra rinse. I've also heard that you can do bulk buys for Ecover (makes it much cheaper). Not sure how this works, but perhaps worth looking into if you find that Ecover is good for you.

[mummynegin]

Saffron, you can get Aveeno on prescription. Our GP was very reluctant to give it at first and only did so after we'd tried all the other (cheaper) creams, but once we got it on prescription, we haven't had any problems getting repeats. When my son's skin was at its worse we were getting through 2 x 300ml bottles every 3 weeks...

[RoseJadeH]

I also say aveeno! my partner suffers from eczema, and my skin is very sensitive. When LO was born he had very dry skin, and i was prescribed aveeno bath oil/wash stuff. Put a few drops in soak LO, a week later all was well! you can ge aveeno cream on prescription;just ask.