By Lizzie on Saturday, July 26, 2008 - 10:34 am:

Please could someone give me advice on how to keep my Baby more comfy during the hot weather. He is 10 months old and only has flare-ups in hot weather. does any one else find the weather makes eczema worse? Thankyou.

By b on Wednesday, June 11, 2008 - 11:52 am:

michelle, google shielding lotion. Dermashield or skin md.

By Michelle on Tuesday, June 10, 2008 - 07:11 pm:

Hi I live in South Ga. My son just turned 4 and the only sign of Eczema that we had was when he was a tiny baby and broke out for about a week or two. This past summer when he was three we went swimming in a very nice apartment complex pool and my sons face became inflamed and swollen and his skin became very itchy and red and felt about 200 degress honestly. We proceeded to go to the Allergist where he did not test positive for any food allergies and this summed up as being a reaction from the chemicals and chlorine in the pool. It was so bad that the child couldn't sleep. We were prescribed Elidel for the body and face to use daily and a steroid cream to use that with insurance is still 122.00. It is so sad that we attempt to go swimming and just can't. The allergist told us to rinse him with water before he gets in the pool so that his skin absorbs that water first and then the minute he gets out wash him with a mild soap and put cream on him. Personally I have found that Salt water pools are a lot better. Also I have found coating him down with aquaphor really helps because it forms a barrier between him and the water. If anyone else has any suggestions I would love them! Thanks for your time Michelle

By louise on Monday, April 07, 2008 - 01:17 pm:

Hi! Took my three tots swimming on friday. I suffer from eczema and so does my daughter. Personally I don't find that the swimming water makes it flare up, but it does make the skin dry out, so would just recommend using lots of moisturiser after swimming and maybe even using something like doublebase before he goes in the water to give an extra layer of protection. Sometimes we worry ourselves to death over what "might happen" to our eczema! Kids love splashing about so much they don't even think about it and it gives them a wonderful sense of freedom. Enjoy! I bought my 2 year old a full length swimsuit, but only for sun protection. His skin is going to get wet whatever you dress him in!

By rachael on Sunday, April 06, 2008 - 11:04 pm:

Hi There
My son is nearly 6 months old and i am dying to take him swimming, he has excema on his trunk and arms and legs. we manage it with oilatum bath, cream and eumovate steriod cream when it flares up. Is a swim suit better than those little swim nappies?

By wheatfreecured on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 - 08:59 pm:

Dcook...

You may have this... immunedisease.com/US/patients/IDF/select_iga.html

If you have problems with flu and colds, I have this IgA problem, if you do, then you could have celiac disease as well... with the rash to go along with it... I all of this for 45 years before, I found out it wasn't stress.. allergies and eczema... I can not tolerate gluten and My immune system can not fight off infections in my lungs and sinus... please open that site and see if your conditions fit.

Jeannine

By dcook497 on Wednesday, February 06, 2008 - 03:01 pm:

I am 42 and I have had excema since I was 4. It literally has dominated my life. I get colds and the flu much easier than family and friends and usually they last longer. Is this because of my excema and the stress that comes with it? I have spent thousands of dollars on meds and creams. I have been to several dermatologists and allergists. I don't even remember when I had a good night's sleep. I know that my life has been stressful but whose hasn't so I have to learn to deal with that but how? If anyone has some honest and true ways to help please leave a message. I am about to lose my marbles and I know this is not good for my family.(I think they would prefer if my marbles stayed intact)

By Peter on Friday, February 01, 2008 - 09:34 am:

Maria,I suspect that you have Herpes Simplex i.e. Cold Sore. Your local pharmacist should be able to confirm or you could check with your doctor. It is thought that the chicken pox virus lies dormant and then erupts later. Both my wife and our younger son have had cold sores from their early teens. My wife finds that they are usually triggered when her lips dry out, usual as the result of sun or cold winds or when feeling run down-say with a cold,so hence the name. If the early symptoms (in my wife’s case,a tingling sensation) are recognised in time you can apply a special lip salve or tincture, which can be bought at the pharmacy and it will often stop the virus developing into a full-blown cold sore. Unlike genital herpes they are not the result of sexually transmitted activity, although I suppose you could get it if you kissed somebody with an active cold sore, but that would be obvious: I have never got cold sores after 37 years of married life! It is best to not allow your lips to dry out and become cracked, so when going out apply either lips salve or a good lipstick( I believe you can uy special ones).

By MARIA on Thursday, January 31, 2008 - 06:35 pm:

I AM NOT SURE IF I HAVE EXCEMA OR HERPES BUT IT IS ON THE FACE RIGHT NEXT TO THE LIPS BY THE CORNER, IT STARTS OFF ITCHY GETS RED, TURNS INTO A LITTLE PIMPLE THEN SPREADS A LITTLE TO A COUPLE OF PIMPLES THEN GETS A LITTLE HARDER WITH A YELLOWISH CRUST'' GROSS I KNOW,, THEN IT SCABS THEE NEXT DAY AND THE SCAB TAKES A WEEK OR 2 TO HEEL,, THIS IS MAKING WORKING VERY HARD TO DO AND EMBARRASSING, NOW I HAVE ANXIETY ANYBODY CAN HELP??

By Jimbob on Friday, October 26, 2007 - 07:36 am:

Thats great.

By ngaire on Thursday, October 25, 2007 - 08:35 am:

After reading this website I decided to be brave and take my 6 month old baby to swimming lessons at the local chlorinated pool! I was nervous about how his skin would react and if it would make his eczema worse... I lathered him up beforehand with lots of aqueous cream, clothed him in a wee swimsuit, then afterwards rinsed him off in the shower and applied more aqueous cream. He had a great time, and guess what - his skin is no better or worse. YAY! Looks like we can keep swimming... So thanks for the advice in how to do this, and good luck to other mums and bubs - hope it works for you too!

By helen on Thursday, August 10, 2006 - 10:52 am:

Sunscreen:
Check out the natoinal excema society web page there is a fact sheet on skin friendly sun screen. I've been using sunsense ultra spf 60....also available on prescription.
My daughter has been much improved by this this summer!

By Alex F on Friday, June 09, 2006 - 11:36 pm:

Dear everyone,
My name is Alex and when i was a little girl i had terrible excema. My Mother "Cured" me by eliminating from my diet all dairy, Refined white flour, orange juice and orange drinks ( contains mercury, not helpful with excema) chocolate, all e numbers and artificial additives/sweetners, strawberries,everything with potassium salts ie cured meats and fed me a largely vegetarian diet. When i had a bath she used no products with harsh synthetic or petro chemicals ie baby oil etc... she refused to put steroids on my skin thank god! and she bathed me with cammomile teabags, steeping them in hot water then allowing it to cool and wiping me all over with the teabag, it leaves a residue which is very soothing. She also put sweet almond oil or avocado oil on me. I am very thankful as today at the ripe old age of 35 i have no scars and no trouble with excema at all.
The petro chemical creams "plastize" the skin and inhibit its proper function which is to breathe!
As a mum myself i have been looking for an alternative to conventional medicine, whhich only deals with the symptonns of a disease and not the prevention. My son has had asthmatic episodes since he was 18 months and i have been "curing" him with homeopathic remedies, (Chamomile is excellent for nervy highly strung and sensitive types as wll as the kids who need to calm down!) I have also adopted an organic lifestyle and his asthma is now well under control, without his having to use inhalers. During my search for a 100% organic beauty, skin care and makeup range as i realised from all the data on the toxins they put in everday stuff, beauty creams, lipstick, cleaners toothpaste, you name it, it is full of toxic substances which cause amongst other things excema, skin disorders, asthma, not to mention cancer and other life threatening illnesses, i have come across MIessence, which is the worlds 1st 100%, third party certified organic make up and skincare range, it is fantastic! They also do a probiotic which again is the worlds 1st 100% certified organic probiotic, which has colonies of bacteria which come with their own food source so they are all alive and ready to go to work. Any way if any one wants to have a look at the web site and see what they make of it, please contact me and i will give you the details.There is so much information on this website and i have found it invaluable. It is also a business opportunity, if you become a member. Please email me if you have any questions. I have just ordered the probiotic so when i have tried it out myself and on my son i will let you all know how it's going!
I hope that this has been of some help, i was only trying to find a non chlorinated to take my little boy to, but found this website and just wanted to share my experience with you all. I wish you and yours health and happiness,
Warmest regards
Alex

By Alex F on Friday, June 09, 2006 - 11:30 pm:

Dear everyone,
my name is Alex and when i was a little girl i had terrible excema. My Mother "Cured" me by eliminating from my diet all dairy, Refined white flour, orange juice and orange drinks ( contains mercury, not helpful with excema) chocolate, all e numbers and artificial additives/sweetners, strawberries,everting with potassium salts ie cured meats and fed me a largely vegetarian diet. When i had a bath she used no bathrroom products with harsh synthetic or petro chemicals ie baby oil etc... she refused to put steroids on my skin thank god! and she bathed me with cammomile teabags, steeping them in hot water then allowing it to cool and wiping me all over with the teabag, it leaves a residue which is very soothhing. She also put sweet almond oil or avocado oil on me. I am very thankful as today at the ripe old age of 35 i have no scars and no trouble with excema at all. The petro chemical creams "plastize" the skin and inhibit its proper function which is to breathe! As a mum myself i have been lookin for an alternative to conventional medicine, whhich only deals with the symptonns of a disease and not the prevention. My son has had asthmatic episodes since he was 18 months and i have been "curing" him with homeopathic remedies, Chamomile is excellent for nervy highly strung and sensitive types as wll as the kids who need to calm down!I have also adopted an organic lifestyle and his asthma is now well under control, without his having to use ihalers. During my search for a 100% organic beauty, skin care and makeup range as i realised from all the data on the toxins they put in everday stuff, beauty creams, lipstick, cleaners toothpaste, you name it is full of toxic substances which cause amongst other things excema, skin disorders, asthma, not to mention cancer and other life threatening illnesses, i have come across MIessence, which is the worlds 1st 100%, third party certified organic make up and skincare range, it is fantastic! They also do a probiotic which again is the worlds 1st 100% certified organic probiotic, which has colonies of bacteria which come with their own food source so they are all alive and ready to go to work. Any way if any one wants to have a look at the web site and see what they make of it, please contact me and i will give you the details.There is so much information on this website and i have found it invaluable. It is also a business opportunity, if you become a member. Please email me if you have any questions. I have just ordered the probiotic so when i have tried it out myself and on my son i will let you all know how it's going!
I hope that this has been of some help, i was only tring to find a non chlorinated to take my little boy to, but found this website and just wanted to share my experience with you all. I wish you and yours health and happiness,
Warmest regards
Alex

By sonleeamblay on Tuesday, June 06, 2006 - 09:39 pm:

hi, my 3 year old daughter has always suffered with eczema on her face, backs of knees, arms and hands. i am still searching for a suitable suncream that doesnt aggravate her skin. does anybody know of any make that may be okay to use?

By Lucy on Wednesday, May 10, 2006 - 09:47 pm:

When my son has swimming at school i cover him in epiderm and to avoid any accidents because hes to slippery, i then put him in a sun suit,we're also very lucky as the headmaster put a shower in for him to use afterwards!

By mike on Friday, July 15, 2005 - 07:35 am:

eczema sucks. it has made my life miserable. the good news is that i have cut wheat out of my diet and it seems to have helped. try cutting out wheat and maybe it will help you too.

By ruth on Thursday, September 18, 2003 - 02:43 pm:

vaseline is good to use as a barrier cream when swimming or bathing. i have used it often to cover up areas of badly excoriated skin that stings like mad when you get water onto it. chlorine can be very irritating to the skin - and whilst it may help to dry out some of the weeping eczema, steve is right in saying that it can become easily infected. christina's earlier post here (Jan 21, 2001)comes up with some good ideas of how to be able to continue swimming despite eczema e.g. applying vaseline cream and then dry wraps...the same technique may be also very useful down at the beach. give it a go and see how it works out...try and be innovative to keep doing the things you want to. don't give up trying.

By steve on Sunday, September 14, 2003 - 11:15 pm:

the chlorine in the water may harm her skin, so before you do you may want to cover her with a layer of moisturiser. Vaseline might work, but if she reacts to the water then take her out immediatley. Would be a good idea to get advice from your doctor or a dermatologist.
Weeping eczema can be easily infected, and that chance could increase in a swimming pool.
Just be a little causious.
Take care.

By Esha on Sunday, September 14, 2003 - 04:12 am:

Hi all,
i have a 3 year old girl with wet type eczema.....i wonder how will she react if taken for swimmin g and no matter how much i cover up her skin what about her face?

any suggestions?
Esha

By kathy on Wednesday, April 02, 2003 - 08:51 pm:

my daughter (9 years old) just started having problems with eczema last year. We have a pool in our yard and I was wondering if anyone knows if boquasil is easier on the skin than chlorine?

By Sarah on Friday, March 14, 2003 - 11:04 am:

we have found an excellent cotton sunsuit with UV protection from the jojomamanbebe range of clothing. It has really helped to make swimming a more enjoyable experience for my son (3 yrs) and anyone who takes him. The suit is cotton for a start (the zip at the front is also quite well covered), i can put emollients underneath without fear of him becoming too slippery to hold and he can wear floats/armbands etc. around his body/arms. This has made him alot more confident in the water and the experience of trying to keep emollients on his skin better. He's still itchy afterwards despite showering with oilatum gel and putting emolients on but we,ve found that if we go later in the day nearer to bedtime he can have his bath and extra emollients and steroids without adding to much to time and effort!!!

By Maria on Friday, March 07, 2003 - 11:14 am:

My 3yr old girl has eczema on her hands and feet. Her hands are harder to treat. As we are going on a sun holiday soon, I was wondering is there any high Sun factor cream I can put on her that won't react badly with her skin. Thanks. Maria.

By Linda, Dublin on Tuesday, November 13, 2001 - 04:27 pm:

Like Kim I would be interested to hear about saltwater pools. Do they generally contain chemicals/hygiene products? Our 8 year old is increasingly reacting to chlorine so is effectively barred from swimming, which upsets him. He won't get in the sea if the eczema is bad because of the stinging- and it's freezing temp. here doesnt help either!

By kim on Friday, August 10, 2001 - 08:22 am:

Hello all
has anyone ever taken their little one swimming in a salt water pool? We thought we might try that as they are fairly common in Sydney and we wondered if it would be any better.
all the best
kim

By Lisa on Sunday, August 05, 2001 - 04:38 am:

Hi Betty. For swimming, we coat our daughter in Eucerin cream, not lotion. The cream is thicker and it is a good barrier to the drying nature of the chlorine. We put some more on her as soon as she gets out, and then make sure she has a bath before bed to get rid of the chlorine on her skin...which of course is followed by more Eucerin. She is an expensive child...ha ha ha.Hope this helps. We've tried other creams, but like Eucerin the best so far.

By Betty on Saturday, August 04, 2001 - 12:02 pm:

Barrier creams? Someone said that you can get a kind of barrier cream to put on a little one's skin before swimming. We currently use diprobase regularly and wonder what anyone recommends?

All comments welcome. Thanks

By Theresa mccartan on Thursday, February 08, 2001 - 09:27 pm:

As an eczema sufferer all my life I suggest you carry on taking your little boy swimming keep him busy in the pool he will soon forget about his scratches it will take his mind off it if anything and as soon as he comes out wash him under the shower with diprobase I find this good as it has no lanolin in like e, which makes my skin go mad and put some Johnstons talc on then he will be fine whatever you do do not use steroids they only make your skin worse in the end.

By Lis Stanford on Wednesday, February 07, 2001 - 10:04 pm:

Dear Louella,

My 3year old son also has bad eczema and I haven't taken him swimming much. Interestingly when we go on holiday, either abroad or to the Uk where the water is much softer than here he can go swimming with little problem. I have found he can swim fine at Center Parcs because their water is very soft. A good tip regarding public pools is that some are sterilised with ozone and not chlorine which is much kinder on the skin.
I am hoping that he can start swimming lessons soon as his skin has improved quite a lot in the last few months, and I think I will invest in a swimming suit!

By Louella on Thursday, January 25, 2001 - 10:45 am:

Thanks for the advice Christina. I checked my Next Directory and found the swim suit too!

By Christina on Sunday, January 21, 2001 - 09:47 am:

My 21 month old son has eczema which we manage with emollient creams (50.50 white soft paraffin and liquid paraffin) and dry wraps. Before I take him swimming I put a thick layer of his cream on under his wraps. He wears a full body 'surf suite' bathing costume (from the new Next Directory) as it covers most of his body and the other people in the pool don-t really notice his wraps. When I get him changed afterwards his skin is still greasy from the cream, so the pool water has not really had chance to get to his skin. It is then straight home for a bath (the shower water in swimming pools is still chlorinated, but not as strongly as the pool water).

I think the wraps are the real key to keeping the cream against his skin. Also they provide a barrier between his skin and his arm bands that are rough and scratchy. If your son does not have wraps, then maybe just thick layers of a cream such as vaseline will do the trick. This makes them slippery in the water, so a full length swimming costume will give you something to hold onto.

By Louella on Thursday, January 18, 2001 - 09:35 am:

Does anyone have any advice for taking babies/toddlers swimming. My son is 18 months and has had eczema since birth. We took him swimming a few times when he was younger but his skin did react. I would like to take him again as it seems a shame that he should miss out on learning to swim when he is young.