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The advent of new technologies has led to new types of treatment for skin conditions. One of those is known as light therapy, and uses the power of various forms of light rays to heal various skin conditions, including eczema.

How it Works

Daylight or sources of light with certain wavelengths can make the skin healthier. Here’s how. UV radiation, part of the wavelengths of light, actually suppresses the immune system’s ordinary reaction to conditions like eczema. When the immune response is inhibited, it reduces the inflammation of the skin, one of the major symptoms of eczema. In addition, the light rays can kill bacteria, which is also a risk with eczema.

Limitations

Light therapy is especially effective with the application of a special formula called psoralen. This naturally-occuring compound has the ability to absorb UV rays, causing the skin to receive the fullest amount of UV radiation when used in light treatment regimens.

Risks

While UV radiation has some great qualities, it also has some not-so-great qualities. Specifically, UV radiation can cause skin cancer over prolonged or intensive uses. While light treatment may be a great option for some, the risks tend to outweigh he advantages, and it is not a very popular treatment currently.

It may not be immediately apparent to you that stress and eczema are related. But they are. Integrally related. When I first noticed the breakout of seborrheic eczema on my face, it was during a time of stress. Ever thereafter, the higher my stress levels, the most pronounced the eczema. It’s not just personal experience that leads me to this conclusion. It’s scientific evidence.

Understanding Stress

Stress is the body’s natural reaction to intense circumstances. In fact, stress is a good thing—when it’s necessary. Unfortunately, in our fast-paced, high-pressure lifestyles, too much stress has produced too much of those ‘good things’ that are not always necessary—things like increased heart rate, higher blood pressure, interruption of the digestive process, increase in muscle tension, and faster breathing rate. Those qualities are great when you’re in a dangerous situation where quick action is necessary. When sustained on a day-to-day basis, however, they produce harmful bodily effects.

• Fatigue
• Digestive complications
• Headaches
• Addictive behavior
• Dangerous high blood pressure (possibly leading to a stroke)
• Reduced ability to fight infection
• Irritability, mood swings, and erratic behavior

Most significantly, stress is directly linked to higher occurrences of eczema. It is in your best interest, and general wellbeing to fight stress.

Ways to Fight Stress

• Get enough sleep. Experts recommend eight hours, and it’s best to try to get this amount of sleep each night. While you sleep, your skin heals and the rest of your body has a time to restore itself.
• Take a break. And not just the two-week vacation next June. Take a two-minute break from the lawn your mowing, from the report you’re writing, or from the housework you’re doing. Take a minute to just stop and calm down.
• Find a hobby. Getting a diversion is a great way to relax. And, no, watching TV isn’t the kind of hobby we’re talking about here. Something constructive, profitable, and relaxing—but something that keeps your mind and body active—is important for reducing stress.
• Eat right and drink plenty of water. Your diet drastically affects stress levels. The healthier you are able to eat, the lower your stress levels should be.
• Exercise regularly. One of the best ways of reducing stress is to engage in regular exercise. Taking 20-30 minutes each day to do something physical, ideally a workout regimen, brisk walk, or a jog, is a perfect way to eliminate the pent-up stress that you may develop throughout an intense day.

Hopefully, you will find, as I did, that a reduced-stress lifestyle is a reduced-eczema lifestyle, too.

The term “steroids” evokes images of ripped muscles and thoughts of illegal drug abuse. However, steroids are a very common drug, used in many different forms and varieties. In fact, steroid-containing drugs are one of the primary means used to treat eczema.

Corticosteroids

The body is a natural producer of corticosteroids. The adrenal cortex, located on top of the kidneys, is the body’s manufacturing center for these hormones known as steroids. They have the ability to affect the immune system, along with other body systems. Because of their effect, they are synthetically produced to elevate the body’s response in certain situations.

Topical Steroids

Most doctors will prescribe a mild form of topical steroid medication to help treat eczema. Usually, this includes something like hydrocortisone. Hydrocortisone is a weak steroid, commonly applied topically to the affected area.

Oral Steroids

The more powerful forms of steroid medication are taken orally. Usually, they are prescribed only in very severe cases of eczema. Doctors prescribe mild steroids first, and move on to the powerful forms of oral and injected steroids if those are ineffective.

Injected Steroids

While most of the prescribed forms of corticosteroids are applied topically, some are ingested. These include triamcinolone. Usually, these are prescribed for a short duration only to produce quick results in order to treat other symptoms. These powerful drugs have too many negative side effects to make them valuable for long-term use.

Risks of Steroids

Steroids are not without side effects. The most common side effect of steroid treatment is a weakening and fragility of the skin. The absorption of topically applied steroids also causes negative results on the body’s adrenal gland and other systems. Contact with the eye can result in severe eye damage, including cataracts.

Since keeping your skin moist is one of the best ways to keep it healthy, prevent eczema, and even combat eczema, it’s important to know what types of skin moisturizers are most helpful. Here are some suggestions that could put you on the road to improved skin health.

• Balneum. Another helpful bath oil is Balneum, which contains soya oil, another type of oil that spread across the outer layer of skin, keeping the moisture locked in. Again, any type of moisture-enhancing bath oil should be combined with another moisturizing lotion.

• Diprobase. Diprobase contains a collection of paraffin, antibacterials, and cetostearyl alcohol, all of which keep the skin soft and moist. Because it tends to soften the skin, it gives the surface of the skin greater ability to absorb other medications used in the treatment of eczema.

• Epaderm. Epaderm is an oily, waxy substance gives additional flexibility and moisture-retaining quality to the skin. Since Epaderm contains no additives or coloring, it is safe to use by nearly anyone. It may also be mixed with bathwater to enhance moisturizing in the bath.

• Exederm. Exederm is a mild, gentle collection of skin cleansers and moisturizers. The gentle formula with no additives has given many people relief from acne.

• Oilatum. This brand of bath formula for both adults and children contains a form of liquid paraffin, oil which keeps moisture close to the skin. Regular use of this in conjunction with your bath or shower should be an improvement to skin moisture levels, but should also be used with another lotion or moisturizing cream.

• Sebexol. With a formula that corresponds to the precise pH balance of the skin, Sebexol works wonderfully as a moisturizer and damage-repair solution for the skin. In addition, it functions as an anti-bacterial, ant-fungal, protecting the skin from further infection.

Treating eczema is important, but equally important is preventing eczema. Be aware that eczema is not entirely preventable. Being a genetically linked condition means that even the most careful preventative action may not be able to entirely sidestep eczema. Still, it’s smart to keep some of these preventative tips in mind.

1. Stay moist. Regularly use a quality lotion or emollient all over your body. Increase this practice in the winter or other dry conditions. This should be your first line of defense against eczema. It is by far the most important thing that you can do.
2. Avoid strong scented products, harsh cleansers, and detergents. The less synthetic and powerful chemicals you place on your body, the better. Among some of the things that cause eczema are powerful, strong-scented soaps and detergents.
3. Less bathing. Obviously, you don’t want to go bath-free, but you may be able to go a day without a shower, or maybe one less shower. Or, if you simply can’t do that try a shorter shower or bath, and rather than really lathering up, use less soap or a moisturizing soap. This will keep your skin healthy and moist.
4. Avoid too much sweating. Working out and frequent exercise are a great thing. However, they also have the potential to produce irritation. Be careful of sweating or friction on some areas of your bodies, which may give rise to eczema.
5. Avoid tight clothes and synthetic fabrics. Loose-fitting cotton attire is the best type of clothing for preventing eczema. They allow your skin to breath and keep potential irritants from causing an eczema flare-up.
6. Avoid known eczema-causers. As you encounter fresh flare-ups of eczema, try to find out what kind of factors may be causing more eczema. Check out a list of possibilities to see if any of these are causing your eczema.
7. One of the most powerful ways to fight eczema and maintain great health is to lower the stress levels in your life. A little bit of stress is common and unavoidable. However, there may be some ways that you can reduce the stress in your life.

Diet is important. The quality and quantity of foods you consume has a direct impact on your health. One fascinating phenomenon of the western industrialized world has been the dramatic rise in processed food, and the curious correlation effect it has had on health—coinciding with a rise in various types of cancer, skin infections, allergies, and a variety of other health conditions. While the relationship may be coincidence or attributable to other factors, there is nothing wrong with eating less processed foods, and eating more fresh food and natural products. Some dieticians claim that the right diet may help to clear up eczema. Here are the foods to focus on.

Water

Ok, so maybe it’s not a food, but it is good for eczema. Water cleanses the body inside, and provides the moisture that your skin craves on the outside.

Virgin Coconut Oil

The “good fats” in coconut oil help keep the skin hydrated and full of essential nutrients. Coconut oil, specifically has a type of acid known as lauric acid, which fights bacteria and viruses, which can have a direct impact on the occurrence of eczema.

Fish and Nuts

Many fish and nuts contain something called omega-3 fatty acids, which can dramatically improve eczema symptoms. The primary benefit of omega-3 acids is their ability to reduce inflammation and enhance skin’s strength and moisture. Some of the foods that contain the highest amount of omega-3 fatty acids, are flaxseeds, walnuts, salmon, soybeans, shrimp, and snapper.

Grape Juice

One great form of anti-oxidants is found in grape juice. Drink a cup or so at breakfast every morning, and see what impact it has on your eczema.

More fresh and natural foods

Raw fruits, vegetables, and nuts are a great thing for any diet, particularly if you have eczema. Fresh fruits and vegetables contain a higher percentage of the vitamins and minerals necessary for a healthy body. Besides, more fresh fruit and vegetables are just a great way to eat.

Among the many ways of helping, relieving, and fighting eczema, there are a variety of alternative remedies. These methods, which involve natural solutions or lifestyle changes, have proven to be very effective for many people. Obviously, they are not part of the conventional medical or scientific forms of treatment, but this does not mean that they are any less effective. In fact, many of the alternative methods are actually safer and do not carry with them the potentially harmful side effects of medicines. Here are a few of them.

Oatmeal

Oatmeal can have a soothing affect on eczema. Its primary quality is its ability to assuage the itching sensation that eczema produces. Many commercial products, recognizing the benefit of oatmeal treatment, now market a variety of products that use the natural powers of oatmeal to treat eczema. Aveeno is the best known of these products. Colloidal oatmeal works best—oatmeal that is finely ground and mixed into warm bathwater. Try an oatmeal bath twice weekly for two months and see if it has an effect on your eczema.

Bleach Treatment

Honestly, using bleach on your body is probably a horrifying thought. The stuff stinks, stains clothes, and ruins hair. True. But in a mild form, it demonstrates an ability to subdue the symptoms of eczema. Use carefully! Only a half-cup of bleach to a bath full of warm water is all you need. The bleach contains bacteria-killing properties that may help clean the skin of the bacteria that make eczema worse.

Seawater

Some alternative methods fall in the strange-but-true categories. The seawater method seems to be such a method. However, seawater with its high concentration of salt and other minerals has antiseptic qualities that can fight bacteria and enhance the skin. The more “stuff” in the water, the better, according to some. Thus, the Dead Sea is more than just a scenic vacation spot; it has become a center for alternative treatment seekers.

Sulfur Springs

Most people are aware that sulfur springs and natural hot tubs are popular forms of relaxation and possible healing. While there isn’t as much evidence for the healing qualities of sulfur springs (as much as there is for oatmeal, bleach, and seawater), there have been good reports from those who have tried this treatment.

Chiropractic Care

The health impact of a correctly aligned spine is quite amazing. Though it is not the cure-all, and its impact upon eczema is not entirely clear, there may be some benefit from chiropractic adjustment—even to your skin.

Natural treatment is in vogue. Perhaps some of the hype is just marketing blather or a fad, but there is real benefit in some forms of alternative treatment and natural remedies. If you’ve chosen to go the natural route, here are some of the natural possibilities for moisturizers, lotions, or creams that can help your eczema.

Aloe Vera

The benefits of eczema have been known for a long time. Aloe extract can be found in nearly anything from toothpaste to shampoo. It comes from a short shrub-like succulent plant with pointy and moisture-filled leaves. Using real aloe (not just lotions with aloe extract) directly on the affected areas may improve your eczema.

Bentonite clay

Better than just plan dirt, bentonite clay has the ability to cleanse skin and absorb toxins. In the case of eczema, it even reduces itching, inflammation, the pain. A bentonite mask or compress once weekly can help treat eczema symptoms.

Kelp

Kelp is another word for seaweed. This naturally-occuring plant grows plentifully in our vast oceans, and kelp extracts can be found in natural food stores and health stores. Adding kelp to a warm bath should be very therapeutic for your eczema, and even helps your skin absorb iodine, an important trace mineral in your body.

Castor oil

Most people think of castor oil in relationship to treating another uncomfortable bodily ailment. Some people think of it as an excellent treatment for eczema. Some people declare that it must be taken orally. Fine, if that’s what you want to do. It may be just as effective taken topically, however. Spread a fine layer over the affected area and leave it there for an hour. Repeat twice weekly.

Calendula extract

Calendula, or the marigold, is a flowering herb that is known for its healing properties on small cuts, burns, acne, and other skin conditions. Some even say that it fights tumors. It may help eczema, too.

Shea butter

A popularly touted moisturizer, natural shea butter from the African shea tree, produces a moisturizing salve that is perfect for keeping the skin moist and healthy.  Fans of shea butter use it for scars, burns, rashes, acne, wrinkles, and most importantly, eczema. Its most powerful benefit may be its moisturizing quality.

Various Foods

As usual, there is a whole menu of foods that are claimed to treat eczema. Lemon and limejuice applied to the eczema as well as mashed banana have helped some people who suffer from eczema. If you use lemon or lime, be sure to wash and moisturize the skin, since they have the potential of dehydrating the skin’s surface moisture.

Severe eczema is a really annoying thing. The itch, the pain, the unsightliness, the embarrassment, the inconvenience… Definitely something that you’d rather be without. Here are some top tips for fighting the annoyance factor, and getting relief.

Cool, wet compresses.

When it hits hard, try using the cold compress relief technique. Simply get some soft cloths (cotton works best for its absorption quality and softness) and some cold water. Place the cloths in the water, wring them out, and place on the affected area. Crushed ice in plastic zip-lock bags also work. Applying a bit of pressure may help as well.

Oatmeal bath

If you’ve never done it, you really ought to give this a try. Oatmeal, especially when finely ground serves the skin by enhancing moisture and relieving itching. Oatmeal bath products are available commercially, but your own grocery-store oatmeal bath works as well. Two or three cups of finely ground oatmeal (a coffee grinder or food processor does the trick) dissolved in the bath water should do the trick.

Warm bath

If you can’t take an oatmeal bath, go for a warm bath. The soothing soak can be a relief as well, but two cautions are in order. First, don’t go hot. Hot water can really dry the skin, having the opposite intended effect upon your eczema. Also, don’t soak too long. A long soak can also produce dry skin later on, leaving you in more discomfort than before the bath. After any bath or shower, you need to….you guessed it, apply your moisturizing cream.

Smooth cotton

Certain clothes can give relief, too. Rather than wearing rough denim, scratchy sweaters, or synthetic fibers, wear cotton. Smooth, breathable cotton does wonders for your skin. The lighter weight the cotton and the smoother it is, the better.

One of the most annoying aspects of ordinary eczema is the itch. You know what a mosquito bite is like. Multiply that about ten times, place it in a really annoying spot on your body. Then, cover it with flaky skin, rawness, a burning sensation, and maybe a blister or two. Annoying. One of the most challenging things about eczema is the itching that it produces. Overcoming the itch is one of the best ways to relieve the inconvenience of eczema. Here’s how to do it.

Don’t Scratch

Some people call eczema “the itch that rashes.” It’s an annoying itch that easily breaks out into an ugly rash. One of the best ways to keep eczema from worsening is to avoid itching it. Obviously, that’s easier said than done. Even the most steely resolve and self-discipline can’t help but occasionally claw, scratch, rub, or slap an itchy spot. So, here’s how to minimize the itch and help yourself to keep from scratching.

Moisturize it.

The golden rule of eczema treatment is this: keep it moisturized. The most powerful remedy and preventative for eczema is healthy, fresh, clean, and moist skin. Generously and frequently apply an intense moisturizing cream or lotion to the affected area.

Be Gentle to It.

In addition to keeping from scratching it, you should also treat your eczema with a bit of TLC. Scrubbing it really hard in the shower, using harsh cleaners on it, or trying to scratch of the scaly skin is not going to make your eczema better; it may make it worse. The best thing to do is wash it gently with a mild soap, and gently pat dry. You may even want to wash your clothes in gentler or fragrance-free detergent to keep them from irritating your eczema.

Treat it with Anti-itch medication

As the final and often most helpful step, use anti-itch drugs to fight the itching. Drugstores are full of options for combating itchy spots. Here are a few options.

• Hydrocortisone. This common medicated cream works well on just about any itch. Apply a thin layer over the entire affected area.
• Antihistamine. Though often used for allergies, antihistamine medications are also great for eczema, which is a close relative of many allergies. The sedative affect of medications like Benadryl should reduce itching.