For people suffering from dermatitis and eczema, it is very important not just to wash with regular soap. Unfortunately, most commercial soap contains chemicals that irritate the skin and can worsen eczema. What’s more, regular soap will dry out your skin, even if you use a liquid baby soap.
The good news is that there are liquid cleansers out there that are technically not soap. They basically have the same cleaning effect as regular soap and additionally, they actually moisturize your skin while washing. You will still need to apply moisturizer to your skin after washing, but at least these liquid cleansers don’t dry your skin out as much as normal soap would.
No soap?
Going without soap at all may intuitively seem the most natural way to go… after all, cavemen had no soap, did they?! I even saw some web sites recommending that you don’t use soap at all if you have eczema, or only user soap on your private parts.
However, I have tried going without soap for a while and absolutely cannot recommend it at all. Without soap you will not be able to clean all the bacteria from your body and will thus have a much higher risk of infection, especially if you have some lesions on your skin already. Therefore I strongly suggest you use a liquid cleanser designed for sensitive skin.
Shower / bath temperature
When showering or taking a bath, make sure that the water is not too hot. Hot water will dry out the skin more than cooler water. Lukewarm water in the winter and cold water in the summer is best. Also when you take a bath, resist the temptation to stay in there and relax for hours… Even a lukewarm bath will dry out your skin after a while, so I recommend you limit your bathing time to 20 minutes or so.
My favorite soap for eczema
For washing and showering, I have been using Sebamed Face and Body Wash for many years. I find Sebamed products to be very easy on the skin, they clean just as well or better than regular soap and leave my skin feeling fresh and smooth after showering.
Let’s see what the manufacturer says:
All Sebamed products are “soap free” and suitable for individuals even with the most sensitive skin. Sebamed is recommended by dermatologists in over 85 countries and is supported by over 150 clinical studies.
Therefore if you have eczema or otherwise sensitive skin, I can totally recommend the following products as I’m using them on a daily basis, and have been for years. Also you will typically use only very small quantities per day, so one 33.8 fluid ounces bottle will literally last you months on end.
The bar: If you prefer bar “soap” to liquid, this is your choice
Sebamed also makes high-quality shampoos, shower gels, and other skin care products which you can find on Amazon using the above links. Note that buying Sebamed products from here contributes towards the maintenance of natural-remedies-for-eczema.com, as I will receive a small commission from Amazon. So thanks for that in advance! 😉
Most people who have eczema also have very dry, sometimes flaky skin. Therefore, the number one skin care product you want to use is a moisturizer (cream, lotion, gel etc.) to apply on a daily basis, or even several times a day whenever you notice that your skin feels dry.
Even if you do not suffer from eczema, maybe you just have dry skin and you came here looking for a good moisturizer, this article will be of interest for you.
It is crucial to find a moisturizer that does not irritate your skin. During a long time, I used to us a well-known and expensive brand of moisturizing lotion, only to find out after years that it contains substances that actually made my skin worse and not better! Once I found a replacement product, my skin improved considerably right away.
There are many moisturizers for dry skin on the market, so I’m going share my experiences with moisturizing creams and gels here in order to help you find the skin care product that works best for you.
What to watch out for
Be wary of all products that contain perfume. Generally any kind of perfume is harmful to sensitive skin. Some people do okay with perfumed creams or lotions, but ultimately you will have to test the product on your own skin to see if it does you well or not.
Also check the ingredients of your moisturizer to make sure it does not contain parabens. Parabens are an inexpensive preservative used by the cosmetic industry. However, they have been known to irritate the skin and even cause eczema by themselves in some people, so they are definitely not recommended for use on sensitive skin.
Checking the ingredients
If you have any kind of skin disorder linked with allergies, you should get used to checking the ingredients on any product you buy, especially on any skin care products. Of course unless you have a PhD in chemistry or pharmaceutics, many of the components will make no sense to you. As a general rule, look out for the ones you know to be harmful (parabens, perfumes) and remember, the more natural the components are, the better.
Aloe vera to the rescue
Aloe vera plants (photo by Shoshanah)
I used to use a high-percentage (84%) organic aloe vera cream as a moisturizer for years, and it has done my skin very well. Later I switched to a 99,9% pure aloe vera gel. The gel is very effective and has a soothing effect on my skin. At first it feels somewhat sticky when applied, which takes some getting used to but it’s actually quite nice once you get accustomed to the feeling.
In the beginning I felt that aloe vera gel didn’t moisturize my skin as much as aloe vera cream, but after a few weeks of using gel every day I actually prefer the cool and smooth feeling it gives me. The drawback is that gel seems to get used up a lot more quickly – it seems I need to apply more of it to properly hydrate my skin.
I suggest you do some experimenting with aloe vera gels and creams to find out which one you like best. No matter though if you prefer cream or gel, aloe vera is a natural product known for its soothing effect on the skin, and I can definitely recommend it as a daily care product for any type of skin rash, dryness, and redness. As a bonus, it also helps to alleviate sunburns.
Changing skin care products
Once you find a skin care product that works for you, if you are anything like me you will probably keep using it during a long time just because it is quite difficult to find an equal or better replacement. However, unless you are 100% happy with the condition of your skin, it is always worthwhile to check out alternative products once in a while, just to see if they work even better than your current treatment.
I have found that whenever I switch treatments, and the new product isn’t harmful or irritating in some unexpected way, that my skin seems to thank me for the change by getting noticeably better. It is almost as if the skin gets tired of the old stuff and is happy to get some new nutrients… that may not be the most scientific of explanations, it’s just the way I feel about it.
Moisturizers for different parts of your body
Whatever moisturizing skin care product you decide to use, you will find that a product that works well for one region of your body may not work so well on another. For example, a moisturizing cream that feels perfect on your legs may irritate you when you use it on your face or around the eyes.
Therefore, it is a good idea to have several different moisturizers for different zones of the skin. For example, you may want to use a different product to hydrate your face than what you use on the rest of your body. A very sensitive region is the skin around the eyes, so you might have a special cream to put on your eyelids. Also I sometimes like to use a separate product for my hands. Hands can sometimes get very dry and thick skin, as they are exposed more to the environment than other parts of the body.
The following regions of the skin can be identified as having special needs in terms of moisturizing:
Eyes
The zone around the eyes is usually the most sensitive part of your skin. It is recommended to use a very mild cream here that does not contain anything that could irritate you. Personally, when I notice that the skin on my eyelids needs moisturizing, I use a mild coneflower cream to keep it well hydrated.
Hands
The hands can have very tough skin as they are permanently exposed to the environment. Therefore they may need more hydration than the rest of your body. In addition to the aloe vera gel that I use on my body, I like to use a special hand cream, especially in winter. Neutrogena Norwegian Formula Hand Cream is a fragrance-free moisturizer that repairs my hands nicely, even when the skin is extremely dry and cracker. Immediately after applying Neutrogena, my hands feel nice and smooth again. If you have trouble finding a good moisturizer for the skin on your hands, you can order it for a very decent price here.
Face
Your face is the second most sensitive region of your skin, only topped by the zone around the eyes. Therefore, a skin care product that works great for you on the rest of your body could possibly irritate the skin of your face. If this is the case, you may want to use a higher quality cream for hydrating your face than the one that you use on the rest of your body (for example, if your face cream is rather expensive or you only have a small quantity available).
My personal favorite
To sum it up, except for the skin on my hands and my eyelids, natural aloe vera creams and gels are the best everyday moisturizing skin care products that I have come across so far. Of course your mileage may vary, as every individual case is a bit different. But nevertheless, whether you have eczema or not: If you suffer from dry skin at all, give it a try and check out some aloe vera moisturizers if you haven’t done so yet. You might just be pleasantly surprised!
This article will give an overview about different kinds of treatment for eczema, natural and otherwise. It is important to realize that rather than just a skin disease, eczema is a disease of the whole human being. Therefore to cure eczema, apart from taking great care of our skin, we also need to look at other aspects of our lives and make adjustments until we have cured the condition, or at least improve it to an acceptable level.
Natural vs. Non-Natural Treatment
Any treatment that does not rely on artificial substances (substances that do not exist in nature) can be considered a natural treatment. Prescription drugs are not considered natural. While drugs may be more effective in the short-term, natural treatments are preferable for a long-term solution, because they yield more sustainable results and have fewer side effects.
Types of Treatment for Eczema
Skin care
Creams and other skin care products are undoubtedly the most obvious and common form of treatment for eczema, as they are applied directly on the skin, where the visible symptoms appear. We can differentiate the following skin care products:
Skin moisturizer – Eczema often goes hand in hand with very dry skin, so skin moisturizer cream should be used whenever needed. There are lots of natural options for moisturizing the skin, which we will look at in detail in a future article.
Soap and shampoo – As eczema skin is usually quite sensitive, it is strongly recommended not to wash it with regular soaps and shampoos. There are special cleansers for eczema which we will be looking at in an upcoming article..
Cortisone and other immunosuppressant creams – While not considered natural treatment, cortisone creams are often prescribed by doctors as they are very effective against eczema in the short-term. In many places this kind of creams is only available with a medical prescription, as they can have side effects and there is also a risk of addiction. Always check with your doctor before using this kind of medication.
Treatment for infections – Due to dryness and lesions, eczema skin can be prone to infections of various types. If you suspect that your skin is infected, you should always consult a physician. That said, if you suffer infections frequently, it pays off to learn how to recognize and treat them on your own, so you can take counteraction immediately and greatly speed up healing.
Internal medication
In extreme cases, a doctor may find it necessary to prescribe cortisone pills or other medication that will be administered internally. Sometimes there is just no other way to get the patient’s condition under control. Cortisone pills are extremely effective for eczema, but also have dire side effects, therefore they should never be taken without consulting a physician.
Pills and internal medication are not considered natural treatment, and as such they are way beyond the scope of this website. However I am mentioning them here for the sake of completeness, as in times of severe outbreaks of eczema it can sometimes be inevitable to use the hard drugs.
Sunlight and UV therapy
Sunlight has a healing effect on eczema skin. Therefore, controlled treatments with ultraviolet (UV) rays, in addition to their tanning effect, can improve dermatitis greatly. If you live in a sunny region, sunbathing is of course a much more natural option, but be careful not to get burnt!
Lifestyle
Changing lifestyle is the most effective and sustainable, but also the most difficult form of treatment for any kind of skin disorder. All of the following aspects can influence your overall health and therefore also the condition of your skin:
Diet (food and drink) – Eczema and dermatitis are very often linked to food allergies. Therefore it is imperative to find out which foods affect you negatively, and which don’t.
Stress – Any kind of stress generally causes eczema to get worse.
Living environment – Cleanliness is key here, especially if you are allergic to dust like many eczema patients are.
Working environment – If you work with substances that cause your skin to react, you may need to think about getting a different job.
Pets and animals – Many people are allergic to animal hairs, so if you are you should obviously minimize exposure as much as possible. However if you are an animal lover, do not despair as sometimes the opposite is the case: Myself, I actually experienced an improvement of my skin condition after my family got a dog!
Clothes and detergents – Clothes made of cotton are known to be the least irritant to eczema skin. Use hypoallergenic detergents and avoid fabric softeners.
In Only You Can Cure Yourself, I explained why the first step to cure any chronic disease is to accept responsibility for your condition. Once you accept that no magic pill, potion, or treatment is going to miraculously heal you without any effort on your part, you are well on the way to improvement. In the case of eczema, the next step is to find out what is actually causing your skin to act up, and then take appropriate measures to eliminate those causes.
I published a list of the most common causes of eczema outbreaks here. You may at first be daunted by the sheer length of the list, and it is by no means comprehensive! If you are not leading a particularly health-conscious life already, it may seem overwhelmingly difficult – and indeed quite discouraging – to eliminate all of these things from your life forever.
Step by Step
The good news is that you do not have to eliminate all the possible eczema causes from your life at once. It is okay to go one step at a time. Pick an item from the list that you feel is most likely to be a cause for your eczema, and find out how you can avoid or at least reduce it. If you then do not notice any improvement after one or two weeks, you can safely assume that this particular item is not an issue for you, and you can safely re-incorporate it in your life.
I used to wear a metal bracelet for a while, but after a few days I noticed that under the bracelet my skin would become red and irritated. So taking off that bracelet was an obvious step to improve my skin.
Similarly, if you have lots of dust in your living quarters, make an effort to clean more frequently. Better yet, if you live with a partner or family that do not suffer from eczema, try to get someone else clean the dust, so you will be less exposed to it. (As a matter of fairness, you might agree to take over other tasks in the household so that the workload is evened out ;))
On the other hand, many people name sweat as a possible cause for dermatitis. However, I found that after working out or other activities that made me sweat a lot, my skin actually got better. It even didn’t matter if I danced a lot at night and didn’t shower until the next morning – my skin would still feel a lot softer and healthier the next day. Therefore I can safely say that sweating fortunately does not affect me negatively at all, in my case actually the opposite is true.
Food Allergies, or: How Will I Ever Smile Again If I’m Not Allowed to Eat This?
I remember I used to become quite disheartened when I heard or read about all the foods that can provoke eczema. When I saw the long list of foods that I was supposed to avoid, I was like “No way will I ever be able to eliminate all of these from my diet!” I actually became so discouraged that for a long time, I actually refused to make any changes to my diet at all.
As before, the good news here is that it is seldom necessary to eliminate all the suspicious foods from your diet forever. Take them on one by one, and see which foods affect you and which don’t. For example, try to go without cow’s milk just for two weeks, and see what it does for your skin. For me, giving up cow’s milk led to my eczema symptoms decreasing by about a factor of 10, so it was actually my personal bull’s-eye shot on my journey to eliminate eczema!
Then again, if you go without a type of food and do not notice any improvement after a maximum of two weeks, that food is probably not problematic for you so you can safely go back to consuming it as your heart desires.
After eliminating cow’s milk from my diet and noticing the huge improvements that resulted for my skin, I did several other food elimination trials. For instance I went gluten-free for a couple of weeks, but that did not yield any noticeable results. So after about a month, I stopped paying attention to gluten any longer and went back to eating bread and other cereal products just as I used to.
Substitution
It can be difficult to imagine living without a particular food type that you have consumed you whole life. If you want to eliminate cow’s milk, what are you going to put in your breakfast cereal/milk shake/coffee?
The answer is, of course, substitution. Fortunately nature supplies us with lots of alternatives to any foodstuffs that may cause us problems. To substitute cow’s milk, there are actually dozens of alternatives available: Soy milk, rice milk, almond milk, and oat milk, to name but a few vegan ones. If you prefer animal products, try goat milk or sheep milk.
Here’s a table of health relevant substitutes to give you some ideas:
The root cause for eczema as a disease is unknown to current medicinal science. However, it is believed to be a genetic issue, in combination with environmental factors.
The skin rashes and itch which are the symptoms of eczema though, can be triggered by a wide variety of factors. All of these factors can be avoided or at least minimized with some conscious effort. Here’s a list of what causes eczema breakouts, with no claim to completeness:
Some of the causes of eczema listed here have quite obvious solutions, as in if you have mold on the walls of your room, you better get rid of it. Others are more complicated to resolve, for example you need to find out what food intolerance or other allergies you may have. You may want to take an allergy test, and/or eliminate certain foods from your diet temporarily, in order to find out which foods you are allergic to.
I had my personal breakthrough with regards to curing my eczema in 2006, about 6 years ago now. I was travelling abroad and on one of the last days of my trip, I noticed a rather nasty looking skin infection on my legs!
I knew from previous occasion that this kind of infection could sometimes get so bad that I would end up in a hospital for weeks. In panic, I decided to cancel what was left of my holiday and fly back home that same day in order to get professional assistance at the emergency room. Never mind the extra cost for changing the flight, I definitely preferred to pay a bit more rather than risk the infection getting worse.
I remember shivering on my seat on the three-hour flight back, and I’m still not sure whether it was because of a light fever, whether due to the eczema my skin was unable to keep the warmth in my body, or maybe it was simply anxiety. Or maybe it was the three of them combined.
“You Have to Cure Yourself!”
Great was my surprise when I finally arrived at the emergency room in my home town that night, and after a waiting time of several hours, the doctor on duty received me with a frown. She told me that I shouldn’t have come to the hospital at all with this infection, let alone cancel my holiday! According to her, I should have just gone to the chemist to get some antiseptic, and some bandages to cover the wounds. Simple as that, no medical prescription needed.
She repeated that I shouldn’t even have come to see her for this triviality, and then spoke the phrase that would mark my personal eczema turning point: “We, the doctors, can not cure you. You have to cure yourself!”
Cure Myself?
Nobody, let alone a doctor, had ever told me that before. How was I supposed to cure myself? I was dumbfounded, and my first reaction was to think it quite unprofessional of her to say such a thing. Did she just not want to help me? Isn’t it a doctor’s job to cure people, after all? It seemed quite unfair. How would I know what to do in this kind of situation?
A couple of days passed, and after a while I started to realize the ultimate wisdom in her words. A doctor usually sees several dozens of patients any given day. Of course he or she will do their best to assist you. But think about it this way. As a doctor, how much can you really do in those few minutes when you see a patient, whom you otherwise don’t even know?
Quite a bit maybe, but certainly not enough to cure a chronic disease. And that’s why according to standard Western medicine, eczema is considered incurable, just like many other chronic conditions.
Assuming Responsibility Is the First Step to Healing
Only you can cure yourself of your eczema. Chronic diseases don’t come out of nowhere, they are usually linked to environmental factors and life style. Everybody knows that smoking can lead to cancer, and sitting in an office chair all day without exercising can lead to back pain. So obviously to cure a chronic condition, you need to
And ultimately that is your personal responsibility. Realizing this simple truth is the first step to permanently get rid of eczema, or actually of any chronic condition that you may be suffering.
Had I known back in 2006 that some antiseptic, readily available at every chemist’s shop, would cure my skin infection, I wouldn’t have had to end my holiday prematurely. Needless to say, I never had a serious skin infection like that again… it is actually very simple to recognize and cure them early on, once you know what needs to be done.
According to standard Western medicine, dermatitis is incurable. Doctors often prescribe medicines like cortisone, which do yield quick improvements, but those improvements can only ever be temporary. After a while of using the drug, the effect gradually gets weaker, and you will eventually be just as badly off as you were before. Possibly worse if the drug has side effects.
Fortunately there are alternatives to standard medicine. Now you might expect me to tell you to get some herb or another, cook a tea of it and drink it three times a day. Seriously though, if it were that easy, wouldn’t that herb be well-known and famous by now? The matter of fact is that there are countless tips out there like that. If you just search the internet for a bit, you will likely find dozens of pages which recommend a wide variety of herbs or treatments.
In fact one can easily be frustrated just by the sheer variety of natural treatments for eczema that are suggested in the internet, books, magazines, by friends, acquaintances, and family. It might even feel like there is actually too much, and not too little, information out there on how to treat eczema.
Most of that information is actually legitimate, in the sense that it will help some people with their eczema. The problem here is that every person is different, and different people react differently to different kinds of treatment. Therefore, you need to find out what works for you personally.
Dermatitis Natural Treatment
Dermatitis is a complex disease which can have many different causes and triggers (for an overview of common triggers, click here). To find out which of them apply to you and which don’t, a systematic approach is necessary. I spent many years following a trial-and-error approach in an effort to get my eczema under control. As a result I was able identify three steps that can be regarded as inevitable to cure any eczema, independent of individual circumstances.
The following three steps are key to a natural treatment for eczema:
I posted separate articles with in-depth information about each of these three steps. If you follow all of them, you will soon be able to cure your eczema in a natural way instead of relying on cortisone & drugs.
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