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Allergies and intolerances

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Original poster

when your dd/ ds as eczma do you still take swimming?

21 replies

trace2 · 09/02/2008 20:50

took dd 8 months yesterday and now shes all flaired up is this normal dh dont want to take her again, but she loved it

OP posts:

madamez · 09/02/2008 20:51

Unfortunately the chlorine in the pool water is probably affecting it. However, have a word with your GP or HV as I think there are some good creams you could use or other precautions you could take.

Heated · 09/02/2008 20:51

Did you put any emollient or eczema cream on afterwards?

Drusilla · 09/02/2008 20:53

yes, you could try using something fairly "heavy" (epaderm perhaps?) as a barrier and see if that makes any difference?

misdee · 09/02/2008 20:53

i didnt take dd1 very often when she was ababy as the bad reaction afterwards was horrible. as she has gotton older its got easier. she now goes swimming at school on weds afternoons and has a bath ready for when she comes home from school. then put on loads of cream.

how is dd trace2?

moneytree · 09/02/2008 20:53

Same thing happened to my DS and DD and they both really loved it so had to keep going. Take her to the shower immediately afterwards and keep lathering on the moisteriser. See also if there is a non chemical pool near you...some use salt water which is much better.

avenanap · 09/02/2008 20:53

Yes. I make sure he showers right after to get rid of the chlorine and smother him in baby oil to add moisture. I don't find emollient works, it just makes a layer of thick cream on his skin.

BibiThree · 09/02/2008 20:53

We still take dd but cover her in Diprobase before going in and again after her shower.

we got it from the Drs.

StressTeddy · 09/02/2008 20:54

This may go against all medical advice but I find that my ds's exzma is sooooo much better if I put Savlon on it. After a couple of days it clears up and no itching

Apologies to anyone who will tell me this is dreadful practice and proof of bad parenting

KerryMum · 09/02/2008 20:55

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

forevermore · 09/02/2008 20:56

started taking dd at that age who had moderate excema, we smear with epaderm then put on full body suit then immediately washed in showers with aveeno bath oil, then moisturise with epaderm afterwards. she is now 2.5 and not had a flare up with this regimen. even though excema is loads better we still stick with this routine and she just thinks thats what yu do when you go swimiing. was starting to worry when water turning milky but just started to smear it less thick.

try something similar barrier/wash/barier and see if still reacting then leave it or look for a u-v filtered pool. aprently not many about but worth a look.

karen999 · 09/02/2008 20:57

StressTeddy - I may try that!!

StressTeddy · 09/02/2008 20:58

I loooooooove savlon - use it for everything. I'd cook with it if I could

Original poster

trace2 · 09/02/2008 20:59

i put loads of emollient befor and after as it works normaly! but its a mess at moment i went to a private pool, maybe they use more clorine!

missdee, shes still same and getting worse as shes older and finding sjes deleayed now to

OP posts:

Heated · 09/02/2008 20:59

The combo of baby oil and chlorine might not be a good mix. I'd go back to the gp and ask for a different emollient or even a steroid cream that soothes. From personal experience chlorinated water is really drying, makes skin feel really 'tight' and itchy and I have to be careful what I put on my skin afterwards.

Original poster

trace2 · 09/02/2008 21:04

upto now ceraben as worked until we went swimming! unless she eats some thing like wheat, and i have a steriod cream for flair ups but dont like to use to much, cos its 1%,

OP posts:

qsack · 11/02/2008 10:15

hi there. i haven't used it but asked my swim teacher what to do re eczema and swimming and she said emu oil. can't get it here though, from australia (online i guess) but very good. my oldest two ds's swim as no eczema but ds3 who's 1 doesn't yet which i'm gutted about but we've just got it all under control so i'm not risking it yet and we have lots of fun in the bath instead.

Trace2 1% is actually really mild whatever your doc says. we've recently been seeing the consultant that treats kids dermatology at great ormond street and he says that 1% is still homeopathic levels. it is much better to be able to use a stronger cream for a short period of time and zap it for 2-3 days rather than prolonged use of a weaker one. one of the most important things we've learnt from our visits with this guy and our little boy went from 95% coverage of eczema to now just a bit on his scalp and that was in 3 weeks is to bath him twice a day in oilatum and wash him in aqueous cream. no more than 5 mins, just need to wash off all the bacteria and yeast that's built up on the skin over night as this irritates the skin. then put on any steroid cream you need or just diprobase (problem can be with the waxy one's that they bloc the pores which can then get infeceted. then i have to moisturise all over mid am and mid pm and the same bath routine at night. it sounds like a lot but it's done the trick.

sorry went on a bit! it's just that it's changed our lives with it all clearing up. oh and we had an allergy test too which identified egg and milk. I hope that we'll be able to take him swimming in a year or so and till then we'll make the most of the lido's and chemical free water play we can find!

Original poster

trace2 · 11/02/2008 18:39

qsack thank you so much for all your info your poor ds my dd looks clear until some thing flaires it up so i guess we are lucky! i could cry when it does

OP posts:

bunnyhunny · 11/02/2008 22:30

ds has reasonable eczema, which can quickly flare up into something awful.
we do what forevermore explained-
coat ds in epaderm (basically, it's lard! lol), put a swimsuit on him cos he is a bit slippery when creamed up. Then shower when we get out, then wash him with doublebase (so 2 showers!), then pat him dry and cream him with diprobase.
His eczema hasnt flared after swimming yet. Its a bit of a pita, but totally worth it.

SwimSafe · 22/01/2011 23:08

It is not the chlorine that is the problem but the chemicals formed by chlorine. These chemicals are called combined chlorine.

If the pool is a good pool it can help skin infections and asthma, but a poor pool can cause the problems.

If you can still smell chlorine in the air after 1 minute, then do not use the pool. You can also ask the pool staff for the combined chlorine level, if it is less than 0.2, then the pool should be safe to use.

mamadiva · 22/01/2011 23:20

I slather DS in Aqueious cream and put a tshirt on him with his swimming shorts.

This seems to help us.

theasaswimming · 31/01/2011 16:22

As the governing body for swimming we have advice for adult swimmers on how to take care of their skin (might be applicable for youngsters). One of the tips is using an emollient that will hydrate the skin, keep it soft and in good condition. The cheapest is Aqueous Cream but more effective is E45 cream.

More info at bit.ly/aBoLr8

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