Frequency of aveeno application - advice please!

[crabby]

My DD (6 months) has mild to moderate eczema. Diprobase was ok (applied 4-5 times a day) but having read rave reviews about aveeno we are giving it a try.

Any ideas on frequency of application of the cream? My HV was a bit worried about it (she is a lecturer in allergies) about the prospect of developing allergies so I wasn't wanting to use it more than necessary.

Any experience with this magic new potion welcome

I used to put it on DD once a day after her bath. Marvellous stuff.

Is once a day enough?? Was putting on other moisturisers 5 times a day. But maybe this is excessive with aveeno...

We were prescribed it yesterday for my ds who is 5 months with milk eczema and excessively dry skin all over. We were told to apply it 2-4 times a day, but to be honest I can't see myself doing it more than twice - morning and night. He had his first application last night after his bath, and this morning had the softest skin he's ever ever had. Hope you have the same result!

Its an oat based emollient so you can apply it as often as needed during flare ups and once daily for maintenance when her skin has settled. We use it daily DD developed painful excema at 6 weeks - we used various emollients -lotions, creams and very oily cintments until we came across Aveeno which soothed her skin fairly quickly. It is fairly new probably only been on the market here for 3 years so doesn't have all the evidence that older creams have which is why your HV may be cautious. Hope it works for your DD.

Aveeno is entirely safe to use daily. The cream has only been available over the counter in GB recently, but all the Aveeno products have been available on prescription for years.

You can use it in conjunction with steroid creams or ointments, but works well on its own. My DS used it. We went on holiday one year when he was 5, and I forgot his steroid cream. He had a flare up on his legs, and the sea water made them sting. I bathed him every evening with the bath powder, half a sachet in a shallow bath, which he had to lie in for 20 mins. Afterwards I applied the body cream all over, although his arms and legs were worst affected. Within 3 days his skin had improved so much, and raw areas healed, that he could play on the sand and go in the sea with no problems. Admittedly, the moisturising effect of sun cream helped as well.

The bath powders are still prescription only, but for a child it is worth getting as it will be free. They certainly work well at controlling itching. Hot weather sweating was one of the greatest sources of irritation but central heating dries the skin out too. Combined with the cream they are great, also don't smell horrid. Keeping the skin well moisturised can reduce the amount of steroid creams you need to use, and the frequency of flare ups. We found it was best to apply the ointment first to sore patches only, and Aveeno over the top, immediately after the bath.

For Crabby's baby, if using a baby bath still, you will only need a quarter of a sachet, as the 'dosage' is one sachet in an adult full bath. But I used half the sachet in a shallow big bath, and you need to immerse all affected areas or at least swill the bath water over frequently for 15 mins minimum. You may be able to distract a baby with bath toys for long enough, but you have to clean bath and toys afterwards, as there is a bit of residue. If you want to apply the cream twice a day, at the time you're not giving a bath, give a brief wash to remove any sweat, grime etc. and then apply. You may not even need to bath baby daily when the skin is in good condition, just an all over wash and moisturise. There may be a lotion available too, might be useful for nappy area cleansing. My DS had 2-3 baths a week, the daily holiday baths with Aveeno were an extreme healing treatment.

If not getting Aveeno on prescription, Crabby, I urge you to do so! Skin conditions can be extremely expensive to care for long term.