3 under the age of 10 with A topic eczema

[mummyhill]

I need help I feel like I am going round in circles and am getting conflicting advice from all corners!

I have 3 children dd aged8, ds aged 4 and dd aged 8 months. All have a topic eczema it reacts well to diprobase most of the time and occasionally we have to go for hydrocortizone. I am struggling to work out each childs triggers.

I try to watch what they eat and if they have something different which appears to make them worse I exclude it from their diet.

I am using Fairy non bio with comfort pure when I need to use a softner this isn't making their eczema any worse but it's not getting any better iyswim is there an alternative for washing their clothes etc? What soaps or soap alternatives are good for their skin? Do I line dry or not? Someone "helpful" was telling me to tumble dry everything to prevent allergens in their clothes be it dust or pollen. I am constantly wandering around with hoover or a slightly damp mop trying to keep the dust down. With our youngest I am using cloth nappies and changing frequently as all the disposables I have tried have resulted in her bottom bleeding regardless of how frequently I change her or the creams etc.

MIL insists on washing their clothes when they stay with her in whatever powder she has and she also uses bubbles in their bath (apparently I am cruel for not allowing this at home!). When they come home it takes me ages to get their skin back to "normal" I have stopped them going to stay over for a while to try and prove a point.

Don't ever use a fabric softener - it is totally unnecessary and incredibly irritating. Just throw it away and never use it again!

Try double rinsing ie after your normal wash, put your machine on a rinse programme. Line or tumble drying is fine.

Try not putting too many clothes on them. DD's eczema cleared up very quickly when she stopped wearing t-shirting (on any part of her body) and wore woven cotton instead.

Obviously basic bubble bath is a complete disaster. What is your budget like? You can buy fabulous non-allergenic products, but they cost money...

Budget is quiet tight which is why I banned bubbles as I can't afford to spend out loads on a bit of fun iyswim. All the bubbles they got for Christmas ended up being redistributed as they were all cheap cheerful ones and I didn't want to take the risk of making them any more uncomfortable than they already are.

DS had Atopic eczema as a baby. From around 18 months I tried giving him Yakult type bio yogurt drinks once a day and they really seemed to help.

But this could be a complete fluke as his eczema dried up completely at around 2 and we've had nothing but tiny patches since. It might have been about to dry up anyway IYSWIM?

I tried it because I read somewhere that it would help and, for us, it seemed to. I'm not touting it as a miracle cure, just maybe something that might be worth a go?

Hi mummyhill , Bonsoir advice is spot on , stop using fabric softener , i have had atopic eczema all of my life & my DD (4yrs) has it too , i use persil non bio washing powder(recommended by a hospital consultant) or liquid tabs (as long as its non bio ) then for baths i put OILATUM in the water (soothes the skin & stops the water from stinging) pat the skin dry (dont rub down) & apply AVEENO moisturiser all over. tbh moisturising the skin is the key to keeping flare ups at bay ,
Maybe you could buy your MIL a small box of persil non bio to have in her house for when she washes your dc's clothes , TBh she is the cruel one here for using perfumed bubbles in their bathes as this is the worst thing for eczema

Hi, you may find you have to try different powders. We're fine with Fairy non bio, but can't even have Persil non bio in the house because the perfume seems to irritate our faces.

Definitely go with the extra rinse though, it makes a huge difference.

You should be able to get Oilatum from the GP - the only problem is you can't then wash their hair in the bath. We've also applied it on a damp face cloth after the bath. It smells lovely (I think), you don't need much, and you can still wash hair in the bath. Also safer with small people, because it can make the bath very slippy.

I'd also recommend Epaderm as a moisturiser - it is pretty heavy duty gunky stuff, but again you can get it from your GP, and only need a tiny drop.

We haven't found a non allergenic bubble bath that doesn't make things much worse but bizarrely have found J&J Nature Bath (a tiny drop) to be fine - a few bubbles, nice smell.

Your mil might be more sympathetic if you point out to her that this actually hurts like hell, it isn't just a bit of an itch!

Good luck - trial and error are the way I'm afraid, or at least has been for us.

thanks for your replies will be carefully experimenting.

Will def ditch softener and use an extra rinse.

I'm not aware of dust mites causing eczema, more like headaches/ nasal problems but I could be wrong. Maybe your doc could rule this out?

What I would check is some of the ingredients in the things coming into contact with their skin, especially:

SLS - harsh cleanser in practically every shampoo or bubblebath, very drying.

Perfume - increasing numbers of folk becoming allergic/ sensitive to, in practically everything you can buy.

I'd defo do an extra rinse in wash machine, I did that for my son until a short while ago.

Re nappies - give them a few minutes without the nappy to ensure skin dry before applying cream or nappy. I just used water and cotton wool initially to avoid alcohol in wipes and dried with a reusable wipe. Again, most nappies have ingredients you wouldn't think it did so it pays to read the label.

We don't use bubble bath, just use a shampoo once a week on his hair but rinse it with water at other times.

I can recommend A'kin unscented range which has no perfume or sls and really gentle on skin. If you're on a budget you could try Urtekram no perfume range but I much prefer the fab lather of Akin!

Also, Bio-D does an excellent range of laundry products for sensitive skins or you could try soapods which come from a tree so have no additives whatsoever.

Have a look here: www.eco-essentials.co.uk

BTW MIL needs to be given a care plan for your kids, much like one you would give to a nursey. She should really respect your views and you are the boss when it comes to your own kids.

I hope you find something helpful.

Looking for natural eczema products? If you send an email to [email protected] and mention mumsnet you can get a free sample of their products which are available on the NHS. totally chemical free and smell nice too!

This is probably a bit late, but the Eczema Society webiste recommended using SurCare washing detergent. It comes in liquid form or powder. I Think it is sold in most supermarkets, but I get mine from Waitrose. I noticed an almost instant difference with in my son's skin and on the odd occasion his clothes get mixed up in our washing he does start scratching again. It's worth giving it a go and its not expensive