Mild but worsening Excema - Detergents and bath/shower Gels?

[Tokyotwist]

My 2+ dd is developing excema on her arms and legs. Her arms seem to be getting worse with patches becoming redder and rougher, regardless of what I do.
She doesn't scratch so I don't think that is aggravating it. So far I've tried;

Changing detergent. Currently trying Waitrose's make for Sensitive.
Double Rinsing clothes.
E45 Bath and Shower Gels.
Epaderm on affected areas after her bath.

But it does not seem to be clearing up.

I'm looking for some advice on what I'm doing wrong or not doing?
and recommendations for a detergent that is sensitive enough but still works on getting rid of the dirt. It's amazing how dirty a two year old can get.

Thanks in advance.

For a while I went to Ecover and used the laundry bleach or Ecover stain thingy for really dirty marks and that worked well and was good for our excema

Its a bit costly so now am buying Method by stocking up each time its on offer its working out cheaper than the "normal" powders

its working ok for us

My mum swears by Surcare and won't try anything else, it works best for her

My DD, now 12, has awful eczema.

IMO E45 is a devil and really flares DD's skin up. She doesn't use any soap at all. Only a small amount of mild soap to wash the nec. bits and only in the shower. If she bathes, its just to soak for a few minutes and we add some bath emmollient. The water must not be too hot.

You need some Hydrocortesone for the bad patches and then an emmollient - diprobase is good - and apply it as many times as you can during the day. I'm talking 8 to 10 times. No joke! Make an appt for the GP asap and get some prescribed creams.

Don't worry about the clothes not coming too clean. I use Persil non bio as that seems to suit her best and I double rinse. The sunshine is great for removing stains!!

Have a look at this www.eczema.org/treatment.html

Oh and don't rub her skin dry! Pat it. Thats very important. DD just sits with a towel around her until she is dry enough to apply the creams.

One odd tip I got was to fill an old pair of tights with oats and fit over the tap when running a baths. It really helped soothe DD2s skin.

My 14mo DD has quite bad eczema at the moment. We also have Epaderm and Oilatum for the bath prescribed, but after a month's use I can't see any improvement.
It's mainly on her back, chest, backs of knees and arms.
I will try the oats!

We found that our dd couldn't (and still can't at 4.2) tolerate Johnson's bath products. There is a certain chemical in it (can't remember the name, sorry) which is quite notorious for upsetting sensitive skin. We've used Halos and Horns and now Sanex for children with no problems.

Eczema requires lots of moisturiser! Emollient application is critical, even when the skin looks fairly clear. DD has applied her cream 3 times so far today, she will come home soon to do again. If you moisturise and use hydrocortisone then there should be an improvement. Twice a day isn't near enough!

I would stay away from all products tbh, unless prescribed, bathtime can still be fun without bubbles.

I do wish there was a cure for eczema, its throughly miserable!

After trying E45 on DD2's skin I was told that lots of peole are allergic to it, I think it contains lanolin which lots of people react to. It made her skin red-raw

It's really a case of trial and error to see what works for you, but we use Aveeno cream (on prescription), Method washing liquid (v. expensive, but always on offer) and Halos and Horns bubble bath. I don't bath her unless I have to as it is very drying on the skin.

HTH

No cure, alas, but she might grow out of it. I did. Not trying to sound flippant AT ALL, rather wanted to give you a bit of hope!

Yes, oats are almost magic, IMHO! My niece had some success with Aveeno, although (luckily) her eczema was comparatively mild.

I had to just try lots and lots of different things, both with doctor and also kincare/laundry products, and eventually for me found a regimen that worked. No baths (still none now), just showers, not too hot. Consider avoiding products with sodium laureth sulphate, aka SLS (rumoured to exacerbate skin conditions). Pat dry as soon as out, then start 'greasing up'.

Maybe also look at diet? No evidence, but my mum is convinced that upping the omegas and fatty acids in my diet helped. I still take omega supplements to this day (33yo).

Thanks everyone. Some really good ideas for me to try out. I haven't bothered with the Dr so far partly because I know what it is but also because it is only in a few patches 4-5 tops and I think the Dr will just think I'm being overprotective.

The last time we visited him (dd had a 40 degree temp with tonsilitis), he asked me What I thought the problem was. Might have been me being over sensitive but I went away with the impression that I was bothering him.

I guess I'll just have to suck it up and go back. Having looked at the price of some of this stuff, I think I'll be needing a prescription.

Hi Tokyo, just read your post and was wondering whether you have looked at your DD's food?

I was born with eczema and have suffered with it, off and on, throughout my adult life. My DS also has it. I have found that all the creams are good at soothing etc and non-bio washing powders are good for the laundry but the real changes come from what you eat.

Reduction or removal of dairy and the reduction or removal of wheat are two major alterations in the diet that can make significant impact on eczema. As eczema is an inflammatory problem these two foods can play a huge roll in the state of your eczema.

Please forgive if you have already looked at your DD's diet. Just thought to mention it.

Oh, and the Dead Sea Salt range is excellent - the salts for the bath are brill. They are, however, expensive!

Can I add that you mustn't change your childs diet without taking the advice of a professional. Especially things like dairy that are important in a childs development. Definitely go to the GP, OP.

DS1 gets very dry sore patches, not bad enough to be called excema really, but not nice for him. DS2 was overcooked by over 3 weeks by my reckoning and had terrible skin for his first year. Red, dry, very sore, weaping patches especially in folds behind his knees.

They've both mostly grown out of it but both need regular moisturising (twice a day). Here's what worked for us:

Persil non-bio and an extra rinse on all the ds's clothes which were then tumble dried.

Most of their clothes are cotton or natural fibre (important not to let them get too hot and sweaty).

We tried loads of different lotions and potions and found that aveeno worked best. They had bath milk and the daily moisturising lotion (we didn't like the bath oils, too slippy and dangerous). Loads of moisturizer (3 or 4 times a day) and a mild steroid cream for really stubborn patches.

We couldn't use sunscreen when they were small but both seem to be growing out of it now and we've found nivea kids to be the best for us.

Its really a case of trial and error to find out what suits your DD

We were advised to wash any clothes/bedding/towels for dd TWICE with just water after having washed it first with the minimum amount of non-bio. It seemed to make a big difference. We also did not use any soap for her at all but only Junior oilatum (the normal oilatum has fragrance in it) in the bath and also dermol (which we found very helpful if there was risk of infection). Do not use acquaeous cream as a cream (has been found to make it worse as it blocks pores, not all doctors seem to know this) but you can use it as a soap substitute and then use oilatum lotion or dermol as a cream or lotion afterwards. We use cream every time after hand washing and once or twice a day all over her body when eczema starts appearing. Also make sure that she stands up when you wash hair so she does not sit in the soap and maybe limit hair washing to once a week or once every forthnight to reduce soap exposure. If it is really bad you will need to see GP for steroid creams, they do help but cannot be used long-term as they thin the skin. Also, we found that lots of extra vacuuming (reducing dust exposure) did help. Eczema is really awful and an on-going battle, I would also ask to be referred to a dermologist, as they might agree a treatment plan. Somebody else mentioned oats in bath (fill the leg of tights with oats and tie around the taps when filling the bath, when bath is full, squeeze the tights before disposing them), also not too hot water. Good luck.