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Children's health

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Teen girl with seborrheic dermatitis on face

18 replies

lupie · 13/09/2021 17:53

My 13 year old girl has been diagnosed seborrheic dermatitis on her face and has seen a dermatologist who has prescribed nizarol to keep it down and mild steroid cream if she has a flare up. She is having flare ups all the time, it does not feel like what we have been told to do is working at all. Wondering if anyone else out there had success with any other products. Have a follow up appointment in November but would love to help her now. Thanks.

OP posts:
TaraR2020 · 14/09/2021 15:06

I find baby shampoo helps, it doesn't get rid of it but it helps. I rub a little on my face when washing my hair.

Oddly, I also found that when I tried going dairy free for other reasons the SD seemed to improve. No idea if it was linked and I only did it for a few months and not noticed a correlation since.

IndiaMay · 14/09/2021 15:11

I found manuka honey worked really well at calming redness and itching. I'd apply it as a face mask for 20mins in the evening. I was told by a doctor to use Daktarin Gold, a steroid free athletes foot cream twice a day and it worked for me!

Ridingthegravytrain · 14/09/2021 15:18

Dairy free cleared it up for me too

Inthesameboatatmo · 14/09/2021 15:34

Try the salcura bioderm range in holland and barratt

MrsPelligrinoPetrichor · 14/09/2021 15:36

Tiny bit of Head and Shoulders shampoo and follow with The Body Shop Drops of Light day cream, it has something that is magic in it as far as I'm concerned because I whack it on and all the flakes disappear. I think maybe Salyic acid?

SmellyOldOwls · 14/09/2021 15:37

Dermax shampoo is better I find. Sometimes you just have to play about to find what works for you.

Ohsugarhoneyicetea · 14/09/2021 16:26

We cut out dairy & gluten, its made a huge difference. Selsun shampoo helped with the scalp & hairline.

PeachesPumpkin · 14/09/2021 16:30

My daughter’s finally disappeared after she was diagnosed with Coeliac disease and we cut out gluten.

FreeBritnee · 14/09/2021 16:37

Oooh I have the solution to this!!!! It’s an active ingredient that my DP adds to skin cream that he made and uses daily. It only took a few days to go away and the cream has kept it away for about seven years now.

I’ll ask him when he gets hone.

Dilbertian · 14/09/2021 17:19

When I developed seborrheic dermatitis on my face it turned out to be the result of allergies. I was very sceptical when the dermatologist referred me for allergy testing, but she was right! Avoiding my allergens has returned my skin to lovely condition. I can really tell the difference when I've been exposed.

Worth asking for referral for allergy testing?

RavingAnnie · 14/09/2021 22:36

Take a look at this website.....

simpleskincarescience.com/fungal-acne-products-malassezia-pityrosporum-folliculitis/

Be prepared for a lot of reading and you may want take notes!!

What we most interesting to me is there are loads of ingredients that feed the yeast that causes seb derm including ingredients in the anti-fungal products! Counter productive.

I'm having a good response to my scalp derm with MCT 100% caprylic acid oil which is apply and leave on as long as possible then I wash off with Paula's choice hair and body shampoo.

I tried raw honey before that which was working well but I have an allergy to propolis so this caused some itching for me.

There are loads of ideas and products on above website.

Hope you find something that works. Your poor DD.

RavingAnnie · 14/09/2021 22:37

@Dilbertian

When I developed seborrheic dermatitis on my face it turned out to be the result of allergies. I was very sceptical when the dermatologist referred me for allergy testing, but she was right! Avoiding my allergens has returned my skin to lovely condition. I can really tell the difference when I've been exposed.

Worth asking for referral for allergy testing?

That's interesting. I had patch testing done - avoiding the allergens has completely cleared up my Pompholyx eczema on my hands and feet but has had no effect on my seb derm.
paisley256 · 14/09/2021 22:41

Moo goo eczema cream worked wonders for mine when only steroid creams had worked previously.

MordenLarch · 14/09/2021 22:46

Daktacort ointment at night - but I think it’s only available on prescription

TheYearOfSmallThings · 14/09/2021 22:53

This will sound ridiculous, but it was a 99p tub of Tea Tree face pads that I got in B&M. The brand is Xbc, and wiping my nasal creases and around the brows thoroughly after cleansing as normal completely prevents the inflammation, oily itch, redness and then thickening.

If I stop using them it comes back though.

CurlyhairedAssassin · 17/09/2021 15:00

There is a sebderm subforum on Reddit. It's been really helpful for me. When mine was at its worst it looked very very red and inflamed, like rosacea. I would post a picture from ages ago before I researched how to improve it but it's so awful it's embarrassing!

I followed an anti inflammatory diet for 5 days which really settled it down (this cut out gluten and dairy completely). I've discovered with trial and error that gluten isn't great for me - honestly it gave me terrible wind, looking back. It's not that I'm coelic, I just think I'm sensitive to it. I try to avoid it but will have pasta or pizza occasionally, and always find I have bloating and wind afterwards, and my skin starts to become inflamed too.

On my head, I used Selsun - you probably have to ask a chemist for it. It stinks and is very drying on the hair. But it worked for me. I've run out so not for a while. Nizoral (ketoconazole) did nothing for me. But the Selsun Iwith selenium sulphide) worked well. I used to actually put a bit around my ears, forehead and round my mouth creases too. while washing my hair and found it helped.

As for cleansing my face I use Garnier micellar water for sensitive skin, to remove makeup (clear bottle with pink cap). Then I like to use Clinique Take the DAy off balm afterwards and wipe it off with a set muslin then give my face a good rinse. I found any soaps or foaming cleansers just far too harsh, even though my skin seems to produce a lot of oil over the day, it's like the skin barrier is impaired, so gentle is the way to go. I then spray my face with Avene spring water and while my skin is still dampish I use some cream called Seblair (active ingredient is piroctone olamine, same as in some Head and Shoulders anti dandruff shampoo)= I get it mail order from a company called Dermacare Direct. They also do a shampoo in the same range but it's a tiny bottle and I didn't find it as helpful as the Selsun so I haven't bothered getting the shampoo again. But the cream has been great - so calming.

Re foundation, I used to use Clinique Superbalanced makeup. But when my seb derm was at its worst it just relaly seemed to not tolerate it. So now I use a CC cream instead - La Roche Posay Rosaliac CC cream. It's less coverage than a foundation and only one shade so slightly orangey but it does kind of blend in. I've got used to having the lighter coverage than a foundation now.

Sunlight is supposed to be good for seb derm. Honey masks are supposed to be fantastic (google), yo'ure supposed to leave it on for a few hours and I find that aibt awkward so I don't do it very often but when I do it does make a difference. Also tea tree oil (diluted in a bit of carrier oil) is supposed to be good too, and I have used that, but, as with the honey, I forget to do it of an evening as I'm busy. I've heard aloe vera is good too but I haven't tried that.

You need to be careful with any oils either on the face, or nutritionally. Some are beneficial and will improve the seb derm and skin barrier and some will just feed it and make it worse. Omega 3 is good, so I take those in capsule format, plus a high dose vitamin D and a multivitamin.

Reduce the gluten, definitely, I'd say. Hard for teens, I know, as they like a lot of pizza and pasta usually. I now have porridge with berries & sundried apricots for breakfast (I've gott used to it with no milk or sugar - just water), usually a salad for lunch (I use tinned mackerel and do a home made dressing with olive oil/lemon or white wine vinegar). Basically foods that are anti inflammatory will help. Plus keep hydrated - 2 litres of water a day if poss. (not that I manage this half the time ha ha but when I first was trying to get it under control I stuck religiously to that rule and it did help loads). Cut right down on bad things like dairy fats, and sugar. Again, hard for teens, that, I know.

It's a chronic condition, unfortunately, so will just come back if you don't try to keep it under control. My 15 year old son seems to be developing it now too. Think he has the same skin barrier issues as me.

Ozanj · 17/09/2021 15:03

Try dairy free for a bit. Or gluten free. DS was diagnosed (he’s only a toddler) and going gluten free cleared it. It hasn’t returned even when we started gluten back up again so fingers crossed it just gave his immune system the kick up the backside it needed.

DaisyD0 · 22/11/2021 13:58

Hello - not sure if you will see this but thought I would post.

I literally could have written your first post - am in the same boat with my 12 year old and it was really getting her down. She was prescribed exactly the same as your daughter at the beginning of Sept and whilst it did initially clear it, it would come straight back when she didn't use both the shampoo and steroid cream. Our follow up was last Monday and she has now been prescribed Elidel and within 2 days her complexion was almost back to normal. A week in she is back to her happy, confident self.

Hopefully you will have some luck at your next appointment.

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