Eczema or intolerance?

[CL22]

Hi,

We have been to the GP a few times about our 16 month olds ‘rash’ that started on her cheeks around 7 months, and then ended up on her shins and is now on both arms and has been for a few months.

We were prescribed epiderm to apply multiple times a day but we’ve seen no improvement. We’ve also cut out the use of baby wipes on her face, any fragrances from shampoo, body wash, detergents etc but it seems to be getting worse. It is always super inflamed by the end of the day and always seems worse on days she’s in childcare.

Does anyone have any tips to control this? It doesn’t cause her any discomfort, I think it bothers me more than it does her. We haven’t tried cutting out any allergens yet. Doctor just said she will have eczema and sensitive skin as I do.

thank you!

Eczema is often a sign of an intolerance or allergy, but not always. So it could be food related, washing product related, or just her skin struggling a bit. Have you noticed any correlation at all? You might need a food diary to spot it. Mine used to get eczema three days after having egg.

Washing powder is often the culprit with my lot. If it's me though it's usually milk.

I think the PP's suggestion of a food diary is a good one.

My toddler (now 15months old) has exactly the same, and it must have started around the same age as your LO.

I’ve been to the GP for several different rashes with DS and whilst the other eczema rash cleared up with mild steroid use this one never has.

I think I’ve come to the conclusion in our case that it might be mild Keratosis pilaris (also commonly known as chicken skin!). It doesn’t both DS at all so I know it’s not itchy like his normal eczema was. I haven’t tried activity treating it but do make sure to keep his skin moisturised every day and in general always follow best practice for sensitive skin.

I’ve had eczema and sensitive skin my entire life and sadly know it’s not always as easy to manage as cutting out a food group or taking a supplement. It’s definitely worth thinking about what could be different in childcare. Could be the detergent they use on their sheets (I know nurseries often ship off laundry to these big industrial laundry services that might use stronger detergents). It’s really tricky to suss out so I sympathise.

My DC got eczema from clothing made from synthetic fibres or wool. Then any skin creams, gels, etc with mineral oil or lanolin (from wool). Unfortunately, many eczema prescriptions are made with mineral oil or lanolin. Petrolatum, parrifin, etc are all mineral oil based. So the medicine made the eczema worse.

It took ages to figure it out and switch to all cotton and linen clothes and find toiletries and topical solutions with no mineral oil or lanolin.

You just need to keep trying until you find what is causing your child’s eczema.

@SummerBump23 yhis is the conclusion that I have come to also, as I’ve had it on the back of my arms all my life but mine doesn’t flare up. I’m just trying to keep her moisturised as possible even though moisturising a tiny person who likes to be on the go all the time is an experience!

@LoremIpsumCici this is really helpful! I may have a look into this as everything we have tried so far that is apparently for sensitive skin isn’t helping. I’ve also told family to stop buying clothes from certain cheap sites. I never really let her wear them as the thought of myself even wearing the fabric made me itch.

Food diary is ok but it can take weeks to see the impact of eating and allergen if the reaction is eczema. So my son can eat egg on Monday and not have significant eczema until 2 weeks later. But we did find egg was the culprit for him and removing it cleared up eczema in 4 days that has persisted for over a year.