Ask our La Roche-Posay expert your questions about eczema in babies and children - 3 x £100 vouchers to be won

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Sensitive, dry or eczema-prone skin are common skin concerns among babies and children. Some go through short periods of suffering with eczema and others need to continuously manage this skin condition. Everyone's experience with eczema is different and can vary from dry and itchy patches of skin to very sore breakouts all over. It can be especially difficult if your child suffers with eczema to know how best to help them. Consultant Dermatologist Dr Catherine Borysiewicz is on hand to answer your questions on eczema.

Here’s some more information on Dr Catherine Borysiewicz: “Dr Catherine Borysiewicz studied medicine at Cambridge University and clinical medicine at University College London. She carried out medical and surgical training at a number of prestigious central London teaching hospitals. Today, Catherine is an experienced Consultant Dermatologist working within the NHS and consults privately in central London at Imperial and The Cadogan Clinic, where she manages inflammatory skin diseases including eczema, acne and psoriasis and sun damage and skin cancers.

Being the mother of a child who suffers from eczema, Dr Catherine understands the challenges of looking after a child’s skin and is looking forward to helping Mumsnetters by answering your questions on dry skin and eczema."

Here’s what La Roche-Posay has to say: “Here at La Roche-Posay we understand how eczema can truly impact a child and their family's quality of life. To help you manage this tricky skin condition, we are working with Consultant Dermatologist Dr Catherine Borysiewicz to answer all your burning questions around eczema in babies and children.”

Whatever your questions are around eczema, post your questions below and we will choose 10 for Dr Catherine to answer.

Everyone who posts a questions on the thread will be entered into a prize draw where 3 Mumsnetters will win a £100 voucher of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw.

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs Apply

Do you think taking showers instead of baths can help with eczema/dry skin?

I'm trying to figure out the triggers for my daughter's eczema but there doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to the outbreaks. Is this typical?

Will using Oilatum on my baby's skin be enough to clear up an eczema rash on their arms and legs or can you suggest something more effective?

I was hoping my son would grow out of his eczema but it’s still here now he’s six and my mother in law suffers from it so i think it’s here to stay. It’s not improving so it’s something we are trying to manage. Is there a way of applying creams and lotions that helps it to absorb better? I sometimes feel that I run the cream in and I could keep adding more and more! My husband generally just slathers it on thickly but doesn’t really rub it in, would it still be absorbed effectively?

How long is “too long” to use the steroid cream for? My DD has regular flare ups which clear up with the steroid cream, but I worry that the cream may damage her skin in the long term

Is it possible to ‘grow out’ of eczema after having it for the first 15 years of life? If so is it hormonal?

Is eczema always a reaction to something (food or detergent allergy for example) or sometimes does it 'just' happen?

My DS is a swimmer and has very angry red looking patches of eczema mostly around his joint creases but also some on his abdomen, and they look a whole lot worse after swimming. How can I best protect his skin to stop it flaring up when he’s been in the pol?

Is it ok to wash a child with just water if they have sore skin? Will water alone clean them adequately?

My D1, now 17, had eczema as a baby and allergies to milk and banana.
She grew out of it, although still avoids banana and large amounts of milk - eg milkshakes.as she has a small reaction.

She now has sensitive teenage skin and am wondering what is the best skincare routine and products for her to use?

At what point does dry skin become eczema?

Do you agree that getting rid of the excema with steroid creams first, then following up with an moisturisers to prevent reoccurrence can be effective?
GPs can be reluctant to prescribe steroids for children, but they can sometimes be the only solution to a flare up. What are your views on this?

My son is 9months,he suffers with mild case eczema. You can see it on his cheeks and when he was a baby it was all over his back. I've tested many products such as aveeno, E45, natural shea butter and coconut oil. None where effective. However I was prescribed one from the gp. Although effective, So so expensive off the counter! So my question is my son has melanin skin tone, I feel alot of the moisturisers are not catered to his skin tone. And the natural moisturisers I've tried for his skin type are ineffective. What can I try???

Can you grow out of such skin conditions or would someone always be prone to them?

Thank you.

What is the difference between very dry skin and eczema? My DD has patches of very dry skin which periodically appear, are very itchy and which I treat with a variety of different creams. I can't see any obvious pattern to them. Would using a moisturising cream routinely help prevent them?

My son and daughter both have eczema- when she was a baby she was covered from head to foot in it, which turned out to be caused by dairy sensitivity. She’s over it now but both kids still get really itchy on and off around their embodies, knees, wrists and hands. You can’t see the eczema as such just the scratched skin caused by the itchiness. Do you have anything that helps with the itch? It quickly gets worse as the more they scratch the itchier it gets.

*elbows not embodies!

My youngest' skin always gets really dry and angry looking patches are swimming. Is there something I could put in him before we go to help?

My daughter had mild eczema as a baby/toddler which rarely flares up now she's 7. However she gets small scabs on her face - could that be related and what can we do about it?

There seems to be a well-known link between emotional distress/stress and the exacerbation of underlying conditions such as eczema in adults so it's likely the same link occurs in babies, especially as a viscous cycle where stress worsens eczema and the stress of enduring worse eczema worsens stress and so forth. Of course, it's far more challenging to target the emotional well-being of a baby than adults accurately - do you have any advice on how to spot tell-tale signs of emotional distress in a baby and how to re mediate this (some sort of "baby yoga/therapy" etc?)

can any foods help alleviate the symptoms internally as well as the creams externally

Why is my sons eczema worse in the creases of his elbows and his knees than anywhere else? Is it something I am doing wrong?? Is there anything I can do to stop this???

I have psoriasis - is there any benefit for me to use products designed to help with eczema?

My dd tends to scratch her arms in her sleep. Do you have any tips for avoiding this?