Natural Treatments For Eczema In Children
Although anyone can develop eczema at any age, it most often hits children. This makes the child miserable, which in turn makes the parents miserable. Eczema in children cannot be successfully treated with natural treatments alone; you must use them in conjunction with your pediatrician's advice and any medicines he or she recommends. Eczema in children hits each child differently, so each child will have a different reaction to these natural remedies.
Cool Baths
Eczema in children can sometimes be eased with applications of a cool compress or with a cool bath. You can use just the water or add things to the water to help soothe itchy skin. Baking soda is one recommended home remedy for eczema in children, as well as uncooked oatmeal. Colloidal oatmeal for itchy skin can be purchased at any drug store or supermarket and can be added to the bath.
Small children cannot handle aromatherapy essential oils with the possible exceptions to chamomile and lavender. Only add two or three drops to their bathwater, or to unscented baby lotions and oil.
Probiotics
These are more commonly called "good bacteria" that help you digest your food properly. There is some evidence that eczema in children could be a secondary condition due to another illness such as seaso0nal allergies or problems with their natural immunity. When the body is fighting an illness, it often needs all the help it can get in digesting food.
Probiotics can be found in many foods now, most notably yogurt and probiotics cheese. The magical ingredient here is called "acidophilus", which you can also get on its own as capsules wherever vitamins and supplements are sold. You do need to refrigerate the bottle once it's opened.
Evening Primrose Oil Or Borage Oil
These are expensive oils, so you need to talk with your pediatrician before using them fro eczema in children. It might be cheaper to get evening primrose oil capsules and stick them with a pin to get to the oil rather than buy it on oil form. You spread it on just like a regular anti-itch lotion. Do a test patch first on one non-itchy spot and leave it for a day. If there isn't any itching or other allergic reactions, then you're good to go.
The magical ingredient here is gamma-linoleic acid, which sounds like it would be irritating, but actually isn't. It's a fatty acid that the skin loves to slurp up and usually helps your skin feel softer and more supple.
