My daughter gets irritated skin, mostly during the winter or summer seasons. She gets a bit of eczema, mostly in her forearms. I currently use unscented cream, for that type of skin. If a product is all-natural, would it be safe to use a scented cream on her and not worry about irritation? I love scented products and of course, since she gets easily irritated, I steer clear from them.
Dee from the Bump
Eczema is a massive concern for many, many parents. I’ve seen parents whose children are covered from head to toe in itchy rashes and a nursing mom who had to stop nursing because of needing so many steroids (Watch out as steroid use on eczema causes almost like an addiction.) I know it can be awful. Skin stuff is often slow and hard to fix and as a parent it can feel overwhelming and scary to watch your child suffer.
It’s great that you are thinking about your skincare routine. This is really important. Remember, however, that eczema is often caused by something going on inside the body. Usually, my first thought, is food sensitivities. (Read more about how to deal with this and how to do an elimination diet in the blog section.)
As for products, make sure you treat their entire body as if it were a big sore as that is likely what it feels like to your child. I would use products with only one ingredient or two for now. For instance, cocoa butter with some calendula added. I would stick with products you made at home and use nothing more harsh (anywhere on the body) than a very gentle castile soap (like Dr. Bronners) and I wouldn’t even use that unless you actually have dirt somewhere that needs extra help.
Make sure you are using no perfumes/artificial fragrance in anything in your home (you have to read the label of your laundry detergent, it’s not enough to just say NO FRAGRANCE, believe it or not!). Make sure you aren’t using scented candles, no air fresheners, and no perfumes in your cleaning products.
Then, begin to look at diet. I hope these two new blogs help. https://thegreenmama.com/blog/allergy-or-sensitivity-making-sense-of-food-issues/ and Is it something he ate? How to do an elimination diet with a child
As it says in both of these posts, I highly recommend having a guide on this journey and Kelly Dorfman, author of Cure Your Child with Food, is amazing.