We all know about the usual ‘skin types’, but there are certain skincare issues which fall outside of these common types and eczema is one of them. According to the British Skincare Foundation “Atopic eczema is a very common skin condition due to skin inflammation. It may start at any age but the onset is often in childhood. 1 in every 5 children in the UK is affected by eczema at some stage. It may also start later in life in people who did not have AE as a child.”
Eczema can have many triggers, from food allergies to sensitivity to washing powder or skincare products and it has a tendency to run in families, so if one or both of your parents suffer, there’s a good chance that you will too. Here are some tips for dealing with eczema:
- Try to reduce your stress levels – stress can be a trigger for a lot of eczema sufferers, to reducing the amount of stress in your life could go a long way towards warding of flare ups.
- Take a probiotic – probiotics have been shown to have a good effect on eczema and can significantly reduce the amount of outbreaks a sufferer will have.
- Turn down the temperature – bathing or showering in hot water will dry your skin out even more so try to wash using warm water, rather than hot.
- Get some vitamin D – Both children and adults with eczema are more likely to have low levels of vitamin D. Try a supplement or eat foods rich in the vitamin, including fish, fortified breakfast cereals and organic milk.
We’ve also got several products which can help with eczema:
Dermalogica Overnight Repair Serum
This serum is a deeply nourishing product for very dry skin and contains carrot oil, which has shown excellent results in soothing and clearing patches of eczema.
Elemis Skin Nourishing Milk Bath
This bath milk contains moisturising ingredients which are rich in vitamins that feed the skin to leave it soft and supple.It is highly nutritive and improves the skins health and suppleness, offering a complete food for the skin.
Many cleansers are too harsh for eczema prone skin, but this cleanser is rich in nutritive oils, such as borage, which contains gamma linoleic acid (GLA), a fatty acid that has been widely used for treating inflammation, eczema, dehydration and scaliness.