ECZEMA (atopic dermatitis) affects over 20% of children and sadly is often an indicator for future allergic conditions such as food allergy, asthma, and hay-fever. Conventional treatment can achieve symptom control at best, there is a strong need to identify alternatives to resolve this condition with researchers agreeing that eczema is the result of an allergic constitution and it is this tendency to allergy which needs to be addressed.(1)
Although there is evidence of people with eczema being sensitized to allergens, studies show that over 20% of sufferers are not, implying varied phenotypes, and necessitating the need for treatment tailored to each individual’s genetic and phenotypic make up.(2)
Latest medical research findings show:
-increased maternal consumption of vegetables and yogurt is associated with the prevention of allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis, asthma, and food allergy in their offspring.(3)
-research investigating gut flora imbalance (aka dysbiosis) is increasingly common.(4)
-reduction in childhood asthma in mother’s supplementing vitamin D in pregnancy.(5)
Six childhood eczema cases with stable improvement for at least one year after homeopathic treatment have recently been published.(6)
Gentle tips for skin
Oats are a friend of inflamed skin. An old home remedy for eczema in people who do not have an oat allergy! is to place a tied off thin cotton sock containing a cup of organic oats while a tepid bath is running. In fact, an over the counter eczema cream with just 1% oatmeal was associated with lower Staphylococcus and higher microbiome diversity at lesion sites, significantly improved skin pH and hydration, barrier repair.(7) Topical chamomile has been shown as moderately effective in the treatment of eczema.(8)
The homeopathic treatment of skin conditions Impetigo aka school sores(9); Vitiligo(10); and Psoriasis(11,12) have also been published. Some evidence has been found for homeopathy in the treatment of Warts.(13)
We need to talk about essential oils…
Why? Because starting about six years ago I began seeing an exponential rise in injury from incorrect use and application of essential oils in both children and adults…
Essential oils have been used for over 6000 years(14) but ingestion of it has only been ‘a thing’ since the very recent rise of multi-level marketing companies… Why accept health advice for chronic and complex medical conditions such as eczema from a sales person with perhaps the best intentions but no formal training, qualifications or even a basic understanding of organic volatile compounds, contraindications and the cytotoxicity of essential oils?!
Did you know that just 2ml of eucalyptus oil is enough to cause significant poisoning in a child?(15)
Essential oils are rapidly absorbed orally, and poisoning symptoms can develop as quickly as 30 minutes after ingestion (some individuals experience delayed symptoms up to 4 hours after exposure). The severity of toxicity is dependent on the type of oil and the amount ingested.(16)
Children are particularly susceptible, symptoms of toxicity include:(16)
drowsiness, slow/shallow breathing, coma (after large ingestion)
seizures
persistent cough, gagging/choking, shortness of breath, wheezing
nausea, vomiting or diarrhoea
skin irritation (skin exposure)
eye redness, irritation or pain (eye exposures).
!EMERGENCY MEDICAL TREATMENT MUST BE SOUGHT!
For more information on the safe use of essential oils can be found courtesy of the not for profit IAMMA(17)
References
1 Nutten S, 2015. Atopic dermatitis: global epidemiology and risk factors. Ann Nutr Metab. 66 Suppl 1:8-16. Epub 2015 Apr 24. Available from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25925336/
2 Cabanillas et al., 2017. Atopic dermatitis phenotypes and the need for personalized medicine. Curr Opin Allergy Clin Immunol. Aug;17(4):309-315. Available from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28582322/
3 Venter et al., 2020. Dietary factors during pregnancy and atopic outcomes in childhood: A systematic review from the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. Pediatr Allergy Immunol. Nov;31(8):889-912. Available from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32524677/
4 Puar et al., 2021. New treatments in atopic dermatitis. Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol. Jan;126(1):21-31. Available from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32818591/
5 Venter et al., 2020. Dietary factors during pregnancy and atopic outcomes in childhood: A systematic review from the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. Pediatr Allergy Immunol. Nov;31(8):889-912. Available from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32524677/
5 Mahesh et al., 2021. Appearance of Acute Inflammatory State Indicates Improvement in Atopic Dermatitis Cases Under Classical Homeopathic Treatment: A Case Series. Clinical Medicine Insights, Case Reports. 11;14:1179547621994103. Available from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33628071/
6 Mahesh et al., 2017. Homeopathic treatment of vitiligo: a report of fourteen cases. Am J Case Rep. 2017;18:1276‐1283. Available from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29196612/
7 Capone et al., 2020. Effects of Colloidal Oatmeal Topical Atopic Dermatitis Cream on Skin Microbiome and Skin Barrier Properties. J Drugs Dermatol. May 1;19(5):524-531. Available from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32484623/
8 Srivastava et al., 2010. Chamomile: A herbal medicine of the past with bright future. Mol Med Rep. Nov 1;3(6):895-901. Available from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2995283/
9 Mahesh et al., 2020. Antimonium crudum in pediatric skin conditions: A classical homeopathic case series. Clin Case Rep. Dec 16;9(2):818-824. Available from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33598251/
10 Mahesh et al., 2017. Homeopathic treatment of vitiligo: a report of fourteen cases. Am J Case Rep. 2017;18:1276‐1283. Available from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29196612/
11 Nwabudike, 2017. Palmar and plantar psoriasis and homeopathy – Case reports. Our Dermatol Online. 2017;8(1):66‐69. [Google Scholar]
12 Mahesh et al., 2019. Psoriasis cases of same diagnosis but different phenotypes‐Management through individualized homeopathic therapy. Clin Case Rep. 2019;7(8):1499‐1507. Available from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31428376/
13 McCusker & Sidbury. 2016. Nutrition and skin: Kids are not just little people. Clin Dermatol. Nov-Dec;34(6):698-709. Available from: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27968929/
14 http://www.atms.com.au/aromatherapy/
15 http://healthywa.wa.gov.au/Articles/A_E/Essential-oils
16 https://www.rch.org.au/clinicalguide/guideline_index/Eucalyptus_Oil_Poisoning/
17 https://www.iaama.org.au/about-aromatherapy.html#essential-oil-safety