Overcome Stubborn Eczema (I) - Common Handling Methods

Dr. Denny Tang

FHKCFP, DPD (Cardiff)

Spring, an eczema-ravaging season, quietly comes. Eczema can be divided into acute and chronic forms. The one that babies usually suffer from is mostly the former. Why is there acute eczema? Weather changes, exposure to irritating substances such as thinners and sunshine can cause acute eczema. Another reason children are suffering from eczema may be due to immature immune systems.

The one that adults have suffered from and are persistent or unhealed for many years belong to chronic eczema. If the eczema is temporary, patients do not need to worry too much about that. However, if the case sustains for 3-6 months, it is not just a skin problem and requires further investigation.

The usual treatments are generally topical drugs, such as steroids; There are also bath gels (brown or green cleaning fluid) used. In addition to topical treatment, some allergy drugs are taken orally, such as Piriton. No matter what drugs doctors usually prescribe to eczematous patients, they are directed to the somewhere on the skin, in which the uppermost skin layer or the dermis underneath are usually involved.

In addition to topical steroids, there are some skin-moisturizing creams, such as Vaseline or aqueous cream which can be bought at pharmacy stores. Because some children cannot use steroids in a long run, doctors will prescribe non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications. Recent reports indicate that some drugs cannot be used for more than two months, because they may be carcinogenic upon prolonged use. Besides, the oral drugs are antibiotics, anti-allergy medicines, and in less severe cases, oral steroids. Take young patients as examples, if it is systemic eczema, oral medication is a must, with a mild steroid. And if the affected area is in a folded position, steroids cannot be used too heavily; if it is on foot, then oily creams can be used. All in all, the thicker the skin, the stronger the cream is used. But, the younger the age, the milder the cream is used.

Steroids should not be used for more than two months and reduction of dosage is needed. So you might ask: If the situation persists for more than two months, what should I do? Without the use of topical steroids again, they must switch to non-steroidal or oral medications. Yet, repeated interchanges of drugs cannot solve the problem.

Chronic eczema is very stubborn, and many patients suffering from this problem for more than a decade still haven’t found the underlying cause. Have you ever thought about that the accumulation of toxins in the body would be one of the causes of eczema? To eliminate eczema, perhaps rinsing the bowel is a good to start.

As we all know, apart from hereditary eczema and skin structure factors, immune system malfunction may also be the cause. But what triggers the immune system to malfunction? The answer is harmful elements. Harmful elements may include heavy metals, food additives, pesticides, organic compounds and Styrofoam which can produce intestinal inflammation leading to the formation of ‘leaky gut’.

The normal gut is like the ‘Great Wall’, its roles are digestion, absorption, and excretion. Also, it has a very important function that doesn’t allow incompletely digested or useless particles to enter our bloodstream and disrupt our immune system. But this ‘leaky gut syndrome’ is, if there is inflammation or harmful elements exist in the body, the connections between intestinal cells will be broken. Those proteins that have not been fully digested will enter the body, and then disrupt the immune system. At this point, a lot of cytokines are released from the gut to stimulate the immune system, which produces allergy and immune system-related diseases. The symptoms will then manifest throughout the body, including eczema on skin and other symptoms such as fatigue, insomnia and lack of concentration, etc. An estimated 1/3 of patients with chronic eczema belong to this class of reactions. Because of the gastrointestinal disorder, the probiotic population will reduce, and the problem will continue to spread.