Atopic dermatitis and baby eczema: my baby has atopic dermatitis, what do I do?
Atopic dermatitis, also called atopic eczema or eczema, is a significant problem for many people, from babies to young children, adolescents and adults. It is believed that there is no known cause and no known cure, but now I know better!
When my daughter arrived, she was born with beautiful, flawless skin. But soon diaper changes became a problem and her skin became red, swollen and very, very sore. It didn’t take me long to relate this reaction to the leading brand baby wipes I was given to use in the hospital. I tried a few other brands but all with the same result so all I could do was switch to a soft cloth or paper towels and water.
Every night, like any good caring mother, I bathed my little girl in a warm bath with beautiful baby soap bubbles. Unfortunately, it didn’t take long for more skin problems, dry skin, and recurring rashes to develop. When she was a little girl, she had a large patch of red, inflamed eczema that was very itchy behind each knee. Babies don’t know how not to scratch, so when her eczema broke out, she scratched and bled, cried, crusted, cracked and became extremely uncomfortable for such a little girl.
I took her to the doctor and was diagnosed with atopic dermatitis. I was really against putting a 12 month old baby on a steroid cream and wanted more of a solution than that. I wanted answers. Why was this happening to her skin? Something must be causing it.
When I started dealing with eczema in my family, I had no idea where it came from or how to manage it.
The symptoms of atopic dermatitis (red patches or lesions with intense itching and dry, scaly skin) are traditionally treated with moisturizers or topical steroid creams. As for treatment options, that was all I was given at the time.
Now, so many years later, I know much better what the probable cause of atopic dermatitis was. All this time I was unknowingly exposing her skin to all kinds of irritants!
I wish someone had told me!
In hindsight, it should have been obvious after my discovery with the inflamed diaper rash. Atopic dermatitis and eczema are known to be linked to allergic reactions, asthma, food allergies, and hay fever, so irritants and allergens that cause inflammation are a problem for eczema sufferers. What I didn’t know then was that the ‘lovely’ baby products given to me by well-meaning friends and purchased by myself at the supermarket were loaded with synthetic chemicals and irritants.
Almost all foaming baby products contain SLS, or sodium lauryl sulfate, as one of the main ingredients, a known skin and eye irritant that is also used as an industrial engine degreaser and is linked to cancer in animals and/or humans. There are other chemical ingredients that are just as bad, or worse, in all of the home and personal care products that we lovingly apply to our newborn babies’ skin from the day they are born.
Had I known then what I know now, I would have switched years ago to the range of safety-conscious home cleaning and personal care products I use now. If you care about your health, the health of your children and your family, or if someone in your household suffers from atopic dermatitis or eczema, I urge you to make the change too! It could save your skin.