In part two of this series, Eczema 102: What Can Trigger Eczema, we looked at different factors that trigger eczema or exacerbate the symptoms. Now let’s take a look at how you can heal eczema from within.
Please keep in mind that although these tips and information have worked for several sufferers, we are in no way medical professionals. If you’re experiencing severe symptoms or have an infection, it is always best to seek medical advice immediately.
How to Heal Eczema
Eliminate Triggers
Essentially, triggers can be anything from airborne allergens to food, beauty products, and fabrics. In fact, even extreme weather conditions can lead to flare-ups. While stress is typically involved to some degree as well, common irritants include pollen, dust, nylon, soap, and detergents.
Health Journal
If you’re looking for a tool to help you identify your triggers, we suggest using a health journal. In a few weeks or months of collecting data, you may be able to identify a trend in what is leading to flare-ups. Using this insight, you’ll be able to eliminate the irritants that are causing your eczema in the first place and be on your way to naturally healing eczema.
Foods & Elimination Diet
For people suffering from eczema, what you put into your body is of even more importance because certain foods are more prone to cause flare-ups than others. Rather than immediately resorting to creams and medications, you might consider eliminating the consumption of these eczema-triggering foods.
Of course, the million dollar question is: how do you know which foods are causing the problem? That’s where the Eczema Elimination Diet is helpful. By avoiding certain foods for about a month and then slowly working these foods back into your diet, you’ll be able to determine which ones are causing the reaction.
Check out our blog post Elimination Diet For Eczema to learn more.If you’re still experiencing eczema after trying an elimination diet, it might be beneficial to focus on reducing the overall inflammation in your body instead.
For example, it may be that you are suffering from leaky gut. To heal this condition, try moving to an anti-inflammatory diet. This diet consists of omitting any known food triggers and/or supplementing your diet with fish oil and probiotics such as miso soup and sourdough bread.
Here are some further diets you can try:
- The Eczema Cure
- Auto Immune Paleo
- Gut and Psychology Diet
- Whole30
- Plant Based or Vegan
- Gluten/Casein Free
- Candida Diet
- Alkaline Diet
If this list is slightly overwhelming, don’t worry. The truth is, there are many diets that have proven to be beneficial in reducing and relieving eczema and there’s no saying which is the best or right one. You simply have to find the one that works for you and your lifestyle.
Just because one doesn’t give you the desired results, doesn’t mean another one won’t. So give them a try! Just remember to always seek the advice of a nutritionist before making any dietary changes, especially when children are involved.
Finally, to rule out any other health concerns (for example, a liver that is not functioning properly may be causing or worsening your eczema) meet with a medical professional or naturopath. They will be able to conduct tests and better evaluate your health to discover the optimal solution.
If you simply want some advice on which vitamins and oils to supplement your diet with, it’s also worth getting in touch with a professional. Though typical supplements for eczema include vitamin D, immune balancers, probiotics, and fish oil.
Stay tuned for our final post in the series: Eczema 104: How to Treat Eczema Naturally.
Did you miss Eczema 101: What is Eczema? or Eczema 102: What Triggers Eczema?
------------------
Bio: Laura is a contributor and content developer for The Eczema Company. She is in no way a medical professional. Her comments, suggestions, and reflections are not intended to replace any medical advice. Always seek the help of a medical professional before undertaking any diet or lifestyle changes.
