Some days are better than others, and you barely give your eczema a second thought. The days when this common skin condition flares, however, can be downright miserable as you try to manage the itchiness, discomfort, and red rashes that appear on your skin.
You certainly aren’t alone in this, as more than 31 million Americans (approximately 10% of the general population) struggle with eczema, a catchall term for chronic skin conditions that lead to dry, itchy, and inflamed skin.
Just because there’s no cure, it doesn't mean you’re without solutions. At Orange Coast Dermatology, our experienced and skilled team of skin care experts routinely helps patients navigate the world of eczema through key management practices — practices that we want to share briefly here.
When an external factor triggers a health condition, it’s crucial to identify those triggers, and this is especially true for eczema.
Think of eczema as an allergy, which means there are allergens and irritants that your body is responding to that you want to avoid. Although each person may have unique triggers, some are more common than others, including:
Eczema is even tied to food allergies, especially in toddlers. In children under the age of 2, eczema is often related to a milk or egg allergy.
Since eczema is closely associated with allergies, we typically recommend allergy testing to determine specific triggers.
When you have eczema, avoid hot baths, showers, and hot tubs, which can dry out your skin and weaken your skin’s defenses.
When you bathe, use only lukewarm water. After your shower or bath, use a moisturizer that contains oil, such as coconut, jojoba, and sunflower oils. Apply this right away, while your skin is still damp, to lock in the moisture.
When you have eczema, you have to be careful about what you put on your skin. To start, avoid soaps and moisturizers with any extra ingredients, such as dyes and fragrances. We’re happy to provide you with a list of moisturizers and cleansers that have a good track record among people with eczema.
Researchers are continually uncovering links between stress and a wide range of health conditions. Well, there’s a link between stress and eczema — the more stress you’re under, the more vulnerable you are to flare-ups. We advise finding ways to lower your stress levels.
This last best practice is an important one — we want you to work with us closely on an eczema management plan. Aside from some of the strategies we already reviewed, we can ensure your efforts are well-guided and that you have other resources, such as prescription medications and ointments, to handle flare-ups.
We also offer exciting Excimer® laser phototherapy, which harnesses the power of light to reduce inflammation and flare-ups in your skin due to eczema.
For a more tailored plan of attack against eczema, we invite you to contact one of our offices in Rancho Santa Margarita, Orange, or Mission Viejo, California, today to schedule a consultation.
