Aside from a particular health condition, eczema is a response to several diseases. This common skin condition starts with red, raised tiny blisters with clear fluid. When a blister bursts, the fluid oozes out. If eczema remains for a more extended period, then you will feel skin thickening and scaling, but blisters will be less visible.
Eczema makes your skin itchy. It can occur at any age, but this condition most frequently occurs in children. Sometimes, you can have hay fever or asthma along with this condition. Until now, no permanent cure has been found. But soaps, ointments, and creams can help in relieving itching and preventing eczema flare-ups.
What Causes Eczema?
The exact cause of eczema is unknown. Healthy normal skin retains moisture and protects against bacteria and allergy-causing substances. In eczema, genetic variations are the main culprit. This genetic variation disturbs skin abilities, making your skin vulnerable to allergens and irritants.
How Does The Body Respond To Eczema?
Your body cannot differentiate between an ordinary substance or a harmful substance in the eczema scenario. It is believed that your body’s immune system is overactivated due to these faulty genes leading to the generation of an increased response to even a minor substance like proteins and food. Usually, your body attacks only toxic, harmful substances but due to genetic defects, the body starts to attack its proteins.
The Most Common Triggers
The most common triggers of eczema are:
- Synthetic fabrics
- Rough, scratchy material like wool
- Sweating
- Certain chemicals and detergents that dry skin
- Stress
- A drop in humidity
- Any change in temperature
- Animal dander
- Food allergies
- Upper respiratory tract infections
Do You Have Symptoms?
The most frequently occurring symptoms of eczema are:
- Itching
- Dry skin
- Small, raised bumps with fluid leakage
- The appearance of a rash
- Skin flushing
- Thickened and cracked skin
- Red plaques
- Scaly skin
- Open, crusted skin
- Swollen and raw skin
- After your skin is healed, the affected area will appear lighter or darker than the rest of the skin.
If you’re noticing any of these on your body, contact your caregiver immediately.
What Types Are There?
Atopic Dermatitis – The most frequently occurring type of eczema is atopic dermatitis. Atopic dermatitis is characterized by itchy and dry skin, often appearing as a red rash.
Contact Dermatitis – This type of dermatitis is caused by irritant exposure. Burning, redness, and itching can start. The swelling disappears as soon as the triggering agent is removed.
Nummular Dermatitis – Round, dry patches and coin-shaped spots appear on the skin, especially during the winter months. This condition is most common among men and usually affects the legs.
Neurodermatitis – This condition is the same as atopic dermatitis. Thick, scaly patches pop up on your skin during this condition.
Dyshidrotic Dermatitis – This type of dermatitis affects hands, palms, fingers, and foot soles. Itchy, scaly patches appear, which either become red, cracked or cause pain. This condition is most frequent among women.
Hand Eczema – Hand eczema is a condition that only affects your hands. You can get this condition if your job involves exposure to different chemicals like cleaning or hairdressing.
Stasis Dermatitis – This occurs when fluid builds up caused by circulation issues, heart disease or varicose veins. The more fluid that builds, some leaks from your veins into your skin. The result is typically hyperpigmentation, itching, scaling, redness, and pain.
Eczema Complications
If your eczema condition is worsening or if you are not treating eczema appropriately, some diseases like hay fever and asthma can develop. Research has shown that young children develop hay fever and asthma together with eczema.
Skin infections can arise due to repeated scratching. Repeated scratching breaks the skin, forms cracks and open sores in the skin. This skin disruption makes your skin vulnerable to bacterial and viral infections including herpes simplex viral infection.
Your sleep quality will be affected due to skin disturbances.
Allergic contact dermatitis can develop along with atopic dermatitis.
Neurodermatitis and irritant hand syndrome can develop in the later stages of eczema.
Eczema Prevention
To prevent the flares of eczema, you need to follow specific tips.
- Keep your skin moisturized to prevent your skin from drying out after bathing.
- Use moisturizing, gentle soaps like our honey eczema soap bar.
- Do not use antibacterial or deodorant soaps that further exacerbate eczema and removes natural body oils.
- Apply lotions, creams, and ointments to moisturize your skin at least twice a day.
- On your baby’s skin, you can apply petroleum jelly, which will help to prevent eczema development.
- Avoid triggers that causes eczema or worsen your condition.
- If your baby has eczema, be aware of certain foods that can cause allergies. These foods can be milk, eggs, wheat and soy.
- Discuss potential food allergies with your doctor.
- Try to take shorter baths. Limit the bathing time to 10 to 15 minutes. Do not bathe in hot water, always use warm water.
- The American Academy of Dermatology recommends a bleach bath to aid in the prevention of flares. A diluted bleach bath (mixed with water) alleviates infectious bacteria on the skin. Do not take a bleach bath more than twice a week.
- Do not submerge your head in the water. Just soak from your feet up to your neck for about 10 minutes.
- After bathing, pat dry your skin with a soft towel and apply a moisturizer.
Find Relief With Our Soothing Bar Soap
Our eczema soap is made up of natural ingredients and is designed to relieve eczema symptoms. This soap is moisturizing and is ideal for all skin types, however we do recommend applying a regular moisturizer after bathing. Dealing with eczema can be a tricky journey, but we hope to help sufferers achieve a little relief through our honey and oatmeal soap bar.