grandson's eczema - any suggestions?

Poor little chap. One of my DGD gets it ? fairly mildly but even so it is so unpleasant for her.
The GP does nothing but prescribe steroid cream which has long-term effects as it can thin the skin.

Lots of good suggestions on here but one thing I did notice with DGD is that a flare up is less likely to occur in summer so I wonder if Vitamin D helps? Does your grandson have any vitamins, especially Vit D - cod liver oil is supposed to be beneficial.

Balmonds products are supposed to help alleviate eczema and are worth a try, at the very least will soothe and moisturise the skin. They were first developed by a mother whose daughter got severe eczema.

balmonds.co.uk/

Has your gc had an allergy test?
Eczema may have other sources

Aveeno baby (US version) was a godsend for us

My daughter uses Dermol 500 lotion for both my grandson's and puts a couple of squirts into the bath water. She finds the change of seasons makes it flare and if they get to hot.

hydromol ointment..
also Child's Farm products, shampoo, moisturisers for babies.. from Boots and other outlets and online of course.
I use unscented childs farm moisturiser on my lower legs every day upon getting out of shower

My two year grandson is also an eczema sufferer and has periods where he is itchy. His skin becomes red, angry looking and bleeds. He does have a range of allergies (that have been tested in hospital and he is under an allergy consultant). Cows' milk is one of his allergies and so is soy and egg along with a range of others. His food has to be free of those allergens so the Plant based products we find are an excellent substitute for the usual dairy. His eczema flares up if he has contact with a known allergen. Is it maybe worth pushing for a referral to an allergy clinic if your grandson's symptoms appear worse after eating certain foods? Clothes, bedding and towels are washed using non bio detergent for sensitive skin and as a previous poster has mentioned, not all creams (even those claiming to be for eczema or sensitive skin) are suitable for my grandson, especially bathing products and sunscreens, so it has been trial and error to find the most suitable. We find that the antihistamine that the GP prescribed helps him to stop scratching and helps to calm flare ups. I do hope you get sorted as it is awful.

So very sorry. I used to have to bandage my daughter for her to sleep too, cotton pjs/bedding washed without washing powder, always hoovered her mattress and bedroom very thoroughly for mites/dust etc.

She has it on her arms/legs/the palms of her hands, and we eventually saw a dermatologist who was stumped. Her palms always became blistered, and the blisters wept.

The dermatologist recommended a fungus cream as a last resort and she was in absolute agony after applying it for the first time. If this is recommended to anyone I would do a very tiny spot test first.

As our largest immune system I am surprised there isn't more research being done. My daughter is 26 now and uses all types of creams but so many do burn/sting.

She prefers Body Shop shea butter on her body and hands, and when she has an extreme localised flare 1% hydrocortisone normally works immediately but as a steroid has to be used very carefully.

I would have suggested batheing the affected places in cold calomile tea, but it sounds as if the oat cure works even better.

Cutting out milk didn't help, but are there any indications that your grandson could be allergic to anything else?

Unfortunately, you can be allergic to practically anything, so your daughter might well need to keep a diary of what her son eats and drinks every day for a month and see if there seems to be any correlation between his intake and the flare-ups.

If she is not already using non-perfumed washing powder, soap, shampoo and unperfumed cleaning agents, then I would suggest she considers getting rid of anything and everything perfumed, as perfectly legal perfumes (and other additives) are often the cause of skin conditions.

And it may not be sufficient just to wash her son and his clothes in unperfumed products. I can literally not be in the same room as people who have used the products I am allergic to.

House dust (and house dust mite) are another frequent cause of itching, and however clean your daughter's house is, no house is, or ever can be, completely free of dust - and a little goes a long way if you are allergic to it.

I hope you find both something that alleviates the itching and the cause of it, as relieving the itch is basically only treating a highly annoying symptom and not the issue itself.

My youngest suffered with eczema as a baby and still get flair-ups even now, 30 years later.
GP prescribed all manner of lotions and Aqueous creams for bathing.
We had to totally change all soaps, detergents and cleaning products used in the home too.
There is no mention by the OP that the daughter has tried changing the laundry products. - that would be any first. course of action. - apologies if it has been already suggested.

Definitely bathe in oats that helped my 19 year old who had it bad as a baby/ toddler she was taken to hospital bleeding bright red and very very miserable She was also lactose intolerant and has never drank cows milk since Periton helps but if I remember rightly I think she was also intolerant of the oil content of the creams they were giving her but they eventually found one that suited She has a lovely skin now but still has to be careful there is only one sun cream she can use (an expensive one too?) and had problems using a face mask with friends as a young teen

My son had it very badly in the hot summer of 1976 when he was about the same age as your grandson. We used emulsifying ointment for the bath and piriton syrup to help him sleep. We kept him bandaged at night and he had antibiotics when the itchy places became infected. He had it for several years but it had gone by the time he went to school . He did develop mild asthma but it has always been well controlled with an inhaler.

My daughter uses AmLacrin Relief Restoring Lotion on her children. She says it stings a bit at the beginning.

Amazon
AmLactin Rapid Relief Restoring Lotion + Ceramides Twin Pack, (2) 7.9 Ounce Bottles, Paraben Free
Brand: AmLactin
4.6 out of 5 stars 2,255 ratings
Climate Pledge Friendly Climate Pledge Friendly
£41.97 (£93.27 / kg)

My daughter suffered very badly with eczema and now in her 30's it can still flare up. As a baby toddler we found she got relief from bathing in very fine porridge oats. We put plain porridge oats in each leg of a pair of tights and let the lukewarm (never hot) water from the taps run through it. Sounds crazy but it took away the soreness and gave her relief. We sometimes would keep her amused for about an hour in the porridge bath. David Bellamy was on a chat show and said he did this for his children who suffered, was how we first heard about it. Don't buy expensive products just use inexpensive simple oatmeal. Lots of info on Google.