12 Life Changing Tips For Eczema: From a Derm with Eczema

eczema is an incredibly common skin condition that affects millions of people around the world including myself and my children eczema causes itchiness discomfort and a loss of sleep and can really negatively affect your quality of life I've treated over a thousand patients with eczema so in today's video I'm going to be sharing with you some life-changing tips that have not only helped my patients but have also helped myself as well as my children and Dr Alex is a board-certified dermatologist and an eczema Warrior welcome to the channel so let's go ahead and jump into a brief definition of what eczema is because sometimes people don't know if it is actually eczema or just dry skin so eczema also known as atopic dermatitis is literally inflammation of the skin it's when your Skin Barrier is no longer functioning properly and you're losing too much moisture and water basically there is a deficiency in ceramides which is like the glue that helps to hold skin cells together without the appropriate amount of ceramides your skin can really be left feeling irritated and dry and this tends to have a genetic component to it those with skin of color tend to have less ceramides and therefore make us more prone to having eczema whereas dry skin is skin that lacks oil and it can change with your different environment with the right moisturizers it's fairly easy to repair another way to differentiate between eczema and dry skin is really based off of location eczema often occurs in patches and on isolated areas like the inner folds of the arms and the wrist whereas dry skin can be more generalized and tends to start around the ankles and The Shins also eczema tends to be very symptomatic so itchy burning stinging really irritated skin whereas dry skin tends to be asymptomatic eczema is also more often associated with environmental triggers Allergy and Asthma and even some food sensitivities and lastly the appearance of eczema is very different than the appearance of dry skin eczema tends to present with a red rash but in those with skin of color excellent is often misdiagnosed because we don't show a red rash our rashes can be brown or more hyper pigmented they can even be hypo pigmented or even look gray and then there is follicular or papular eczema which tends to occur in those with black skin or of African descent and these look like tiny little bumps they almost resemble like a heat rash and they can occur on the Torso the arms or the legs another Telltale sign of eczema is thickened skin in the areas that are chronically scratched or rubbed this is known as lichenification these are all signs and symptoms that you wouldn't necessarily see in someone with a dry skin dry skin tends to just have more fine lines and look ashy if you will the good news is that there are many many solutions including lifestyle changes that can make the world world of a difference to an eczema sufferer so my first tip is to Pat it out I know this is much easier said than done I have to tell you this is one of the first things that I taught my children when they were little babies before they could even talk was to learn how to Pat as opposed to actually scratching the skin so the reason it's so important to avoid scratching is that scratching the skin causes these tiny little micro tears which then can be a source of infection allowing bacteria and viruses to get in not only that but scratching the skin causes more inflammation and then starts suspicious itch scratch cycle of your eczema and inflammation can lead to hyperpigmentation which is super common in those with skin of color post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation or PIH almost goes hand in hand in eczema if you do have a more melanin Rich skin tone so my advice is to Pat it out as opposed to scratching or create some type of barrier between your skin and your fingernails so if there's one isolated area that you're always scratching apply a patch to to it or if you're always scratching at bedtime make sure that you're sleeping in Long pajamas or even with cotton gloves and when it's the daytime and you can't do these things reach for a moisturizer as opposed to scratching which leads me to tip number two which is to apply the right moisturizer so the reason that moisturizer is so helpful is because it will help to soothe the skin and they immediately start to quiet down those itching signals it's also really good for helping with barrier restoration formulation of your moisturizer is so important when you have eczema you definitely need something that is going to be free of irritating ingredients like dyes and fragrances and you want to look for soothing properties like colloidal oatmeal colloidal oatmeal helps to protect and soothe the skin it has compounds called avananthromides which basically help to scavenge up those free radicals now free radicals in eczema are not friends as free radicals will actually increase inflammation further exacerbating your eczema and prolonging the flare collateral oatmeal is also rich in beta glucans and benefits helping to not only hydrate the skin but really helping to restore that Skin Barrier and as we already noted those with eczema are deficient in ceramides so having ceramides in your moisturizer is going to be really important and replenishing the ceramides that are in your skin an amazing moisturizer that has the colloidal oatmeal and the ceramides is this body cream by necessary who are kindly sponsoring this portion of the video so not only is this rich with colloidal oatmeal and ceramides but it also has five percent niacinamide linoleic acid and glycerin so really really helpful for hydrating the skin sealing in the moisture in the Skin Barrier but also helping with hyperpigmentation with that five percent niacinamide and as we already noted PIH or post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation almost always follows eczema and those that are more melon and Rich I acetamide and linoleic acid are ingredients you guys hear me talk about all the time so I'm so happy that they paired it in a fantastic moisturizer that's really good for eczema prone Skin So my recommendation would be be the moment that you have that itch sensation if you reach for a moisturizer like the body cream and you'll put it directly on the area that has the sensation you will immediately start to soothe the skin and get some relief and disrupt that itch scratch cycle what you're doing is reinforcing the Skin Barrier and almost creating like an external Source or a layer of skin which helps to trap in the moisture and allowing your skin barrier to become more effective and no longer having that dry itchy sensation when you have eczema it is super important that you are moisturizing your skin every single day so you do want to have a variety of different types of moisturizers whether it's in an ultra nourishing cream like the body cream or if you're looking for a lotion or a serum the body serum from necessary is a much more lightweight option and this has the eczema seal of acceptance or sometimes you might even want a really rich and thick ointment like a Vaseline to help seal it all in and the difference between the different categories is really how oil is in the product so a ointment is going to have the most oil it's going to be a little thicker and greasier whereas a serum or lotion is going to be more lightweight and have the least amount of oil and creams which are my personal favorite are somewhere right in the middle tip number three is to take a less frequent and less warm showers the moment that that shower ends and the water starts evaporating from our skin we are actually drier than before we ever got into the shower so you actually want to apply your moisturizer while your skin is still a damp to really help seal in lock in that moisturizer and if you're someone who takes a bath or you have children who take the bath consider doing one of these Aveeno eczema therapy colloidal oatmeal bags remember all of those benefits we talked about from colloidal oatmeal it's incredible to actually add that to your bath water also take a good look at the soap that you're cleansing with to make sure that it's free of irritants and fragrances tip number four is to wear a loose fitting and breathable clothing this also goes for diapers the diapers should be free of chlorine bleaching fragrance parabens and latex and if you have children that are still in the diaper phase make sure that you are considering the wipes that you're using definitely look for the eczema still of acceptance on any wipes that you're using on baby and whenever you purchase new clothing you definitely want to wash it before you wear it and make sure that you clip out any of those tags they can sometimes be found in the back of clothing the friction back and forth on the skin can really exacerbate and flare your eczema a lot of clothing is treated with different type of chemicals like formaldehydes and dyes so you really want to wash them out to try and dilute out any compounds that might trigger or irritate your skin definitely make sure that you're washing your sheets and your pillowcases often because dust mites can build up on them and definitely irritate and exacerbate your eczema as you're sleeping and cause a lot of itching to happen as you're trying to fall asleep and make sure to look for the eczema sale of acceptance on your laundry detergents tip number five is to have a humidifier in the areas that you spend the most time in whether that be your bedroom or your desk or both having a humidifier increase is the water concentration in the ambient air in your room therefore there's less of a gradient for you to lose water from the surface of your skin to the outside air tip number six is to implement something called a bleach bath which is where you actually take Clorox and you add a capful of that to an entire bath now I would do this maybe once or twice a month but what this is doing is helping to regulate the microbiome on the skin those who have eczema tend to have an overgrowth of something called staph aureus which is a bacteria that you definitely don't want over growing on the surface of your skin and it can lead to a lot of problems so doing a bleach bath helps to reset the microbiome of the skin this gives a good chance for when that bacteria repopulates to allow the good bacteria to now outweigh the bad bacteria the ratio of good and bad bacteria affect the levels of inflammation throughout the body including the histamine response on the skin an excellent facial cleanser with Prebiotic benefits helping to repair and rebalance the skin microbiome is the larage Posay hydrating gentle cleanser tip number seven is to be careful of how you groom your hair and your nails nail polish can be irritating to the eyelids and if you're prone to getting eczema in the eye area you commonly touch your eye without really thinking about it multiple times throughout the day and that may flare up your eczema also be mindful of how long your nails are if you accidentally scratch really long nails you're probably going to tear up your skin and also be mindful of how you do your hair so sometimes synthetic hair can really cause eczema flares on the back of the neck tip number eight is definitely another one of those easier said than done which is to try your best to manage both your sleep and your stress when cortisol spikes up so your stress hormone it leads to more inflammation which undoubtedly flares your eczema so try your best to implement really healthy sleep habits and find a source of stress relief for a lot of people that is exercise but you do want to be mindful of exercise which brings us to our next tip which is if you exercise make sure that you immediately rinse off the sweat once sweat sits on your skin it actually acts as an irritant and breaks down some of those natural lipids that are on the surface of our skin so it's really important to actually go ahead and cleanse your skin immediately following exercise another thing that happens is when we are exercising a lot of histamines get released that increase in histamines can actually cause some more itching so some patients find it very helpful to take an antihistamine prior to exercise be really smart about your pull time so you want to prep appropriately when you are going to be going to the pool I think it's an obvious that you want to wash off the chlorine and the other chemicals that are usually used to treat pools immediately when you're done but to prep your skin prior to getting into the pool or your children's skin prior to getting into the pool go ahead and slather on a nice thick layer of Vaseline almost to provide an occlusive buffer between their skin and the water tip number 11 is to avoid anything that you know to be personally triggering to you even if nothing is found in the books or the literature if you find that whenever you use a certain product or you eat the certain food it triggers your eczema just avoid it I would definitely keep a food diary for a little while to really get down to what might be flaring your asthma a lot of patients find that they are sensitive to egg whites or bovine or gluten so taking a couple of days out to just track what you're eating can be really helpful if a flare occurs there's some good apps that can help you track your food and your symptoms I'll make sure to link them below my final tip is to find a dermatologist for when your eczema flares and these tips and tricks are not enough eczema is a chronic medical condition and oftentimes needs medical intervention whether that be anti-inflammatories like steroid creams or even immunomodulators that are sometimes oil injectable or topical creams having a good germ in your corner is always important I hope that you guys found this video helpful if so please let me know down below let me know what you want to see next time and until next time be well

Channel: Dr Alexis Stephens

Views: 195,863

Keywords: eczema, hyperpigmentation, eczema in skin of color, eczema in children, eczema tips for black babies, how to stop eczema itching, how to stop eczema, itch, Necessaire, Body Care, Clean Skincare, Fragrance Free, Keratosis Pilaris, Niacinamide, Hyaluronic Acid, Ceramides, Peptides, Fine Texture, Vitamins, Value, Body Cream, Soothing, Eczema skin, skin irritation, dermatologist skin of color eczema tips, how to treat eczema, eczema treatment, eczema tips for black skin

Id: y42qpoaLxJg

Length: 12min 44sec (764 seconds)

Published: Sun Apr 30 2023