Multiple Remedies
★★★★☆
1. Got rid of all my old skin care products (even though the ones I was using were organic and for sensitive skin) and found a cleanser and moisturizer designed especially for very reactive skin. At first though, I used only warm water to wash my face.
2. Swapped to fluoride-free toothpaste. I don't know if this made a difference but I still use it because of all the other nasty effects of fluoride I read about along the way.
3. Started taking probiotics. Again, I'm not convinced they helped much with the POD, but I don't think they hurt either and I do believe that part of my problem was related to yeast imbalance.
4. Dabbed apple cider vinegar mixed with warm green tea - about 1 part tea to 2 parts vinegar - twice a day. I did this for 3 weeks. I'm afraid this was not the miracle cure in my case. I think it may have kept the 'rash' contained, but it did not remove it and in the end it was irritating my skin too much. I felt my skin needed and deserved something more gentle.
5. Nappy/diaper cream. They don't sell the Balmex cream in Norway, but I bought another one that contained zinc oxide and calendula cream. This was extremely soothing and settled the irritation. My skin liked it and I saw some improvement. I applied it to the affected areas twice a day, although had to go without on work days where I needed to be around people as it's not a flattering look. In the end, however, I felt that the nappy cream was soothing the problem but not getting rid of the source.
6. I learned from my research on the internet of the theory that POD is fungal in origin. So I had the idea to try an anti-fungal type of agent, but I wanted one that was organic and going to be kind to my skin. I found an Australian company (kind of nice since that is where I am from) that makes an organic anti-fungal/anti-bacterial cream - phytoseptic cream they call it - and decided to try it. I ordered it over the internet and had it sent to me in Norway. Finally I can report that I am currently POD free and have been for several weeks. I applied the cream morning and night - it's green in colour so I applied a thinner layer in the mornings before work - and noticed change within a few days. The cream is very soothing and felt good on my skin. At first I noticed that, though the red bumps were disappearing from where they had been worst originally, I was getting new outbreaks on my lower cheeks. Maybe that would have happened anyway, or maybe the cream had to flush out all the toxins (whatever they were) before killing them. Nevertheless, within 2 months I was bump free. I just have a couple of tiny pink areas around my nose that are not bumpy at all, but given that my skin is extremely fair, are possibly just the shadows of where the POD used to be. Sometimes I get spots that I suspect are pimples but am so nervous about a new POD outbreak that I dab them with the phytoseptic cream. So far no new outbreaks. Although it took 2 months in total, this is at least how long I would have had to be on antibiotics anyway and I am very pleased that I found an alternative that was easy to use and good for my skin. I can't give the brand name here, but if you search the internet using the information I've given I'm sure you'll find the cream I'm talking about. It may not work for everyone, just as the other remedies didn't work for me. In that case, however, it may at least be an idea that leads you on to the product that does work. Good luck!
Multiple Remedies
★★★★★
So I tried some remedies, and they worked! I do this three times a day, in this order: Apply Apple Cider Vinager to hands and let it dry, then apply warm olive oil. Then at night before bedtime, I also soak my hands in chamomile tea. In addition to this I take a dietary supplement, it is a blend of Omega 3-6-9 complex. I found this blend at a grocery store.
My daughter who is 5 years old,recently broke out with eczema on her face. I'm applying the ACV and olive oil 3 times a day. I diluted the ACV, because it was too strong. In the morning before school I just apply a little lotion, so the kids do not make fun of her having oil all over her face. I'm also going to start having her eat half a apple a day. Hopefully this will work for her! And I hope this helps others.
Multiple Remedies
★★★★★
5 Months later this is what I found.
1. Figured out on my own that I was reacting to disposable diapers. Switched to cloth and symptoms improved 50%.
2. Allergy test showed allergies to nikel,formaldehyde, and something called Quaternium-15 (formaldehyde-releasing preservative -- this is found in (or a similiar preservativ) in all most all liquid soaps, cleaners, and many cosmetics.
Once I elimanted these things (cloth diapers and compeletely switched to "greener"/natural products) my symptoms have imporved. I'm still having a slight problem and trying to find the final thing I am reacting to. We have figured out it is something in our house. (We just returned from a 3 week trip back home to visit family and the eczema had completly cleared up (except for 2 small outbreaks -- occured after holding my nephew and friends baby and sleeping on sheets that I had not washed in safe detergent!)
Meanwhile I found ACCUPUNCTURE really helped to make the symptons bearable with no side effects (very impoortant since I am nursing. Although it didn't eliminate the symptoms it did relieve horrible parts like patches that had become so inflamed as to become "weeping" or cracked and bleeding. It also helped to manage the itch and burning -- which was welcome relief since I had spent 3 months just trying to ignore it while trying "normal" medicial treatments that didn't work.
Currently we are investigating our water supply.
If anyone has anyother suggestings I'd love to hear them.
Multiple Supplements
★★★★★
Mustard Oil
★★★★★
Natto
★★★★★
As a result of being diagnosed with osteoporosis and refusing to take prescription medications to treat it, I discovered (as a reader of Dr. Joseph Mercola's daily emails) that Japanese Natto (fermented soybeans) contains vitamin K2 which is helpful in protecting bones.
I began eating a spoonful of Natto daily. It does take some getting used to as it is very slimy.
Low and behold as a side benefit of consuming this fermented soybean, my eczema completely cleared up!
I still eat Natto daily and consider it essential to my healthy regimen.
(Pennsylvania)
07/12/2021
Neem Oil
★★★★★
Warning: Neem seed oil stinks!! It's like a cross between onions, garlic & cabbage soup. This is how it smells normally. Very unpleasant but it works. I will definitely keep a bottle handy just in case I have another episode.
P.S. I've tried using tea tree oil alone for eczema in the past and it didn't really help much. I also tried applying apple cider vinegar and it burned like hell and didn't help much either. It was the neem that zapped away the eczema for sure.
Neem Oil, Baking Soda
★★★★☆
Nettles
★★★★★
Niacinimade Powder, Vitamin E
★★★★☆
Please can you tell me if what I am doing it right and how to cure my eczema and the scars. At the beginning of the year, I made my own cream. I used Niacinamide powder, mixed with a little bit of water, I added vitamin E, afew drops of rosehip oil and added my daily moisturiser. That helped my skin alot. I am going to order all the products again.
I also tried covering my body in normal yoghurt, then washing it in tepid water after it had dried, about half an hour, this was to be done for a week and then i had to apply malt vineger, but I was abit worried in case the vinegar scarred my skin.
Please can you urgently advise.
(Nagpur, Maharashtra)
04/24/2012
Noxzema
★★★★★
Did you know that the tub of facial cream you put on your face everyday was used as a home remedy for eczema?
The original formula for Noxzema was invented by Dr. Francis J. Townsend (1875-?), a physician/druggist around 1900, in Snow Hill, Maryland; by 1910, in Berlin, Maryland; and by 1920, in Ocean City, Maryland. The formula was called "Townsend R22" and referred to commonly as "no-eczema". Dr. Townsend, who practiced near the beaches of the Atlantic Ocean, prescribed it as a remedy, mainly to beach resort vacationers who were severely burned by ultraviolet sun rays.
Townsend later gave the formula to druggist George Avery Bunting (1870-1959), who for many years denied the transaction. In about 1917, Bunting began producing and selling "Dr. Bunting's Sunburn Remedy", marketing the product as an alternative to the greasy, tallow-based medicating creams in use during the period. For the first 3 years, George A. Bunting and Elizabeth Buck mixed, heated and poured the product themselves. The name was changed to Noxzema, supposedly because a satisfied customer exclaimed, "Sure knocked my eczema!". An early slogan was "The miracle cream of Baltimore". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noxzema
Noxzema is a non-soap facial cleanser that contains camphor, clove oil, eucalyptus and menthol. Many report it can help ease eczema. It soon got a reputation for “knocking eczema” and is said to have gotten its “no eczema” name from that.
(Tennessee)
11/19/2023
Thanks Rob, for sharing that fascinating history! I remember using Noxzema for sunburn in the 70's…
~Mama to Many~
Ocean Water
★★★★★
(Lancashire)
03/22/2016
★★★★★
I suffer from eczema on my hands and feet and whenever I go to the seaside, if I put my hands and feet in the water, it takes my eczema away as well. I can't wait to go back as I have had a flare up again.
Ocean Water
★★★★★
It's worth noting that (I believe) one would have to actually go to the ocean and be in the water to get the benifits. That is, I do not believe mixing salt and water would work. Nor do I believe you could bring home some ocean water and apply it and get the same results. It is my belief that the ocean water needs to be "alive". Meaning, it needs to be full of all the bacteria/microorganisms/fresh plant particles etc. that are present in the water's natural state. I realise that not all eczema sufferers live on the coast, so for many sufferers this may not be helpful info--but for eczema sufferers living near the beach, they would be well advised to take make as many beach trips as possible...it could very well be the miracle cure they're looking for.
Also, I had the thought that maybe fresh "ocean" water from a salt-water aquarium could be effective. Since, in the aquarium, the water contains many of the same bacteria etc. that would be found in the natural ocean it seems at least possible that this water could be used to treat eczema (i.e. dipping a cloth in the tank and applying it to the affected area. In theory, at least, this seems more likely to be successful than, say, transporting ocean water from the beach since many of the living organisms in the water will be unable to survive for more than a couple of hours.
Sincerely,
Doug
(Manhattan, New York)
10/09/2009
Hi Doug, good to hear you found a cure... I have a friend with severe Psoriatic Arthritis and for him the only really effective treatment is a trip to the Dead Sea. He said buying the bath salts just didn't do it. I wonder if it could be a combination of the sun and sea water and stress relief. Tout ensemble!
(Ipswich, Sd Usa)
01/06/2010
★★★★★
Hey Doug, I suffer from eczema on my ankles, when I went in the Navy I snorkeled often. I noticed the seawater and sun would clear my eczema right away. I try using a tanning bed now and it helps, but the combination sun and seawater worked well. The ACV stops the itch for now till I can get back to the sea.
(Santa Ana, Ca)
01/13/2010
Oil Pulling
★★★★★
Old Fashioned Rolled Oats
★★★★★
After having a pretty bad bout of poison ivy on my arms, I was prescribed a steroid cream. Shortly after that my hands started breaking out with what I thought was still poison ivy that was still on my boots or other items I may have touched after. Eventually I got to the point where I wasn't sure if it was in fact still poison ivy on my hands. Long story short, I went to two different dermatologists. One said it was probably Granuloma Annulare while the other said it was probably Eczema. Both agreed, however, that it wasn't poison ivy and that it was probably caused from my skin being compromised (i.e. good bacteria) on my hands.
I used to use a lot of hand sanitizer and wash my hands a lot because of the type of job I have. Anyway, after using their creams that they prescribed, getting good results at first and then my condition getting worse (mind you, one dermatologist actually prescribe a cream that had alcohol in it- go figure right), I decided to go natural and with the mind state that I had to rebuild my skin on my hands.
Initially I was using a mixture of oils that had both restorative and anti-fungal/bacterial properties as well as a new method for my hand washing. This worked for a while, but then I was having issues again.
So what I have done and this has been the best results hands down is soak my hands in Old Fashioned Rolled Oats (organic). That is, 1 to 2 cups of Old Fashioned Rolled Oats blended/food processed down to powder with warm to hot water in a bowl where my hands are fully submerged. I use a Bullet mixer. (By the way, hot water, as hot as I can stand, relieves the itch for some hours! )
Make sure it's mixed pretty well. I soak my hands for 15 to 20 minutes. After I pat dry and I use Aveeno Eczema Lotion. At first, I soaked twice a day until I got results then once a day and then once a week or so for maintenance. I also use the Aveeno Lotion at least twice a day, more during winter or if hands are dry. I also use the Aveeno sensitive body wash soap as soap for my hands. I found not letting my hands become dry helps a lot and keeping hand friction to minimum, especially the areas that get affected (i.e. the tops of my hands). I also minimize the amount of gluten I eat, especially bread, and eat as healthy as possible with minimum sweets, while still enjoying life! :)
Oh yeah, and I stay away from hand sanitizer too as much as possible and don't overdue washing my hands. If I must, again, I focus on the parts of my hands that actually touch (i.e. the underside of my fingers).
