Dermatitis
Natural Remedies

Dermatitis Treatment and Natural Remedies

The comments below reflect the personal experiences and opinions of readers and do not represent medical advice or the views of this website. The information shared has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease or health condition. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for medical concerns.

Coconut Oil

3 User Reviews
5 star (3) 
  100%

Posted by Janet (Morayfield, Queensland) on 05/19/2007
★★★★★

I have suffered from skin ailments all my life. I had heard about coconut oil but it seemed too simple an idea to really work, and I had tried every remedy, scientific and natural, under the sun and nothing ever worked. So after reading all the latest hype about coconut oil I decided "why not?' Well, sometimes I wish wasn't such a sceptic and then I might have tried it years ago. How it works I don't know but after less than a week of applying it twice a day my rash had cleared up, the redness and itching was gone, and has stayed gone despite the fact that I have stopped using my usual prescription anti-inflammatory cream. The kind I use is the extra virgin pure coconut oil made without chemical processes. I'm now taking it orally too.


Cold Showers

1 User Review
5 star (1) 
  100%

Posted by Katrina (Sterling, VA) on 08/28/2006
★★★★★

After the death of two very close friends and a lot of stress, I ended up with stress induced psoriasis all over my head, neck and shoulder. I tried EVERYTHING OTC and nothing worked so finally, I gave up, and started saving money to go to the doctor. I came across the cold water therapy on this site and although I did nto intend to use it to treat this issue, it sure cured it. I started taking cold water showers in the hottest months here in Virginia. Immediately I noticed the increase in energy and my hair is SUPER SOFT even after months of harsh psoriasis shampoos that had my hair turning to straw. Call me crazy, but it seems my shower doesn't get as grimey as it did before when I was using hot water. My complexion has improved, and there is an obvious difference in my pores. Basically, I have nothing bad to say about cold showers. After 2 months of them, I can't even STAND a hot shower now.


Contact Dermatitis

Posted by Donnalsm (Subang, Selangor, Malaysia) on 11/05/2011

I have an ongoing problem with contact dermatitis for a number of years now. When prescribed medicine doesn't work, the best remedy for relieving my eczema symptoms so far would be:

1. Use pH balanced products for washing.

i.e. shampoo, body wash, household cleaning agents and such.

- try organic soaps or castille soaps. these are made of chemical free, all natural ingredients.

2. Avoid using products with Sodium Lauryl Sulfate which can cause skin irritation.

- check product contents on the label before you buy soaps, shampoos, detergents, etc.

3. Avoid washing the affected area too often.

- washing too often will cause your skin to lose its natural moisture. Dry skin will crack easily and can become sore and itchy. so, seriously reduce the frequency of washing your affected skin.

- I have tried using rubber and latex (surgical type) gloves, but it made my skin worse. It might had something to do with the layer of powder lined inside the gloves which irritates my skin.

4. Keep your skin moisturized at all times.

- I use pH5 Handcreme by Eucerin which contains enzymes that help to repair dry and damaged skin cells.

5. Higher amount of non-acidic Vitamin C.

- a daily intake of high strength 1000mg tabs of acid free vitamin C . Any brand is fine, as long as the base ingredient is CALCIUM ASCORBATE and not Ascorbic Acid.

- this has helped my skin to recover very quickly from cracks and flare ups before they could get any worse.

That's about it. Hope you'll find this information useful.

Replied by Debbie
(Melbourne, Australia)
11/06/2011

Donnalsm, some good ideas to help prevent the symptoms of ezcema and dermatitis but I believe you need to get to the root problem in the first place rather than just treating the symptoms.

I believe that dermatitis and ezcema and many other skin rashes/conditions are caused by Candida/yeast infections. If you only treat the symptoms, the underlying cause is still there. Often antibiotics are the cuprit for getting candida/yeast infections.

Iodine is one of the best ways to cure candida/yeast/fungal infections. If you are lacking in iodine the yeast will take over your body and cause many problems throughout the body. Dr. Orian Truss in 1953 used an Iodine Protocol on many people with many disease problems and cured them. He found that other problems that had plagued them including depression were cured after he gave them iodine. Google him.


Cortisone Cream

1 User Review
1 star (1) 
  100%

Posted by Connie (Brush Prairie, WA) on 06/10/2009
★☆☆☆☆

WARNING!

Hello everyone, I just wanted to say that cortisone cream should be avoided for POD. It will mske the symptoms better at first, but eventually the problem will become worse according to my dermatologist and according to everything I have read in the literature.


Dandruff Shampoo

2 User Reviews
5 star (1) 
  50%
3 star (1) 
  50%

Posted by Lily (Ny, Usa) on 03/02/2012
★★★★★

I do have PD and try many things like most of u, from pills, creams and many home remedies, but this was what work for me. I started treating my PD as mites or fungal infection. I use dandruff shampoo (which is and anti-fungal shampoo, generic brand for head n shoulder because I have sensitive skin. The lady on this site recommended nizoral- too strong for my skin) to wash my face with it (the first time I letted sit in my face like for ten minutes and I saw a big differece right way) dry all the bumps, ichying was gone. After I rinsed my face and dry it well I applied an anti-fungul cream (oxistat 1% is RX but lotrimin is over the counter) 3 days later big improvement. Now that my condition is better I am going to put lanolin (lanolin is to help heal sore, cracked nipples, fos women that breastfeeding) to help the skin healing process faster (like I said nizoral was to strong for my skin so it buned my skin a little). I hope this help others. I will post later to let u all know how's going. thank u Earthclinic for this site.

Replied by Lily
(Ny, Usa)
03/08/2012

Updating I'm my PD. I can happily say my face is 95% clear now. I am still washing my face with dandruff shampoo and applying antifungal cream 3 times a day. There are 2 area (each side of my nose) that still shows a litlle PD. So this morning I applyed an antifungal liquid call NO MORE FUNGUS (sally hansen brand) and wow 3 hours later big different! Please don't give up, keep trying this is what I did untill I found the remedy that worked for me and I am sharing it cuz maybe might work for someone else too. Thank u Earthclinic for this site! :)

Replied by Jrheats
(Nebraska)
03/17/2016
★★★☆☆

WORKED TEMPORARILY

I have tried dandruff shampoo and apple cider vinegar. After using each a couple times, the dermatitis would flake and seem to clear up with no more bumps present; however, it has returned both times after it had appeared to be gone.

Lily, how did it turn out for you?


Dead Sea Salt

Posted by Anilove (Holland) on 06/03/2014

I've tried almost ANY treatment listed here, calendula ointment, coconut oil, acv, neem oil, tar soap. ACV spread the rash further! So did the coconut oil and calendula. Yogurt masks only helped a little bit and still left my face dry and tight.

As I believe it's caused from the inside and I think my reason is I react badly to Magnesium stereate, clogged bowels/liver while I've been suffering from constipation as well besides eating gluten/dairy/egg/nut free. Please look into candida and or parasites as well which I believe may play a big role in this! Flushing with castor oil works wonders in cleaning out the bowels and healing my skin.

Now when it comes to treat it topically:

please please stop using any lotion, ointment, oils natural or not!!! It only spreads the rash further (learned it the hard way).

1. buy some Dead sea salt (make sure it's 100% pure).

2. I usually use a bowl and fill it with warm water, dissolve about 1 tbsp in it.

3. I then wash my face with warm/slightly hot water to open my pores and splash my face with the sea salt water. Yeah it will sting and burn and seem irritated, but a good sign, the yeast is reacting to it.

4. After splashing my face a few times with it, I end washing my face with cold water. Pat dry with a clean towel.

my face actually doesn't feel tight or dry after it at all. If it does I moisturze carefully with a tiny bit of cod liver oil cream.

My redness was decreased almost 100% overnight the next day!!! Do this once in the morning and at night.


Decolorized Iodine

2 User Reviews
5 star (1) 
  50%
1 star (1) 
  50%

Posted by Sharon (Boston) on 09/29/2006
★★★★★

Please delete my previous email from January and put this one in its place. This is the most successful remedy combination I have experimented with for dermatitis!

I have had an itchy dermatitis on and off around my nose for about 10 years. It was triggered after working in an office in Los Angeles for a man who smoked all day long (illegally of course, but he was a top entertainment executive so no one complained at that point in time). After years of smoking, the cigarette smoke was embedded in his furniture-- that's a horrendous smell to someone whose never smoked. Plus, think of all those microbes! At any rate, it took about 3 years to clear and then came back every time I would get around old, furniture embedded cigarette smoke. Psychological response? Maybe! At any rate, it came back again this summer after a few month respite.

But this time, I am happy to report that after years of playing around with every prescription and supplement under the sun, I think I have finally hit upon a dermatitis cure! It will only cost about $5... $.79 for the decolorized iodine, and $4 for a bottle of vitamin E oil. Here is my cure:

Using decolorized iodine for the face, take a q-tip and dab the dermatitis with iodine. If this is not on your face, you can use regular iodine. But it will stain you orange for a few hours.

If your dermatitis is on sensitive skin around your nose, like me, it will burn like crazy when you apply the iodine. Don't inhale the fumes while it is drying (takes about 10 seconds to dry). After it dries, apply some natural vitamin e oil. I open a large capsule and use that for several days before it runs out. Your skin will redden from the iodine and dry out, but the vitamin e will heal it and keep it from flaking. Keep this area moist with vitamin e oil all day and night if possible.

Do the topical iodine for 2 days, 3x a day. After the 2nd day, cut the iodine back to 1x a day. However, you will still want to keep the vitamin e oil on all day. After 3 days of 1x daily application of iodine, cut the iodine back to every other day. Continue every other day for 10 days (or less). Keep up the vitamin e oil every day until the dermatitis has disappear completely.

Let me tell you, the iodine and vitamin 3 oil starts to work on clearing up the dermatitis in about 24 hours! Initially the skin will look red and inflamed, but don't worry... the vitamin e speeds up the healing process.

I hope everyone with dermatitis (even perioral dermatitis) will try this cure. My particular form of dermatitis is one of the trickiest to heal so I am thrilled to maybe have a cure! I will let you know in the future how long this holds before I have to do the iodine again. Hopefully, never! Thanks,

Replied by Billy72
(Devon, Uk)
01/07/2011
★☆☆☆☆

Okay, have just tried the iodine thing, 3 times a day for the first two days like you suggested but by the 3rd day my skin was so sore and burning that my family begged me not to do anymore and thank goodness I didn't. After 4 days of watching my skin go very hard and crusty - to the extent that I couldn't open my mouth wide enough to eat! My skin began to crack and flake. It's now almost completely flaked off (in thick scabs I might add) and underneath is the most red raw scarred looking skin. It looks far worse than the rash ever did.

I wish I had never tried this method. I think I may have permanently scarred my face. I want to cry. I 'm hoping with time the redness and the lacerated look of my skin will fade.
DO NOT PUT IODONE ON YOUR FACE!!! IT WILL SCAR YOU.


Desitin

1 User Review
5 star (1) 
  100%

Posted by Janet.pauline (St.louis, Mo, United States) on 04/18/2011
★★★★★

Hello, just wanted to drop this off. I had Contact Dermatitis over 3 months last year, supposedly from powerwashing a house down and the remnants from using oxy clean baked on my arms and caused me great ail.

However, I saw the culprit pop up 3 days after being in a tanning bed that was not clean, I should have cleaned that bed myself. I went to the doctor's twice the first time and of course I used the steroids which only caused my sugar to rise and a yeast infection accompanied that. Then he said it was time for a dermatologist, I decided it was time for a cure, no more doctors for this nonsense.

Here is what I did, yes I tried the virgin coconut oil, it helps but very short lived to stop itching and hives. The derm covered my arms, portions of my back, hips stomach under breast, inner thighs and ankles I was miserable. Nothing could touch me, it made it worse and I mean nothing.

I was beside myself and decided to smother myself in Desitin maximum strength paste, the gooey stuff. I did this for two weeks straight day and night and it cured me, thats right, it dried up this crap and it disappeared. I hesitated using it because.. Well it stinks and it makes you white. I persisted even though I was miserable 4 to 5 days into using this stuff, after all I did not care I was going to keep using this stuff just because I could. Not really knowing the outcome but wow, it started to stop itching, then it slowly formed scales and then.. Yes and then, it was gone. Please be advised, smother yourself in this stuff, keep it up, it will work, screw the dermatologist, they will keep you coming forever. I made a choice I wasnt paying for a derm, I have diabetes and endo and regular doctor is enough to pay out, that alone is a killer. So no derm and the Desitin works, please be advised, it does work. Janet


Diaper Rash Ointment

5 User Reviews
5 star (4) 
  80%
4 star (1) 
  20%

Posted by Cortney (Bloomfield Hills, Michigan) on 02/13/2011
★★★★★

Diaper Rash cream will completely take your dermatitis away if it is steroid-induced. It took me forever to figure it out which I had to do myself because allopathic doctors have no idea how to truly heal or figure out where symptoms are coming from, all they do is medicate, medicate, medicate. What happened with me was that I was using a strong steroid on my hands, and it was getting on my face without me realizing it. My face broke out horribly in small bumps, starting on the side where I would rest my hand on my face, and spread within a week to the other side. I was floored as to what was causing such bad acne. I tried ACV, coconut oil, DMSO, hydrogen peroxide, borox (thinking it could possibly be small parasites) EVERYTHING. I found another post on earth clinic about diaper rash cream for dermatitis (there are more posts under a certain brand of diaper rash cream, I believe it is desitin. Read that post). Within two days it was completely gone. I could feel it working, and it just totally made the bumps get smaller and disappear. I am not sure how it works for dermatitis of other causes, but its DEFINITELY worth a try, and if you use steroids, realize the connection and that it may be causing your dermatitis.

Replied by Sasha
(Seattle, Wa)
05/04/2012
★★★★★

I had small bumps on my face and I'm not sure what caused it. Anyhow I was going to go to the store to buy the diaper rash oinment, I looked up the active ingredient in the diaper rash ointment which is no other than Zinc oxide, which I always have on had for summer sun put some on my face and it works!

Replied by Linda
(Fl)
10/29/2015
★★★★★

I was prescribed Mometasone Furoate Cream .1% for a mild case of perioral dermatitus which came and went for 2 months before I went to dermatologist. Used the cream for 4 weeks as directed but the red bumps returned with 2 days. Continued use of cream once a day for another couple of weeks but upon slowing application rash always returned. Stopped cold turkey after I found this site and a closed Facebook group and decided on using non-rx products. My face broke out horribly from stopping steroid cream. Red blisters on sides of chin. Found relief using Butt paste 40% zinc oxide by night and California baby calendula cream by day. No makeup! It's been 3 weeks post steroid and I still have red and flaking spots but the blisters are gone. Please don't use steroid cream. PD can be managed naturally, I am confident of that now.

Jrheats
(Nebraska)
03/17/2016

How is your dermatitis now?


Diaper Rash Ointment
Posted by Anonymous (St. Louis, Mo) on 06/15/2010
★★★★☆

Hello. I developed Contact Dermatitis from one of the two things, power washing a house down and the cleaning agent running down my arms and drying, and or from a tanning bed. My guess is the latter, it happened 24 hours later and I dont mean tanning bed bumps.

The doctor medicated me with Steroids, most of the derm left but then came back immedietly and twice as bad. Did a second treatment, again the same results. His next cure was a Professional and I have him, a endo bill and I dont need some sappy Dermatologist eating up my income for something he can only treat and not cure. That I can do at home which is why I am here.

What worked for me. Desitin, a diaper rash cream. Its not cured, I still have the derm but..its almost gone, 7 days now. I smothered myself with it on all areas of red itchy bumps that spread all over my stomach and under arms, arms and patches on legs.

I did consume the ACV for 3 days 8 ounces and 1/4 cup of vinegar, it was too hard on my stomach. I knocked it down to once a day. When I took the Steroids they knocked my diabetic immune system right out bringing on a horrible yeast infection. I read that yeast will cause the derm to spread even more in your body. In this my help was aided from the ACV. However, pleast note, it was the cream that worked.

I am still using it, you must refrain from itching at all times, this too makes a huge difference. Make sure to get a bar of soap with no ingredients in it from the Health Store, something very mild with no harsh chemicals what-so-ever and use it only. This too will aid in the cure.

Now, 7 days later, bumps under arm and under breast are completely gone, just left overs on my arms, little tiny bumps everywhere but barely noticeable, still itcy, dont touch them.

Let me tell you this has been going on for two months now. The coconut oil will stop the itching completely, at least for two hours or so or fresh out of the shower, it will not make the bumps disappear as the cream did.

You may or may not have patches left, its like after what I went through, big deal, I will use this stuff forever, no it doesnt smell good, I may not be completely healed but boy oh boy what a huge difference.

No Dermatologist will tell you this, they cant make money that way.

I still have patches, and yes its itchy, but I will continue to use the cream. Smother yourself, dont itch it, use the no ingredients soap, watch them disappear in 7 days as this is what the cream says to do, use 7 days, but I will continue to do it. I suppose you can use Balmex too. I believe both contain oxide and it smothers the derm by doing so it does not spread and the weak enviroment dies out from it. Its not the cure but one major difference that will change your life. No more tanning beds for me.

By the way, make sure not to get hair spray on it, and or windex, any cleaning product, the slightest invasion to the arm will cause it to start itching like crazy, rinse it off immedietly and re-apply the cream, I do this about twice a day. Trust me, its a miracle worker, you must be diligent and patient in these mattes and be consistent witl applying this daily or you will see no results.

Best of luck to you all.


Diaper Rash Ointment
Posted by Laura (Chicago, IL) on 05/30/2008
★★★★★

Hello everybody, I had a dermatitis on my neck and one thing that really helped was A + D ointment, the kind you use for diaper rush. I remember it was the best remedy for my kids when they were babies, so I tried it , and I felt the irritation, burning and swelling going down right away. You can buy it anywhere the diaper rash stuff is sold.


Dietary Changes

3 User Reviews
5 star (3) 
  100%

Posted by Valliegirl (United States) on 06/20/2019
★★★★★

Editor's Choice

My sister had perioral dermatitis for at least 20 years. She went to a dermo and was told it was an allergy to avocado. She gave them up and still had problems. A while later an acquaintance told her if you are allergic to avocados, you are also allergic to bananas. She then gave those up and her skin has been clear since. Hope this helps!


Dietary Changes
Posted by Don (Irving, Texas) on 10/05/2012
★★★★★

I really enjoyed reading some of these posts as I have struggled with seb dermatitis for years. Never really new what it was until one day the dermatologist matter of factly told me and gave me some gel for it.

To the point, about 4 months ago I had a food sensitivity test and found out I was mildly sensitive, not intolerant to gluten. I decided to cut it out altogether or at least not eat anything that obviously would contain any significant amounts of gluten. The psoriasis/dermatitis I had on my arm went away within a week of stopping eating gluten. I lost about and inch over my waist and my hair actually began to grow on my head in thinning places. No other reason I can figure for these changes since I had tried many things for months to get rid of the dermatitis, bloating and and the only change was eliminating the gluten. So, I believe that the gluten was most likely a big factor.

The dermatitis on my face which comes and goes but never really goes away totally for long even got better and went away in some areas. This is even with the use of Elidel cream twice daily. After reading these posts I decided to apply ACV to my face morning and night and within three days it has almost all disappeared. I also began taking biotin and probiotics even though I am not sure how much of a factor they have been.

Thanks to the folks here who posted about ACV. I have taken ACV before at times but never used as an astringent on the face. I don't know how long it will have an effect but hopefully I can cut down using it once a day and maybe longer as time goes on. My skin actually looks somewhat normal now. Wooohoo.


Dietary Changes
Posted by Martin (Melbourne, Vic) on 12/03/2011
★★★★★

I stumbled across this page as I was also looking for natural remedies for dermatitis as an alternative to the mometesone furoate that I've been applying for years.

What I immediately noticed is that everyone talks about how to control the symptoms, but none of you seem to delve into why it is that you have this condition. I was much the same for many years, as GPs and dermatologists all just kept prescribing corticosteroids and telling me that I will have this the rest of my life, and the best I could do was manage it.

It wasn't until I decided this wasn't acceptable, and did my own research and testing. What I found was that if I overindulged for a series of days, i.e., ate heaps of sweets, junk food and drank alcohol, I would flare up more the usual.

I suspected dairy was my issue, so eliminated it from my diet. Lo and behold, no more dermatitis! I then went to a naturopath who specialises in digestion, and she informed me I had leaky gut and put me on a gut repair program. I also did an igE blood test which tested me against 99 different foods. The results showed I had a strong dairy allergy, followed by yeast, and a few other mild ones. For 6 months I followed a strict elimination diet, and I didn't have a single breakout. I also slimmed down as I was always prone to bloating as a result of the intolerances.

Since then I do lapse occasionally as I suffer from a sweet tooth! And when I do flare up (it takes weeks now to show, instead of days as before) I've been using the mometesone. I wish to stop all together, as I suspect it has affected my fertility - that's a whole other story!

Anyway, I want to share my story, as the more I learn about digestive issues and related intolerances the more I'm fascinated to learn how many effects can be related.

P. S. I also stop snoring if I eliminate the foods I'm intolerant to, which my wife enjoys most of all! :)


Face Products

Posted by Nf (Corvallis, Or) on 04/28/2011

I wrote here that I was trying the apple-cider approach, and then the peroxide and borax. Nothing was really working. I was hoping it was, was hopeful, reported it here. These had been the worst outbreaks I've ever had in my life. Itchy, oozing small "blisters", all the similar descriptions. Etc.. On a whim, I tried my son's Proactive products. I was desperate. Just the cleanser and the lotion- steps 1 and 3, the peroixide or whatever it is immediately stopped the itching. The sores dried up completely.

My skin has not been this clear in 25 years. Occasionally I may have a small blister flare up, I just wash or just use the lotion it goes away overnight. It is absolutely AMAZING. I had to come back and tell you all, it has been almost a year and I never thought I would be free of it.



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