If you have ever had poison ivy then you understand how extremely itchy it can be. Now imagine having poison ivy all the time, for years on end. That would be extremely frustrating and also very painful. That’s sort of what eczema feels like; endless poison ivy, only worse.

Eczema is an inflammatory condition of the skin, but that’s only part of it. The other part involves the immune system.  With traditional medicine, eczema is treated with hydrocortisone or steroid cream, applied externally, which only provides temporary relief. Furthermore, it is basically a toxic bandaid.  In naturopathic medicine, however, we believe that the immune system is involved and is actually in “system overload” mode.  When eczema flares up, this may be a sign of an underlying condition that needs to be addressed immediately. This system overload often overrides the everyday functions of the immune system and requires a reset.

Eczema can occur at anytime throughout childhood and adult life. It can linger on and off for many years.

Some factors include:
Environmental & external irritants such as pets, fragrances, cleaning chemicals, detergents and pesticides.
Food allergies such as gluten, dairy, soy, yeast, corn, nuts and chocolate.
Poor diet: processed foods, refined carbohydrates and sugars.
Parasitic infections.
Autoimmune disorders such as, Celiac disease, Fibromyalgia & Lupus.

It is important that the underlying causes be addressed first, in order to effectively treat eczema. When I see patients for the first time, I perform the initial allergy assessment to determine the cause. Sometimes treatments can include elimination or detox diets, homeopathy, herbs and nutrients, and sublingual immunotherapy. These therapies have worked incredibly well in treating eczema. In addition, stress reduction, rest and movement are greatly encouraged and will be very beneficial in the healing process.