Discover a common hidden cause of eczema

Wednesday, April 11, 2012 by: Kelly Pepper, D.C.
Tags: eczema, causes, skin

(NaturalNews) If you or a loved one have been affected by eczema, you understand the frustration and discomfort associated with this annoying irritation of the skin. There are numerous types and classifications of eczema, with the most common being referred to as atopic dermatitis. Eczema affects people on a wide spectrum of frequency and intensity. Some people have a mild itch and rash for a few hours, which doesn't return for weeks or months. Other people experience intense itching for long periods of time that causes them to tear their skin open resulting in blisters and oozing lesions that then crust over and create scarring. Onset of this condition occurs mainly (85%) in children five years and under, although later adult onset also occurs. Half of infants that are affected by eczema will resolve on their own by age three, while the other half can be affected for the rest of their lives.

Triggers and traditional treatment pitfalls

Each person usually has different triggers that can make the condition worse including certain soaps, detergents, heavy sweating, stress, clothing and jewelry. If you can identify what triggers affect you, avoiding these is common sense. Many people affected by eczema also have asthma, allergies and/or hay fever. Simply treating the symptoms without looking for the underlying problem(s) will only give temporary relief at most and many times can make the condition worse over time. Traditional medical approaches include topical steroids that may cause thinning of the skin and weakening of the immune system that then requires additional antibiotics or antifungals to stop concurrent infections. There are also topical immunosuppresants available that the FDA has issued a public health advisory about the possible risk of lymph node or skin cancer from the use of these products.

The Candida connection

Many people have found that they can drastically improve or even resolve their eczema by addressing overgrowth of Candida in their digestive system. There have been a couple of recent studies showing the link of Candida overgrowth with eczema. Some of the causes of Candida overgrowth include diets high in processed and refined diets (white sugar, white rice, white flour) along with frequent use of antibiotics. These issues create a perfect environment for Candida to flourish within our bodies. This can develop into dysbiosis and leaky gut syndrome explaining the overachieving immune responses resulting in skin inflammation, allergies and asthma.

Asafe, natural remedy

The first step in correcting this imbalance is to incorporate a yeast control diet avoiding the foods that Candida thrives on, and restoring a slightly acidic environment to the intestinal tract. Candida thrives in a slightly alkaline environment. You may also need to include natural remedies that have an antifungal effect including oregano oil, garlic, andrographis and grapefruit seed extract. When starting this program, sometimes symptoms will worsen or you may experience headaches or nausea due to the dying off and release of toxic chemicals from the Candida. Hang in there, this usually resolves in less than a week. Nutritional supplementation of Spanish Black Radish helps to speed this process. Many people afflicted with eczema find that sticking to this regimen greatly improves or resolves this annoying and itchy condition.

Sources for this article include

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18705661
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com
http://www.medicinenet.com/eczema/article.htm

About the author:
Kelly Pepper, D.C., is a mother of six, an avid reader, eclectic cook, home manager, and untiring sleuth to natural living. She and her husband manage Pepper Natural Health and Wellness and you can catch their healthy living tips on peppernaturalhealth.com/blog, visit at peppernaturalhealth.com or follow them on https://www.facebook.com/PepperNaturalHealth.