Eczema in children
Eczema is the appearance on the skin of rough red spots. It is caused by an allergy, as well as hay fever and asthma. With hay fever, the nose is allergic( sensitive) to pollen-type ragweed. With eczema, the skin is sensitive to some product in the diet. When the food penetrates into the blood and reaches the skin, the skin becomes inflamed. In other cases, the skin may be sensitive to materials, such as wool, silk, rabbit hair or something like a violet root, if it comes into direct contact with the skin. The baby is more likely to have eczema if his relatives suffer from asthma, hay fever, rubella or eczema.
Even if the main cause of eczema is food, a secondary role can play two more factors.
The first is skin irritation from the outside. In one child, eczema can occur only when its skin is irritated by cold water, in the other - only in heat with sweat irritation, in the third - in the lower part of the body with irritation with urine. If a child has eczema only when his skin directly touches the coat, he may be allergic to wool or an allergy to some food, while the wool acts as a simple irritant.
Another factor contributing to the occurrence of eczema is the fullness of the child and the speed with which it comes in weight. Full children are much more likely to suffer from eczema than thin ones. In thin children, eczema is rare.
Of course, you need a doctor to establish a diagnosis and determine the treatment. A mild degree of eczema can be described as spots of red rough rough squamous skin. When the eczema is light or just starts, the color is pink or tan, but if the eczema increases, the skin becomes dark red, it usually itchs, and the baby is constantly itching. This causes scratches, and eczema begins to get wet. When the leaking liquid dries, a crust is formed. When eczema heals, even after the redness comes off, you can still feel the roughness and thickening of the rut.
In an infant, eczema usually begins on the cheeks or on the forehead. From there, it can spread to the back of the auricles and around the neck. Scales, especially on the ears, appear from afar to look like dried salt. In a one-year-old child, eczema can begin almost anywhere - on the shoulders, in the lower part of the body, on the arms, on the chest. Between the year and the three most typical places are the folds of elbows and under the knees. In cases of severe eczema, the child experiences real anguish. His whole body itches. Mother vainly tries to protect him from scratching. So it can last several months.
Treatment of eczema occurs in different ways. The treatment methods used by the physician depend on many factors including the age of the child, the location and nature of the rash, the completeness of the child and the rate of weight gain, information about what new food was introduced into his diet before the illness and how the child reacts to various forms of treatment. Some mild forms are cured with ointments. In more difficult cases, try to find out what kind of food the child's allergy is. The newborn often has fresh cow's milk. In this case, it seems as if the transition to concentrated milk helps, because the longer and more carefully the food is prepared, the less likely it will cause an allergy. If cow milk is not suitable, goat milk is sometimes saved. Some children are able to cure, only a complete rejection of real milk and the transition to artificial like soy. Often helps to eliminate orange juice.
In severe cases, if a child eats a variety of foods, the doctor begins to experiment gently, taking turns excluding different foods. In especially severe cases, the cause of eczema can be determined by injection of food. If the injection site becomes inflamed, then the child is sensitive to this type of food. If the child is full or too quickly gaining weight, the elimination of starchy food from the diet helps.
When an external stimulus plays a certain role, this also needs to be addressed. Usually eczema strengthens the hair, and it is first eliminated from clothing. If the eczema in the lower part of the body, in a place covered by diapers, it is prudent to take precautions. If eczema causes cold windy weather, find a place protected from the wind for walks. Sometimes the skin with eczema irritates soap and water, in this case, the child must be wiped with baby( mineral) oil on the cotton wool.
If temporarily you can not contact a doctor, and your child has a strong eczema with itching, it does not hurt and even the transition can help when preparing a milk formula from fresh milk to concentrated milk. You can also eliminate sugar from the mixture and limit the porridge so that the child does not add weight so quickly. If the same situation is with an older child who, for example, develops severe eczema after eggs, do not give him eggs until you consult a doctor. It may take two weeks or more to noticeably improve. Another common cause of eczema is wheat. It would be, however, an error on the part of parents to exclude from the diet of the child several types of products at once, and if there is an opportunity to consult a doctor, then not a single type of food should be removed. The reason is this: eczema varies from week to week even with the same food. If you yourself change the diet of a child, you begin to suspect that one product, then another. Every time the eczema gets worse, you are confused. The danger is that you can distort the baby's nutrition so much that it will become inadequate. If eczema does not bother the baby, do not change the diet until you get medical help.
In children, the main cause of eczema is an allergic reaction to certain foods. To diagnose and treat eczema, you will need the help of a doctor.
The easiest way to determine eczema is when it appears as spots of red, rough, thickened, flaky skin. When the disease is just beginning or flowing in a mild form, the spots are pink or pinkish-beige. With severe eczema, the spots become dark red and itch, the baby scratches them, scratches the skin, causing eczema to wet. After drying on the scratched places appear crusts. Even when the eczema patches heal, the redness subsides, the skin remains rough for a long time and hard to touch.
In young children, eczema most often begins on the cheeks and forehead, from which it can spread to the neck and ears. Peeling from afar resembles dried salt, especially on the ears. At the age of about one year, eczema can begin almost everywhere - on the shoulders, buttocks, arms and chest. Between 1 and 3 years, eczema spots appear most often on the elbow and knee folds.
Eczema in severe form is painful for a child. The affected areas of the skin itch and itch, and the parents are struggling to keep the child from scratching the skin.
It should be remembered that eczema is not an infectious disease, like lichen. The reason is in the child itself. In most cases, you should be satisfied if you manage to relieve the rash. Most of the specimens that begin in early childhood later completely pass or within one or two years become much weaker.