itchy, itchy eczema! : by amy

'Tis the season for peppermint hot chocolate, Vince Guaraldi's Charlie Brown classics and...eczema.

The dry air that winter brings can be tough on baby's sensitive skin.  Logan always had very sensitive skin even even in the humid August air when he was first born.  Initially, we thought it was just newborn rash, which was partially true.  After months went by, a few stubborn patches just wouldn't fade away.  His eczema was very apparent on his face and eventually spread to the creases by his elbows and behind the knees.

Here are some things we used/did to help alleviate Logan's eczema:

1) Breathable, loose-fitting, soft cotton onesies and separates were the most comfortable for his skin. 

2)  The doctor said to avoid liquid soaps/shampoos since they dry out skin over bar soaps (even if they say they're for sensitive skin, which meant I couldn't use the bottles of California Baby and Mustela that I had gotten as gifts).  He recommended Dove Unscented moisturizing bar soap, which we still use to this day.

3) Don't bathe him too frequently.  Newborns don't really get dirty anyway.  So we bathed him 2-3 times a week and washed his bum with warm water when he had an extra nasty diaper.  Now, we bathe him 3-4x a week since he gets pretty gross at day care.

4) When you do bathe him, make sure the water isn't too warm and you don't keep him in the warm water for too long.  The warmer the water, the more it will dry out his skin.  I've become a pro at quick and efficient baths!

5) Moisturize, moisturize, moisturize!  We moisturize Logan's face about 3x a day.  The morning and night regimen is as follows:

a) CeraVe

This stuff is the ish.  Before I discovered Cereve, we were using tons of Aquaphor and Eucerin, but it wasn't helping much.  My husband's co-worker recommended this, and it has been an absolute skin-saver.  According to the company website, it has the following special technology: The unique, patented Multivesicular Emulsion (MVE®) delivery technology in CeraVe Skincare products provides multiple layers of skin-nurturing and protective ingredients to the skin slowly over time.

So it slowly releases its "stuff" into the skin over time.  What is the "stuff"? 

• Ceramides, which help repair the skin barrier
• Hyaluronic acid, which attracts needed moisture
• Emollients, which moisturize & soften skin

This cream definitely feels different from other moisturizers.  I accidentally got some on my lips once and was amazed by how moist and soft my lips felt, even after wiping it off!  We were told not to purchase the lotion, but the CREAM.  After his bath, we dry him off and immediately slather the cream all over his face and body to lock in the moisture.  You can find CeraVe at most major drugstores, but just a heads up that one jar of this will cost you about $15-18, but it's totally worth it!  You can even use it yourself as face cream-- very gentle on skin like Cetaphil and not greasy at all.

b) Aquaphor

Who doesn't have Aquaphor in their medicine cabinet?  We went through tubes of this stuff in the beginning before we discovered CeraVe.  Logan also won't stop drooling (starting to worry that he'll be 18 and still drooling...) so I always have tubes of Aquaphor in every bag to protect his mouth area and chin.  We put on a thin layer (after the CeraVe) on specific eczema-problem areas where it's extra dry, and especially before we put on any...

c) Hydrocortisone

Prescription hydrocortisone.  This is the one that Logan's pediatrician prescribed.  I'm told that the 0.1% is very weak and completely safe for babies when used correctly.  We only use the hydrocortisone when it's REALLY bad, or if there is a very sudden flare-up.  The doctor says to first put down a layer of Aquaphor and then a very thin layer of the hydrocortisone, 2x a day.  Typically, when we use the hydrocortisone, we see results by the next day, so we don't use it consistently-- maybe only a few times a month. 


Before I ran out of it, I also used this lotion on eczema patches before the Aquaphor layer:

Neosporin Eczema Essentials

I wanted to give this a try, so I used it during the day time on his arms and legs (not after baths).  At first, I couldn't tell if this actually worked or if it was just my rigorous moisturizing regimen that was improving Logan's skin.  But after using it for a week, I did notice a difference, even without having to use Aquaphor as a top layer all of the time.  I've been meaning to buy more of this stuff for the winter.  Get a $3 off coupon here at Neosporin's website!

What helps your baby's eczema?