Eczema

TREATMENT OF ECZEMA

Eczema or atopic dermatitis, is a skin condition that can begin in infancy.

Sixty percent of children with eczema develop it before the age of one year. It tends to affect particularly children with a family history of asthma, allergies, hayfever or rhinitis. The prevelance of eczema amongst children has been increasing in the last few decades from 2% to 10%.

Eczema has been described as the "itch that rashes". It is characterized by an intense itching that provokes scratching and keeps the skin chapped. Sometimes it oozes and can become infected. Chronic scratching can lead to dry, scaly, and thickened skin, a condition known as lichenification.

Modern medical science has been unable to pinpoint exact causes and can offer no significant treatment besides temporary relief of symptoms.

FACTORS AFFECTING ECZEMA IN CHILDREN

Modern reserach has shown that the following factors play a role in the development of eczema in children

Intestinal dysbiosis and gut permeability

70 percent of immune activity goes on in the gut. A healthy gut helps the proper digestion and absorption of nutrients, and helps to eliminate and detoxify as well as helping the development of immunity.

The gut needs a proper balance of beneficial flora (bacteria) to maintain this balance. If there is an imbalance a result can be permeability in the gut wall, leading to the circulation of antigen-antibody complexes.

Increased gut permeability is a major factor in the development of food allergy and has been shown to induce eczema

There are numerous factors that contribute to gut permeability including:

Mode of delivery – birth through the birth canal leads to the inoculation of infants through exposure to bacteria through the birth process, compared to birth by Caesarian which leads to an imbalance in intestinal flora
Allergies or gut permeability or candida in the mother
Nutritional status – breast feeding helps prevent the development of allergies, compared with formula feeding
Use of antibiotics suppresses normal gut flora. They can further complicate a situation when used to treat conditions caused by digestive imbalances.
Acidic intestinal pH
Stresses caused by postnatal infections

Allergies

Children are born with a imbalance in their immune system (Th2 dominance and reduced Th1 type immunity) that predisposes them towards allergic conditions such as eczema. Normally this corrects itself through the development of normal intestinal flora from exposure to bacteria and other infections, and a balanced nutrition through breast feeding. Tests have shown that infants with eczema showed allergies to cow's milk (30%), eggs ((26%) and to grains (19%).

Stress

Prenatal stress has been associated with hyperactivation of the stress response in the infant, which progresses into adult life. It has the effect of suppressing immune function. Emotional difficulties, and unexpressed feelings of insecurity, anxiety, depression etc. also aggravate allergic conditions and increase the risk of chronic illness.

Toxicity

Examples include:

Maternal caffeine intake, passive smoking
Toxins such as PCBs, dioxins and pesticides and heavy metals such as cadmium, lead, mercury
Antibiotic use by the mother or infant – these liberate toxins from the gut
History of oral contraception - an increase in asthma and eczema were associated with the use of oral contraception one year before conception
Vaccinations - stimulate Th2 response and Th1 inhibition as well as result in excessive mercury exposure

Nutritional insufficiency

Maternal protein restriction
Early weaning
Preteens have an increased demand for essential fatty acids\

Premature birth/low birth weight

Two factors behind premature birth are:

Stress in the mother
Infection. of the bladder or genital organs Premature birth can lead to respiratory diseases, gastrointestinal disorders, growth and nutrition problems, visual and hearing problems.

Allergies in the mother

Early exposure to infection may prevent atopy, while exposure when the child is already suffering from allergies may exacerbate and promote the inflammatory response. #Antibiotic use increases the risk of asthma
Candida may cause atopic dermatitis. while anti-fungal treatment improves atopic dermatitis

TREATMENT

Treatment of allergies

It is important that reactive foods, such as dairy, eggs and wheat are avoided in the first instance, and that these allergies are treated through NAET (Nambudripad's Allergy Elimination Technique)

Initial testing is done through electrodermal testing done on a Bio-meridian MSAS and treatments are done through NAET, which involves a simple spinal manipulation and acupressure on certain points on the hands and feet, followed by strict avoidance of the foods for 25 hours after treatment.

In cases of eczema common allergies are: eggs, milk, wheat, peanuts, sugars, citrus, soy, fruit juices, food additives, artificial coloring, chocolate, fats, tomatoes and nightshade foods

In infants, if the mother is breastfeeding it is important that the mother be treated or avoid allergens to reduce the possibility of passing allergens through the breast milk to the infant

It is important to test and treat for soaps and detergents. A herbal body shampoo is available.

Dysbiosis control

This is achieved by testing and treating for factors that contribute to intestinal dysbiosis, such as candida, yeast, fungi and bacteria.

In addition, the use of probiotics to balance the microecology of the gut and improve immunity and alleviate inflammatory responses, may be indicated. Use of probiotics have been shown in tests to bring about a significant improvement in skin conditions

Normalising underlying immune dysfunction

This is achieved largely by treating allergies with NAET. Not only foods, but also other factors which may contribute to the condition such as emotional imbalances, infectants, yeast and fungi need to be treated.

It may be necessary to combine this with a herbal supplement that reduces the allergic reaction by correcting the Th1:Th2 immune imbalance.

Correction of nutritional imbalances

In particular, deficiency of Omega-3 essential fatty acids has been linked with allergic reactions. These can be given as a supplement that has a natural orange flavour that is easy for children to take.

Detoxification

Desensitisation through NAET of allergies to phenolics found in foods, inhalants and other chemical substances in the environment as well as to chemicals, pesticides and heavy metals.

Chinese herbs

Chinese herbal medicine has been shown to be one of the most effective modalities for treating eczema.