Although eczema sufferers often find the heat of the summer flares up their eczema, it is not very well known that many eczema sufferers find that their symptoms are much worse in the winter.
In winter when the air is very dry, cold and windy, eczema is aggravated which is why many call the condition ‘Winter Itch’.
Several studies have discovered that 70% of people with eczema find that their eczema gets worse in the winter and published research has found that a decrease in temperature causes an increase in itch by 22% and an increase in general symptoms of eczema of 65%.
Research on children has found that the further south families travel for holidays the greater the improvement seen in eczema due to the warmer more humid temperatures. However holidays to the north of the UK saw a deterioration in eczema.
Therefore, as the colder weather is fast approaching and families may be jetting off to ski resorts or to colder Northern climates to visit relatives this Christmas, many eczema suffers will suffer from flare ups.
Below are five tips to help prevent the Winter Itch:
1) Avoid Wool
Many of us reach for our wool jumpers in the winter as it is the warmest natural material. However, eczema sufferers find that their skin is sensitive to scratchy fabrics, especially wool which can chafe and irritate the skin triggering the viscous scratch-itch cycle. But synthetic materials should also be avoided as they don’t allow the skin to breathe so should be avoided especially from being layered on in the winter. Cotton is the best material because it is natural, light and allows the skin to breathe.
2) Avoid hot water and soap
Soaking in the bath for a short time can be good for you as it allows the outer layers of your skin to absorb water and become less dry. Although a nice hot bath might seem like the ideal thing on a frosty winter day it really should be avoided. Hot water is one of the worst offenders for Winter Itch because it dissolves the skin’s natural oils. Use lukewarm water for bathing and hand washing. Soap is even worse than hot water, because it removes all of the natural oils on the skin’s surface. You can clean the skin effectively with plain water. The only thing soap does that water doesn’t is remove oil which is exactly what you want to keep.
3) More moisturiser is not the answer
Moisturiser helps to keep skin soft and flexible but just because its winter and your skin is dryer does not mean you should reach for a richer moisturiser. Heavy, rich moisturisers are actually worse for eczema sufferers as they contain more irritating preservatives. The best products for winter eczema are balms or serums.
Defensil Rescue Serum was developed in the Swiss Alps for people with dry skin living at high altitudes with very dry skin, has been clinically proven by Swiss scientists to help lock in moisture for winter skin prone to dryness and flaking. Defensil combines two key natural ingredients a concentrated extract from Cardiospermum seed and cold pressed Echium Oil, which have been shown in combination in trials to stabilise and regenerate the skin barrier and act effectively against itching caused by dry, chapped or flaking skin and eczema.
Defensil Rescue Serum should be used twice daily on very dry or chapped patches of skin during cold weather as an intense skin barrier protection treatment to help prevent further drying, flaking and irritation.
4) Turn down central heating
Central heating is the worst winter skin drying culprit. Although it is tempting to turn up the thermostat, the dry air this creates is bad for eczema. Researchers have found statistically significant correlations between eczema symptoms and radiators in children’s bedrooms so keep them off especially during the night. Furnace-heated air can reduce the humidity level inside your house to 10 percent or less, whereas 30 to 40 percent is closer to ideal for keeping moisture in your skin. For that reason humidifiers are recommended during winter months.
5) Use Oats
Oatmeal is also great for soothing eczema. Oats contain up to 20 times more silica in them than other plants. Silica is a cross-linking agent that helps strengthen skin and gives it elasticity and smoothness.
Oats also contain an active extract called avena sativa, which has been shown in several studies to help reduce skin irritation and inflammation. Oatmeal can work in the bath as a soothing agent but can be very messy. Skin Shop’s Oat Soak is a easier and cleanser way to give your skin all the benefits of oats without your bath resembling a bowel of porridge. New Oat Soak bath sachets are made from pure colloidal oats, which are a finer form of oats that can remain suspended in the water, making Oat Soak pleasant to soak in and easy to wash away with your bath water much like any other bath product.
Treating pregnant mothers, and their infants in the first three months of life, with select strains of probiotics, which are bacteria present naturally in the body and sometimes added to food or dietary supplements to boost immune function, may help prevent eczema and dermatitis in children with a family history of allergies according to new research published in the journal Allergy’s October edition. The Dutch researchers gave a mixture of three probiotics to half 50 pregnant women in the last six weeks of pregnancy and then gave their new born babies the same probiotics for a year. They gave the same amount of pregnant women and their infants a placebo. Only six of the 50 children in the probiotics group had symptoms of eczema compared to 15 out of 50 of those in the placebo group, meaning that infants and mothers not treated with probiotics were over twice a likely to have eczema than those on the probiotics.
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