Baby with Eczema/cows milk intolerance/reflux

AlisonRelihan

Please help if you have any thoughts on our next steps in tackling this dreaded eczema!

Ok...so my 5 month old son has eczema on his face, neck, chest, back and backs of legs. It has been getting progressively worse since he was 6 weeks old which has coincided with having reflux. We've tried so many different creams and ointments but nothing seems to actually work.

Feeding:
He was breastfed up to 2 months and then due to reflux and having to give carobel thickener in feeds and zantec, he was then given formula (Aptimal). 2 weeks ago the paediatrician changed his formula to nutramigen lipil and then changed his formula again last week to neocate due to a possible cows milk intolerance. He is now weaning also for the last 5 weeks.

Creams/ointments:
So far we've tried the following:
Emulsifying ointment(makes skin worse)
Silcocks base
Oilatum cream
Oilatum bath
2 types of steroids
Antibiotic cream and oral antibiotic
Aloe propolis cream
Aloe soap
Eucerin

Other:
Peritin syrup for itching
Using humidifier in room at nap/sleep times
Using fairy non bio washing liquid tablets
Cotton clothing

Any help is much appreciated!!

elaney

Hi Op,

I have the same problem with my 4 month old. Like yourself i have tried most things.Luckily so far my lo's eczema is only confined to her face and neck. I don't have much to add i am keeping hers pretty manageable with steroid creams and E45 cream and baby oil. The best advice i got is to be careful with
the clothing i wear. I don't wear any wool or any clothing that will set it off. I just wanted to say i hope your little one gets some relief soon.

PinkFly

My god child was in the exact same position as yourself, Phenerican or Valergan (sp?) her mum found those to be really good to stop the itch when your baby us older.

She has air humidifiers and has tried every cream invented and the best she had was bandages soaked in ointments and put on her at night time. It stopped the scratching throughout the night and moistened the skin. I'm not sure the exact name but I'm sure your doctor can tell you, as she got it in the hospital.

Tbh the only thing that seems to be helping her ( although no good to you as such!) is age, she's now 9 and is not a patch on how she was when she was younger.

I can only sympatise with you and your baby such hard work and little results most of the time

angeldaisy

I had a similar problem with my son when he was younger, although not as bad as yours sounds.

I stopped using 'commercial' baby products such as J&J and switched to goats milk soap and Halo and Horns baby products which we still use to this day.

I also started washing his clothes in a natural washing liquid - think it was Ecover - can't remember now.
I think I used a beeswax cream on his skin as well - just googled it and this is the link for it
http://www.beeliefbotanics.com/products.php?cat=7

It was the Emoliex cream we used when it was bad and the propolis repair cream when it was healing.
I used to buy it in a health food shop, but it looks like they do mail order now as well.

Luckily he only gets the odd patch now but I do find it flares up if I use certain soaps or shower gel / bubble bath on him.

I also know of people who found their babies better on goats milk formula but I never had to go that far thankfully. Possibly worth asking your paediatrician about?

marizpan

I had similar problems with our son. Hospitalised at 6 wks. Put on prescription formlua that he wouldnt take, couldn't blame him as it smelt horrible. He was passing blood and had what looked like acne all over ,especially his face. I was embarrassed to bring him out. He was failing to thrive. So when he was about 6 mths we put him on raw goats milk and everything cleared within 24 hrs and he started gaining weight etc.
He is 4 now and he can take either goat milk or raw cow milk but can't take any cow milk that is processed. Hope that helps. We have never used baby formula again for our other kids, it turned us right off.

Orion

marizpan wrote: »

he can take either goat milk or raw cow milk

My first thought when I read the OP was raw cow milk may help. Pasteurization kills some of the good bacteria in milk - specifically L. Casei which is reputed to have a positive effect on eczema (or the lack of it may be a cause).

Stheno

Try a cream called diprobase ( about 4.50 in the chemist) I have chronic eczema on my hands and it is the only thing I can use to calm it.

I'm allergic to aloe, it murders my skin

Also if your child can cope with goats/sheeps milk try that, my younger brother lived on it, he was very sensitive as a baby but as an adult is fine.

For baths, a tablespoon or two of olive oil can work wonders. As a child I suffered a severe allergic reaction and lost the outer layers of my skin and was bathed in olive oil diluted in a bath.

AlisonRelihan

Can babies young as 5 months go on goats milk instead of formula? My brother drank goats milk when he was a child (not that young though) as he had asthma. Where would you get goats milk?

I must try diprobase - thanks

Stheno

AlisonRelihan wrote: »

Can babies young as 5 months go on goats milk instead of formula? My brother drank goats milk when he was a child (not that young though) as he had asthma. Where would you get goats milk?

I must try diprobase - thanks

My brother was on goats milk at 3 months, he was a horror with allergies. My local supermarket sells it, where are you?

I'll check the spelling of diprobase for you tomorrow.

Try the olive oil baths too, maybe two tablespoons to a bath.

AlisonRelihan

angeldaisy wrote: »

I had a similar problem with my son when he was younger, although not as bad as yours sounds.

I stopped using 'commercial' baby products such as J&J and switched to goats milk soap and Halo and Horns baby products which we still use to this day.

I also started washing his clothes in a natural washing liquid - think it was Ecover - can't remember now.
I think I used a beeswax cream on his skin as well - just googled it and this is the link for it
http://www.beeliefbotanics.com/products.php?cat=7

It was the Emoliex cream we used when it was bad and the propolis repair cream when it was healing.
I used to buy it in a health food shop, but it looks like they do mail order now as well.

Luckily he only gets the odd patch now but I do find it flares up if I use certain soaps or shower gel / bubble bath on him.

I also know of people who found their babies better on goats milk formula but I never had to go that far thankfully. Possibly worth asking your paediatrician about?

I must try the bee products too - thank you.

farmchoice

Our little lad developed it at about 6 months old. since then it has flared up gone down, flared up gone down, flared up... well you get the picture.

We have tried every product mentioned so far and at various times thought we had discovered what was causing it only to be proved wrong time and time again.

Eventually we gave up trying new products and stuck to oilatum cream all over twice a day and oilatum bath emulsion when washing him.
We would use a steroid cream on particularly bad areas on occasion to get it under some control.

He is now coming 3 and about a month ago it just went away, no obvious reason. Since then he has been eczema free, maybe it will come back again who knows.

when we first went to the doctor with it she advised we moisturize his skin twice a day and use only an emulsion cream when washing him, and prescribed the steroid cream for when it got particularly bad. She said that while people attribute it to all sorts from the washing powder you use to food coloring to central heating the reality is that childhood eczema comes and goes gets worse and gets better and hopefully one day goes away.

After 2 and a half years trying every home remedy and pharmaceutical cream imaginable it turns out she was right.

Moisturize and use a prescribed cream when necessary in the end that's all you can do.

lynski

I cant offer much by way of help with so young a baby, but my children will flare up if i was anything perfumed - like fairy washing products or johnsons. I use the aldi washing powder and my ds has no dermatitis if we change it is back in a week. I use all natural bath products too as anything else gives them problems.
My ds2 has problems digesting milk and formula, luckily we found out when he was still exclusively bf, so we have just keep him off all dairy now.
I dont know if you are interested, but it could be possible to re-lactate, even after this time, it is not easy but it is possible

Neyite

While my lad didnt have eczema, he did have dry skin and sores in his creases that refused to heal no matter what cream I used. He also had an itchy flaky scalp.

I stopped using soaps in his bath, and just use a handful of porridge oats and its really soothing. The sores cleared up. To stop making a huge mess, put the oat flakes in a cheap pop-sock and put it in the bath.

meg3178

My Daughter had severe eczema when she was small to the point of having to bandage her at night, it didn't help. I looked for alternatives and found that a casin, gluten and dairy free diet worked very well. She was able to tolerate fresh goats milk. At night, I bathed her using an olive oil based soap (From Lush) and after drying her thoroughly, massaged olive oil into her skin, which was also very relaxing for both of us! I always use ecover washing liquid for her clothes and as she is now 20yrs old, she survived with beautiful skin. It can be very upsetting and you feel helpless, especially when doctors are pushing the chemical alternatives all the time. Each child is different and sometimes it will be for the best if your child has allergy testing done early, otherwise the doctors are just doing trial and error treatments, which work for some children, but not others.

tacofries

if you have the money dr.fitzgibbon in galway i think is very good,.. \he helped me anyway!! Id say make sure the room is dust mite free for a start, bathe her regularly in warm water with aques cream and go very easy on steroids(stay away from them if you can)....

Just so you know, most babies grow out of excema

Gyalist

I've been there and I know how distressing it is as my son had severe infant eczema from his scalp to his ankles from 5/6 weeks old.

Read this post that I made in a previous thread a few years ago about how we managed his condition.

Pay careful attention to my advice about keeping him away from anyone with a cold sore. There is also a close relationship between infant eczema and asthma. My son thankfully isn't asthmatic but he has had a few episodes. Over the years I've met many children who have both conditions so make sure that your doctor checks him for that too.

farmchoice

hi gyalist,
i have read your post and i hope your little man is doing well at the moment. could you expand on the cold sore thing, i have never heard of a link before but it is very interesting. i tend to get coldsores from time to time and although my little man does not seem to get them i never thought to look for a link between his bad episodes and mine or others cold sores.

Gyalist

farmchoice wrote: »

hi gyalist,
i have read your post and i hope your little man is doing well at the moment. could you expand on the cold sore thing, i have never heard of a link before but it is very interesting. i tend to get coldsores from time to time and although my little man does not seem to get them i never thought to look for a link between his bad episodes and mine or others cold sores.

My little man is doing well now and is a strapping 16-year old.

I'd never heard of cold sores affecting eczema sufferers and wouldn't have believed the effect until I witnessed it. The young lady who came to babsit him had a cold sore and she kissed him on the cheek. In less than an hour his whole body was covered in what looked like weeping blisters.

The explanation given by the consultant was that because it was his first exposure to the herpes simplex (cold sore) virus and with his immune system already compromised by severe eczema, it triggered an extreme reaction that required days of IV drugs to stabilise. Eczema herpeticum was the term they used for it.

Clearly not every baby with eczema reacts that way but being around anyone with a cold sore is something to be wary of, though your baby may well have already developed immunity to it.

There's lots of information available if you Google "eczema and cold sores".
This article is quite informative.

farmchoice

that for that, very interesting.

AlisonRelihan

lynski wrote: »

I dont know if you are interested, but it could be possible to re-lactate, even after this time, it is not easy but it is possible

I would love to bf but due to his reflux it might not work again. Thanks for your help tho.

AlisonRelihan

Neyite wrote: »

While my lad didnt have eczema, he did have dry skin and sores in his creases that refused to heal no matter what cream I used. He also had an itchy flaky scalp.

I stopped using soaps in his bath, and just use a handful of porridge oats and its really soothing. The sores cleared up. To stop making a huge mess, put the oat flakes in a cheap pop-sock and put it in the bath.

I've bought some organic porridge oats so must try in the bath tomor.

AlisonRelihan

meg3178 wrote: »

My Daughter had severe eczema when she was small to the point of having to bandage her at night, it didn't help. I looked for alternatives and found that a casin, gluten and dairy free diet worked very well. She was able to tolerate fresh goats milk. At night, I bathed her using an olive oil based soap (From Lush) and after drying her thoroughly, massaged olive oil into her skin, which was also very relaxing for both of us! I always use ecover washing liquid for her clothes and as she is now 20yrs old, she survived with beautiful skin. It can be very upsetting and you feel helpless, especially when doctors are pushing the chemical alternatives all the time. Each child is different and sometimes it will be for the best if your child has allergy testing done early, otherwise the doctors are just doing trial and error treatments, which work for some children, but not others.

Where can you buy ecover washing powder? Yes I agree that doctors push the chemical alternatives. I'd love to know what I could use during flare ups instead of steroid ointment.

AlisonRelihan

meg3178 wrote: »

sometimes it will be for the best if your child has allergy testing done early

Does anyone know where you can get this allergy testing done?

AlisonRelihan

tacofries wrote: »

if you have the money dr.fitzgibbon in galway i think is very good,.. \he helped me anyway!! Id say make sure the room is dust mite free for a start, bathe her regularly in warm water with aques cream and go very easy on steroids(stay away from them if you can)....

Just so you know, most babies grow out of excema

Where abouts is dr. Fitzgibbon? How do you make an app with him?thx

AlisonRelihan

Gyalist wrote: »

I've been there and I know how distressing it is as my son had severe infant eczema from his scalp to his ankles from 5/6 weeks old.

Read this post that I made in a previous thread a few years ago about how we managed his condition.

Pay careful attention to my advice about keeping him away from anyone with a cold sore. There is also a close relationship between infant eczema and asthma. My son thankfully isn't asthmatic but he has had a few episodes. Over the years I've met many children who have both conditions so make sure that your doctor checks him for that too.

Thank you - I will definitely get him checked for asthma as it runs in my family also. Never heard bout the cold sore thing tho.

jdk123

Back on the goats milk - that really seemed easier to drink for our baby boy than cows milk. We had him on a goats milk based formula when he was smaller. He got on great with it.

gerrykeegan

Our lad has dairy allergy and had eczema on his face. We tried both of those formulas and he refused. (in fairness the professor who dealt with him described those two as one smells like sick and the other is worse) the nutrionist in Temple street suggested Infasoy (soya based) he still takes it (he is four) and the eczema improved when we got him on it.

AlisonRelihan

gerrykeegan wrote: »

Our lad has dairy allergy and had eczema on his face. We tried both of those formulas and he refused. (in fairness the professor who dealt with him described those two as one smells like sick and the other is worse) the nutrionist in Temple street suggested Infasoy (soya based) he still takes it (he is four) and the eczema improved when we got him on it.

Just out of interest how was the dairy allergy diagnosed? He is drinking both formulas no problem at all - although he does love his food!

AlisonRelihan

jdk123 wrote: »

Back on the goats milk - that really seemed easier to drink for our baby boy than cows milk. We had him on a goats milk based formula when he was smaller. He got on great with it.

Just wondering if he has cows milk intollerance would this be the same with goats milk....same protein?

gerrykeegan

Immediate lumpy rash on face after original formula. He was referred to Temple street by GP and Temple Street referred us to Professor Horurihan in Cork University Hospital. They did some tests and determined his allergy. He now can take baked milk. Havent tried ordinary milk yet.

meg3178

AlisonRelihan wrote: »

Where can you buy ecover washing powder? Yes I agree that doctors push the chemical alternatives. I'd love to know what I could use during flare ups instead of steroid ointment.

Ecover can be bought in any health food shop and some Tesco stores.
Allergy testing on a young baby can be done via referral from a good paediatrician.
During flare ups, avoid all gluten products, but also consult a dermatologist not just GP, as there are variations of steroid creams and strengths. Your baby may not require a high strength cream if he is responding to alternative treatments, just a mild strength.

AlisonRelihan

AlisonRelihan wrote: »

I've bought some organic porridge oats so must try in the bath tomor.

Grrr....he was allergic to the oats.

AlisonRelihan

Anyone notice eczema getting worse with teething?

pwurple

AlisonRelihan wrote: »

Anyone notice eczema getting worse with teething?

Yes. I guess they wriggle about more when they are teething and it irritates the excema maybe? It goes again afterwards.

meg3178

pwurple wrote: »

Yes. I guess they wriggle about more when they are teething and it irritates the excema maybe? It goes again afterwards.

Its more to do with the ph balance in the body which causes it. An Indian doctor explained it when my daughter was small. Look up ayurvedic remedies in children when teething. I used to use Ashton and Parsons teething powders from Boots and they were brilliant, kept the stomach cramps, teething pains and redness in the skin calm.

pwurple

meg3178 wrote: »

Its more to do with the ph balance in the body which causes it. An Indian doctor explained it when my daughter was small. Look up ayurvedic remedies in children when teething. I used to use Ashton and Parsons teething powders from Boots and they were brilliant, kept the stomach cramps, teething pains and redness in the skin calm.

Did that guy explain pH would change when teeth are coming up?

lounakin

Have you ever thought of seaweed baths? I saw a woman selling pure seaweed powder, a huge tube of it for 20 euro or so, it would last for a long while. Can be used on babies and as far as I know it helps a lot when other things have failed. You give them a soak in the powder twice a week and within a few weeks the outbreaks should be minimal.

http://www.econatural.ie/eczema-skin-care/196-aalgo-natural-seaweed-powder-600g.html

(this is not the brand I saw but it appears to be the same thing, 100% pure seaweed powder)

mariebeth

AlisonRelihan wrote: »

Just wondering if he has cows milk intollerance would this be the same with goats milk....same protein?

I'm not sure of the exact science, but I've read that goats milk is a lot lighter on the stomach and easier to digest than cows milk. I work in a creche, and we've had a number of children who are allergic to cows milk, but fine with goats milk.

We also had a baby with quite a severe case of eczema all over her body, except around the nappy area. We suggested that her mother try switching to the fairy non-bio gel wash, as one of the girls in work had said that was the only thing that she could use on her own clothes. The mother gave it a try, and after only a few days the baby's eczema had improved quite significantly so it might be worth a try if you haven't tried the gel wash already.

aknitter

I'd also recommend avoiding any J&J products, my two year old comes out awfully from them (hairdresser advised my sister to use J&J baby shampoo to strip hair dye from her hair after a botched dye job). Instead of any oil you could try liquid parrifin - its cheaper than the rest and was the olny thing that worked for us.
Also putting vaseline on any exposed skin before you go out will help a lot and all 100& cotton clothes.
Sorry if this has been mentioned but if you are in the Cork area I use a dermatologist who I can recommend.
I'd also talk to a professional before doing anything drastic with the diet of such a young one.