Infantile Eczema - September - Reminders to myself

This is seeming to be a blog simply about infantile eczema.....so apologies if people think I'm ranting on. It's just that it is my primary mission at the moment, and any free time I get I try learn as much as I can about it. I then try relay it here, as just like I found out, when someone else tries and tests stuff before you it can be an immense help, and can save lots of money.

Today I'm going to remind myself, and you...if you are on the same mission about the whole - going detergent free issue. I have realised that due to only having sporadic time to research and read I have forgotten a lot of the important information about what I should be focussing on. I haven't been doing a 100% job when trying to get this house detergent free. Sleep deprivation and lack of being able to concentrate makes for a scatty cleaner :)

Mr. T's condition has improved dramatically since April when I started going detergent free, but I have always struggled to get rid of his outbreaks on his face and neck (front and back). I went back to the drawing board, back to www.solveeczema.org and this time printed out the whole website so I could read it while walking the buggy or cuddling Mr. T. Even though I have read her website at least three times I was never able to focus on it properly. Now I read it through, and highlighted all the bits I wasn't doing. I also got stuck into more literature about it, but that's another blog date. 

So if there's parents out there that are still battling with eczema outbreaks after months of hard work getting rid of detergent in the house, consider these reminders:.... I needed reminding myself :) Thank you to A.J. for all the following information, and please excuse the fact I have been emailing you questions for which the answers are already here. I have been a little frazzled :) 

Please note, the following information is from www.solveeczema.org by A.J. Lumsdaine. Excerpts used with permission. I am simply writing a reminder for myself, and others who may find themselves a little lost and unfocused with the task. 

- One thing that sprung out for me this time is Mr. T's sensitivity to everything around him. Pollen, dust mites, food, animal hair,.... Surely a little boy can't be allergic to everything. 

Solveeczema quote: When our son is exposed to oak tree pollen - which gives him the usual respiratory symptoms - he then breaks out from lower levels of detergent exposure. But absent any detergent exposure, the pollens don't seem to cause him eczema. 

So I stuck Mr. T in the shower, made sure he hadn't come in contact with anything that could have detergent on it. I then tested him. I put coconut oil on one of his hands (he had reacted to that a few months ago) and I put beeswax on his other hand (I wasn't sure if he was sensitive to it or not). Three hours later he was still looking normal, and hadn't reacted to either. So when he had reacted to coconut oil in the past, it was simply because he was exposed to detergent at the time too....phew! thank goodness. Finding real soap or castille soap without coconut in it has been a nightmare over the last few months. So now I'm back to being able to use Dr. Bronners castille soap. Yipee!

- Another thing I have learned is that the detrimental effect that detergent has on the body is made worse in small amounts of water. Hence eczema always being worse where babies sweat. Which explains why when some babies 'grow out' of eczema, they develop asthma. Their skin is less permeable at the age of two than before, but of course the lungs still have to be permeable to leave oxygen in, and contain water vapour, so its rife for detergents to attack. There's motivation for conquering the detergent if ever I saw one! I want my little man to be healed when he's two, not have it develop into asthma. 

- I have also learned, rereading the site that I have to be more specific everytime I see a breakout. I hadn't yet written a diary on when breakouts happen. I felt I could remember myself, and who has time to write a diary with a little girl and a baby in the house.... I am now going to start taking written notes. I need to use the clues Mr. T is giving me. They seem random, but when written down I'm hoping the picture will become clearer.  A list of probable causes like A.J. says, then eliminate or test each probable cause and write them down too. 

- I am also using any free time to google ingredients in products that I keep seeing but am unsure of. I am creating a list of 'not good' and 'good' ingredients. I have a notebook now for notes and ingredients so its all together. 

- It also seems that barrier creams, not moisturising creams are more effective. Terminology is different in different countries as what comes under the heading barrier or moisturiser, but the creams like Aquaphor, or Vaseline seem to work better as they protect the skin rather than absorb into it. This of course is only true if you are sure that there is no detergent on the skin before putting them on. I use itchybaby balm as Aquaphor is not available here, and I only put it on after Mr. T has a bath as then I'm sure there's no detergent dust on him that may get trapped. From our own experiences it seems to be better than the moisturising creams. Even the gentle zeoderm moisturising cream that was natural seemed to be too 'strong' for his sensitive skin,  and Mr. T had a horrifying reaction to the emollient prescribed by the specialist we went to see. I can still remember him shaking and screaming with pain. Here in Ireland Infantile eczema is stated as being random, unknown cause, unknown cure. The fact it may be detergent related to the extent that I have learned is not even considered. Maybe this is why emollient moisturisers are still being prescribed as opposed to questions asked beforehand whether the child is sensitive to detergents. I stay away from such prescriptions now as long as his sores aren't infected, and use the balm above or sudocreme if he scratches himself to bleeding point on his cheeks or neck. 

- Mr. T seems to be allergic to everything, but on solveeczema I realised he may not be allergic to a specific food, but rather the environment it was made and packaged in. With this statement I am by no means encouraging you to take risks with your childs health, I am only stating my own personal experiences and what I am doing. I feel that as Mr. T's parent I am making the correct decisions based on the knowledge I have learnt in the last year about his illness, and also using common sense and a high respect for the allergies he does have. Obviously you always have to follow the advice and warnings given by your doctor. Nonetheless I have decided to look at the matter from a different angle, maybe some of his more 'normal' allergies could be investigated.  

The dairy and egg allergies that Mr. T has cause a reaction that is so severe that I am  too afraid to investigate these, but little at a time when I know there is no detergent around him I am going to try anew to see what he is really allergic too. I have to think about it all, all the steps of the food he eats. Where it is grown, by whom, with fertilisers and pesticides? What pot is it cooked in? What is it stored in?  Organic doesn't matter, it only has to be 79% organic apparently to be stated organic. Water is classed as organic, so as an example, if something contains 79% water, all other ingredients could be detergent/non organic/synthetic additives but it is still allowed to be called organic. The best bet is to have your own vegetable plot and grow your own organically and process it in your detergent free home. Luckily I have the luxury of being able to do this as our vegetable garden is a hobby of mine that I am hoping to get back into in the spring. 

- I have been looking up ingredients online of products I have found in our health food shop, and have been baffled trying to figure out what is a detergent and what not. I have also been trying to understand surfactants on a molecular level, and it's all a bit mind boggling. First I thought that anything anionic may be safe, but it's not that simple. Only traditional anionic SOAP is safe. Detergents can be made from plant, animal, and petrochemicals. So the whole family of 'plant based surfactants' is still not suitable for our mission. Looking at the products available, there's not much left to choose from, but in a way that's ok. Thank goodness there's such thing as castile soap!

- One of the places Mr. T still have breakouts is his neck. I hadn't realised that synthetic combinations in collars of clothes don't have to be labeled, so I am also going to write down what tops he is wearing when he has a breakout. All his clothes are made of organic cotton now, but maybe the collars are not! Crazy. I also have to try and keep his cheeks and neck dryer, as I have to try stop the increase in permeability that happens when his skin is wet. 

- I have also been giving Mr. T porridge and baby food from packets occasionally. I am now in the process of reading John O.A. Pagano's book "Healing Psoriasis" and it is also an amazing find. Even though Mr. T has eczema, not psoriasis, Mr. Pagano makes a clear link between the two. I am hoping to find out as soon as possible what way I can help Mr. T's condition from the inside out, and then either get the veg out of our organic vegetable garden or an organic stall at the farmers market. I am trying to get away from processed, packaged foods. Lets face it, even the most freshest, organic veg you can buy in a mega superstore probably rolls down shoots that have been scrubbed with disinfectant and detergents, and come from warehouses that have been scrubbed with detergents and have people around them that wear detergents. Our garden is the best bet, and a farmers market with local organic stalls is the second best option. I then want to make Mr. T's solids in our detergent free kitchen, in bulk, and then freeze. In pots that are BPA free....complicated! :) I have also been advised to use ice cube trays, good idea!

- Another problem I am faced here when going the anti-detergent route is lots of people visiting and lots of people in 'farm' clothes coming into the house for lunch. I have been trying to combat this problem in several ways, but now that Mr. T is crawling, I can see that his contact eczema is worse on his hands. ie. there is still detergent being brought in and left on the floor. Farm dirt is usually 'safe' dirt like soil, but when pollen or other allergens stick to their clothes its very hard to pinpoint the cause of a reaction and how to treat it so for now I'm playing it safe. I have gotten two storage boxes, one for 'house' clothes, and one for 'outdoor' clothes, and put them in our hallway for people to change into. People that don't live here currently sit on a plastic chair in the sitting room that I can easily wipe down,...even if it seems a little unsociable :) Generally I clean the floor and seat after people leave but it's easy to get lost with this regime when something else important has to be done at the time. If they stay a day or two they get sent to the shower straightaway and I give them my clothes to wear. Poor Mr. T was getting a little affected at the lack of socialising with other kids due to being a bit isolated so now I take him to the playground once a week where he has a ball.  He's an adrenalin junkie with the slide already :) It's healthy 'dirt' thats there, and though he gets the odd reaction to something there, he is generally happy and as soon as we come home I stick him and his sister in the bath.

- Finally, it has been very hard to find some detergent free products here in Ireland. Many companies like Cal Ben don't ship to Ireland. I'm using a bar of olive oil soap for hand washing dishes at the moment and can't seem to find a trustworthy alternative.. I looked up a recipe on how to make some myself with castile soap, but I wasn't impressed. I am still on the lookout, if anyone has any ideas, please shout. Ecover is not an option at this point as it contains detergents. I have emailed them and they replied saying detergents are not actually as harmful as many people think. I think I won't argue with them, Mr. T's case is proof enough for me. Marketing officials are obviously on their own mission. 

         There is hope that Mr. T will become less sensitive to detergents. I know this is definitely his number one problem. Some people may think I'm crazy doing all this when doctors here don't seem to see it mainstream, and it is such hard work. Or that I am crazy for following one website so closely and believing every word. Well solveeczema just puts it all together, and her research is well founded, and similar evidence can be found everywhere online. Also I know that if I put Mr. T into a normal baby suit, washed with normal "hypoallergenic, for sensitive skin" detergent he would flare up and become upset and disturbed, and his skin would be covered in itchy sores. I am working off what works for him, and I can see he is happier and healthier this way. My aim is to have a happy baby boy that can play and move as any other, and that doesn't have to worry about having weeping elbows or calves when he is trying to crawl. 

So here lie a few reminders that seem plain and easy, but I still have to brush up on them. There is still a missing link to Mr. T's eczema, and I am determined to find it. Although his legs are sometimes still itchy, his body (the areas that are covered by his sleepsuit and clothes) has brilliant skin now. Baby soft and kissable :) There must still be contact detergents in my house somewhere. His cheeks, and neck are still flaring up at least every 36 hours.  Mission not completed yet,....but it's not mission impossible :)

Please note: I am not qualified as a medical practicioner. My views and opinions on this blog are due to my own experiences and information I have received. By no means do I encourage any parent to take risks with their child or go against their doctors wishes. My actions are due to my own decisions and as far as I am concerned I am doing the best for my child with the knowledge I have.