Practical & Effective Eczema Dietary Healing Tips

Many believe that diet plays an important role in controlling eczema as certain foods can cause an intolerance or allergy which increases the severity of this skin condition.  Foods such as dairy products, wheat, nuts, tomatoes or fish are usually to blame.

The number one allergic food for those with eczema is dairy.

Dairy products, whether low or high in fat, may contribute to eczema.

Dairy, particularly cheese and milk produced from cows,  is one of the most common of food intolerances in people with eczema. This is because the protein molecules of cows milk products are large and more difficult to digest.

Removing milk and other commercially produced dairy products from the diet has often caused a dramatic improvement in eczema/psoriasis in children as well as adults.

Most nutritionists agree that there definitely is a link between consumption of dairy products and eczema. That doesn’t mean of course that everybody with eczema has an allergy to dairy products, but a proportion do.

According to research published in the "European Respiratory Journal" in June 2010, cutting back on milk and cheeses may improve your eczema symptoms. In the study, researchers examined the dairy intake of 763 Japanese expectant mothers. After the women’s infants were born, researchers found a positive correlation between dairy products, other than yogurt, and eczema symptoms in their children.

Why does dairy exacerbate eczema symptoms?

Milk is a known allergen. It is a well-known fact that, over seventy percent of the world’s population cannot properly digest cows milk due to lactose intolerance, (a deficiency of the enzyme lactase necessary for milk digestion).

Many people don’t have sufficient amounts of the lactase enzyme, which is needed to properly digest the lactose found in milk. Products such as yogurt, hard cheese, and butter, are usually much better tolerated due to their lower lactose content.

This being the case, milk consumption will for allergic individuals can cause an almost immediate outbreak of eczema lesions. [The protein in cow's milk frequently is only partly digested and becomes a major source of intestinal putrefaction and toxemia. Incompletely digested protein may pass the wall of the small intestine and cause allergy].

In addition, many eczema patients suffer from digestive disorders, and milk products are known to be prime causes of digestive problems due to their high mucous content.

As an alternative to standard cows milk products drink Goat’s Milk

Many people, who suffer from digestive disorders, and/or lactose intolerance including those who suffer from eczema, find that they can much better tolerate goat’s milk.

• The protein chains in Goats milk are shorter so it sits in the intestines for much less time. In contrast, cow’s milk will take much longer to digest.
• The smaller molecules of goat’s milk are closer in size and composition to human milk, making it much easier to digest.
• Goat’s milk protein is substantially less allergenic than cow’s milk protein in susceptible individuals.

A highly recommended dried Goats milk product is Goatien produced by Garden Of Life USA Inc. This product is made from goats that are fed only natural feed, and are free of all growth hormones. Goatien is a rich source of protein, nutrients, and enzymes.

Use dairy alternatives

Health food stores and supermarkets now stock a good range of dairy alternatives. It is now possible to buy Soya, goat’s or ewe’s milk, goat’s cheese, dairy free ice cream, chocolates and biscuits.

Take probiotics

Take a good probiotic product in order to create a more healthy intestinal flora. Evidence suggests that probiotics can help prevent and heal eczema outbreaks.

There is always an intestinal problem associated with eczema. Eczema starts in the intestines when toxins seep through the intestine walls and enter back into the system and eventually out through the skin.

Probiotics include tablets containing Lactobacillus acidophilus, Propionibacterium freudenreichii, shermanii, and Bifidobacterium bifidum.

Take a high quality fish oil product

Taking fish oil supplements can bring about an immediate improvement in eczema symptoms.

The red, itchy patches of eczema often respond to the anti-inflammatory actions and overall skin-soothing properties of fish oil.

Man sufferers of eczema have reported reductions in itch, redness and flaky appearance of the skin after taking fish oil supplements.

Many recent double-blind studies have shown that supplementation of the diet with 10 – 12 grams of fish oils daily results in significant improvement in psoriasis.

Recent research has shown that skin conditions in humans, such as psoriasis and eczema, have improved dramatically when fish oil, was added to the diet.

Scientific research has confirmed that deficiencies of essential fatty acids cause scaliness, redness, weeping, and inflammation. To maintain a healthy skin, your skin cell membranes need an adequate supply of essential fats.

Fatty acid deficiency increases the rate at which skin cells multiply, makes them more permeable to water, induces the formation of abnormal keratinocytes, and accelerates the production of natural steroid hormones in the skin.

How can fish oil have an effect of eczema symptoms?

Supplementing the diet with Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs) can overcome or improve eczema because they inhibit the production of inflammatory prostaglandins in the body.

Essential fatty acid foods especially foods that contain eicosapentaenoic acid, a major polyunsaturated fatty acid found in fish oil, interfere with the body’s production of inflammatory chemicals, more specifically arachidonic acid, the chemical which causes eczema lesions to swell and turn red. Arachidonic acid is turned into another pro-inflammatory chemical, leukotriene B4, which is known to accumulate in the lesions of eczema sufferers.

Omega-3 oils benefit eczema by nourishing the cells of the body with the proper essential oils that are so sorely lacking in our typical American diet. It is no secret that Americans consume lots of meats and starches but pitifully not enough of green vegetables and fish, which are rich sources of omega-3 oils.

A highly recommended fish oil product for eczema is cod liver oil.

Researchers found that consuming 5-6 grams of Cod liver oil  daily for 12 weeks shows significant improvement from eczema symptoms!

Cod-liver oil is a good source of omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins A and D, Vitamin D3, EPA and DHA.

Cod liver oil is a super source of vitamin D. Our skin must have the all-important vitamin D. Most of us are deficient in Vitamin D and getting this necessary nutrient is extremely important to skin health and every function for bone health.

A highly recommended brand of cod liver oil is Carlson’s Cod Liver Oil.

From the deep unpolluted waters near Norway, Carlson brings you the finest cod liver oil which is naturally rich in vitamin A, Vitamin D3, EPA and DHA. Only cod fish caught during the winter and early spring are used, as the liver oil content is highest at this time of year. The oil is separated from the liver tissues without the use of chemicals.

For most people, a safe dosage of cod liver oil is approximately two teaspoons per day.

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