Eczema is a skin disorder which is becoming increasingly common. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), there are more than 15 million Americans have atopic dermatitis, or eczema. There are a few different types of eczema, but the most common one is atopic dermatitis, which common symptoms include inflamed and itchy skin. The cost of treating eczema does not come cheap. According to the NIH, the payout by insurance companies for medical cost for eczema treatment is over billion every year. As many Americans are either uninsured or underinsured, the actual cost for treating eczema is likely to be much higher.
Till today, the exact cause of eczema is still unknown. The NIH says that the skin disorder is resulted from a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Eczema is commonly associated with allergies and auto-immune system disorders. External factors such as stress is also a major cause of eczema break out for many sufferers. The increased pollution of the environment does not help as dust, cigarette smoke, synthetic fibers, harsh chemicals and so on can aggravate eczema outbreaks.
Sadly, eczema affects more children, especially babies than adults. According to NIH, an estimate of 65% of patients develop symptoms in the first year of life and 90% develop symptoms before the age of 5 years. While eczema tend to ease for some children as they grow up, there are about 60% of the children carry the symptoms of eczema into adulthood.
Unfortunately for eczema sufferers, there is no known cure for eczema. Doctors commonly prescribe medications which suppress the eczema symptoms. Now, as parents are more educated, they have concerns about using these medications in the long term for eczema treatment. Suppressing eczema symptoms is not the answer to treating eczema as the symptoms will be back again and again when the medication subsides. Immuno-modulators that comes in ointment or cream form can bring about side effects if used for long term. These are also not safe to used on young children. Common medications prescribed by doctors for eczema include antihistamines, immuno-suppressants, and corticosteroids can bring long term side effects such as skin thinning and weakening of the immune system.
Therefore, many parents are now searching for a better alternative for eczema treatment for their babies and children. That is why home remedies are becoming more popular. There are many natural eczema treatments on the market that can stop itching and healing dry skin. One good example is using bath salts and essential oils. Salt bath is known to effectively stop itching while essential oils are great moisturizer to the skin. The best thing about these natural remedies is that these products are safe for children and can be used for long term without any side effects.
