If your child has eczema AND a food allergy...

did you find that by removing the allergen from his/her diet that the eczema improved?

DS has eczema--that is currently in a pretty bad flare-up--and today he was just diagnosed with an egg allergy (yolks and whites). I had stopped giving him eggs a couple of months back after a reaction, but he has products containing eggs regularly. In fact, I figured the skin flare-up was related to the change in seasons, but now I've connected the fact that he's been eating pancakes for breakfast pretty much daily for the last couple of weeks... My ped suggested I try cutting out ALL egg products and seeing what happens with his skin.

Do you guys have any experience?

Re: If your child has eczema AND a food allergy...

DS had really bad eczema when we was a month or 2. We did a lot of things like switch to California Baby wash, ceravae body cream, free and clear detergent and all that worked a lot but would still have small patches here or there. I was EBF and I ate milk and eggs but didn't connect the two. It was when we started solids and I gave him yogurt or other foods with milk or eggs in it that I would notice eczema outbreaks on his face and neck right after eating those foods. We saw an allergist and he is allergic to milk and eggs and now that he doesn't eat them he hasn't had any outbreaks, not one.

Re: If your child has eczema AND a food allergy...

DS had bad eczema and was diagnosed with a milk sensitivity. Once we cut out dairy his eczema almost completely disappeared. We also switched soap in that time period as well.

Re: If your child has eczema AND a food allergy...

Yes, DS's eczema is directly related to his food allergies. I can pretty much always know when I have eaten or fed DS an allergen by mistake (I'm still BFing), or if DS develops a new allergy because of his eczema flare-ups. Within 3 days his entire face is broken out in thousands of tiny little bumps. He has other symptoms too (undigested food in his poop, mucousy & really stinky poops, he gets cranky). Even the smallest amount of an allergen (one brazil nut that I eat, for instance, so only trace amounts are in my breast milk), will cause a flare up and blood in his stool.

Re: If your child has eczema AND a food allergy...

Yes-also be careful with the products you use. Unscented, no dye is the best.

Re: If your child has eczema AND a food allergy...

Thank you all so much. This is encouraging! Already searching for egg-free recipes for pancakes, etc!