The cause of eczema for every baby is unique to their own body, health, and environment. I recommend keeping tabs on when the flare-ups happen to identify any common factor(s) as there can be many culprits to go over in this day and age of highly processed and engineered foods, pesticides and chemicals, ingredients in topicals, microplastics, and pollution.
What I’ll share below is a concoction of natural and western medicine information as I believe in learning from a holistic 360 approach and choosing what works best for you and your family.
Please note that the following are based on personal experience with practitioners, and from reading the experience of others, books, and articles. This is not medical advice, please talk to your doctor to address any concerns.
Here’s a list to get you started on what potential eczema triggers to look out for:
- Food
- Topicals
- Pets
- Mold
- Laundry Detergents
- Clothing (cotton)
- Seasonal
Let’s take a closer look at each potential trigger:
Food
In my experience, western doctors will say food does not trigger eczema. Instead, eczema can cause allergies when the skin is inflamed and proteins can enter the system. But I’ve heard and read many stories from parents where certain food(s) triggers their child. The common
Topicals
Natural isn’t always best. If you take a look at the ingredients, there can be common food triggers used in the cream, such as oatmeal, coconut oil, shea butter, avocado oil.
Laundry Detergents
Keeping clothing and linens clean may require tough laundry products but it may be harmful to skin with a broken barrier. It can irritate.
Pets
There are studies that show having pets helps reduce allergies and that it helps develop better gut health. But what if your pet is causing your baby to react?
Mold
Living in mold can cause havoc on your body. If you suspect there is hidden mold somewhere in the house, it may be worth doing an OAT test to detect any mold in the urine. Be sure to also check the washer and dryer, especially if they are front-loaded. There may be hidden mold within the rings. Here’s a reference.
Clothing
Fabric. Use breathable fabric when possible. Heat can cause rashes. Also, if organic is an option, use organic cotton. But more importantly, take note of where the clothing is purchased from. It has been reported that clothing from Temu and similar websites contain XX amount of toxic chemicals.
Seasonal
Pollen season, season changes, take note when the flares are at its worth. Is it during a specific time?
It can become overwhelming, here’s a free downloadable printable tracker to help condense your observation. I hope it helps kick start spotting trends with your baby’s eczema. I understand first hand how hard it can be. You’re not alone and your baby is so lucky to have a parent like you who is trying to get to the root cause and heal them.
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