Great Natural Home Remedy for Eczema: Itch Relief + Calms the Flare Ups
Hi friends,
Its been a little while since I posted about skincare and I wanted to reenter the large topic by discussing something that has afflicted my skin for as long as I can remember: eczema.
What the Heck is Eczema?!
Simply put, eczema is a general term for a chronic skin condition caused by inflammation.
Clear enough?
Don’t worry it isn’t really for me either, but, medically speaking, that’s how it is classed.
Eczema is the umbrella term for atopic dermatitis (inflamed skin) meaning that many skin conditions are housed under this title.
Eczema can be hereditary but there are many people who have the unfriendly rashes and are the only ones among their kin.
The majority of people who have eczema were born with the condition, though in some cases, others might develop it later on in life depending on factors such as:
- bacterial infections
- nutrient deficiencies
- dry/irritated skin
- eating certain foods
- allergies to environmental factors
- pollen
Health professionals report that eczema is often an external materialization of an internal issue. So again eczema can occur from.. eh who knows?!
Because of the variance associated with eczema, there isn’t always an easy fix for the flare-ups, and considering the fact that there is no cure for such a condition, we who suffer from eczema are often looking for ways to alleviate our symptoms when they do manifest.
My Eczema Woes (I was running through elementary with my woes)
When I was young my eczema was terrible. I tried and tried not to scratch but it was so itchy all the time and I just couldn’t help myself.
My mumma would often dress me in stockings in an attempt to prevent me from breaking skin (my legs had it the worst) but I always seemed to be scratching up a storm in spite of this.
The topical ointment that the doctors prescribed hardly seemed to work and I spent a great deal of my childhood with my legs covered in itchy rashes.
By the time I reached middle school the rashes cleared up and I could finally wear that skirt that my older sister said was off limits.. pfft as if I could keep my hands off!
As I journeyed onto adulthood my eczema would manifest from time to time but only in small spurts. It might show up on the front of my ankle or under my arms and it always sucked, but by and by I could deal with a flare up or two.
Worse than Mosquito Bites
Then, as it sometimes happens, a really horrible something happened :/.
My roomie left all the windows in the apartment open (literally. no exaggeration, no jokes, no lie!) and when I awoke I was literally covered in mosquito bites. All on my arms, my left hand, and both legs.
I knew not to scratch the bites because doing so would only leave a scar, but I got around this by, well scratching around them. Bad idea!
After the second day, all of the bites (helped along by my irresponsible outside scratching) turned into eczema.
The nightmare of my past had resurfaced, and luck would have it that this all happened the day before I was off to do a season in Ibiza! Oh ****!
So off I went to the party capital of the world adorning my scaly skin.. joy!
I went to the chemist (pharmacy) once arriving and was given a cream with Spanish words recorded on the tube (my spanish isn’t that good!).
What do you know, the rashes became more inflamed and the itchiness got worse. I determined that it was time for a natural remedy and what I used worked like magic.
Natural Home Remedy for Eczema
I used two ingredients:
- oatmeal (porridge)
- shea butter
I ran a bath and was very liberal with the amount of oatmeal that I poured in. Then I submersed myself in the tub. I stayed in for over an hour and when I got out, my skin felt softer, and it really worked in soothing the flare ups.
After I dried, I used shea butter over my entire body and in three days my skin was back to normal. I’ve read that other people add other ingredients to their bath like baking soda, or olive or coconut oil, but I personally find that oatmeal alone does the trick.
I pour mine as is while others grind it in a blender/mixer to make it more fine (easier to get down the drain). As always with home remedies: to each his/her own.
Alternative Natural Home Remedy for Eczema
Since that unfortunate time in the summer of 2014, I have had one more flare up-in front of my ankle again and on both armpits.
I knew what to do to alleviate the itching and make the rash disappear but there was one major problemo. The apartment that I moved into, though 400 times better than its predecessor, had no bathtub!
Dreadful, I know, but I put my thinking cap on and came up with an alternative solution. What I did was mix some oatmeal with warmish water until it became quite creamy and then applied it on my sores. I left this on for about 30 minutes, rinsed off in the shower with cool/warm water and then applied my shea butter for good measure.
It took longer to heal without the bath but it still got the job done after a full week of following the method.
What Both Ingredients Do
Oatmeal- gives a protective layer on the skin, fights dryness, cleanses the skin, moisturizes the skin, has antioxidants that are said to have anti-inflammatory properties (also good for combating acne)
Shea Butter- heals burns/scars/dermatitis/dandruff, moisturizes skin, diminishes wrinkles, helps with circulation, accelerates cell renewal, natural vitamin A, anti- inflammatory properties.
Extra Tips
As always lifestyle and diet are of high importance! Be sure to get enough direct sunlight each day for a necessary Vitamin D dose (20 minutes), eat foods that are high in antioxidants and Omega- 3 to reduce eczema symptoms, opt for natural ingredients in the lotions/butters/soaps that you use. I normally make my own, check out my post here to see my favorite DIY mixes.
Eczema is not a fun affliction to live with, but, with some TLC and natural ingredients from Mother Nature’s kitchen, you can alleviate Señora Eczema’s worst endowment!
My absolute favorite type of shea butter is called white chunky, it is all natural 100% pure and unrefined. You can get yours here.
Your Turn
Ever tried an oatmeal bath before? What are your favorite ways to alleviate eczema symptoms? Make sure to get involved in discussion below and share this with anyone who has been having some very itchy days!
Very impressive site and very informative looks great
Hi James, thanks so much for your comment!
Very interesting information especially on the oatmeal bath. Being a male I know alot of us don’t see the importance of skin care but this got me thinking. It looks to be an easy way to get your skin care on the mend and not expensive. Well written and informative read here.
Hi Dave, thanks so much for your comment. I’m glad that this post got you thinking and yes there are plenty of ways to look after our skin, on the cheap 🙂
Ahhh! It’s like this post came from an answered prayer. I never thought there was anything I could do about my eczema on my arms. And I certainly never thought of putting oatmeal on my body haha. Thank you so much for this, I’m going to try it out later.
Hi Sean! Yes this is definitely something that you can rid your body of! Please, please let me know your results, I hope that this helps you the way it helped me. Get some sun in you, drink loads of water, and eat loads of veg! You will be healed up real soon 🙂
I LOVE oatmeal as a skin treatment and would use it all the time on my teenage acne. I’ve never taken an actual oatmeal bath …would probably want to strain it as it drained so as to not clog the pipes! I also love shea butter, the raw stuff, and use it on my face and skin a few times a week, along with raw coconut oil. I’m 35 but I look much younger, and I think it’s because of so many years of using only natural skin products. I don’t have eczema but I am a mosquito target and can’t imagine how uncomfortable that would feel, glad you got it under control without medicines!
Hi Penny, thanks a bunch for this comment! I am right with you with the oatmeal, Shea Butter, and coconut oil. There are so many spectacular properties that can be found in the natural world and I live for those rather than pharmaceutical choices. Your youthful looks are proof of the bounty of mother nature!x
Awesome info! My mom has battled with this skin condition, more recently, and I used to suffer from psoriasis. I, too, was given those yucky creams to use as a kid. I think it only made it worse eventually and what helped me was sunlight!
My mom, on the other hand, does have to do more natural remedies regularly to help hers …and like you said, diet is crucial! An anti-inflammatory diet (cutting out foods/ingredients you wouldn’t expect to be inflammatory) can help a great deal!
Glad you found a combo that works for you!!
Hi Amanda, thanks so much for your comment. Yes that vitamin D dose can do extraordinary things for our skin and I am so glad that it helped your psoriasis! It’s great that you are so aware about diet and understanding foods that cause flare- ups is vital for all of us! Thank you again 🙂
Quick question: did you have to strain your bathtub? It’s just, my drains have been shit lately but i want to try the oatmeal bath lol.
Hello, I did not strain it anytime that I have had an oatmeal bath (probably not the best idea) but at times when I have strained I find that cling film works to allow the water to go out while catching all of the oats. Other than this a cheesecloth can work in the same way by just pacing it over the drain when releasing the water to catch what w e do not want to go down the drain 🙂
Awesome article I’m sure it’ll work for me too thank u
I hope that it does, thank you so much for reading and for your lovely comment!
I worked in a pharmacy (the retail part of it, not behind the counter) and there are a number of oatmeal-based products for eczema now, but I have always been hesitant to try them. The only thing I did try was Aveeno skin cream, but that didn’t do too much for me.
For the most part, my eczema is limited to my hands and only really manifests during the change of seasons, so early spring and later fall are my bad times. One of my sons deals with it during the winter. His is a bit more severe and also affects other parts of his body than just his hands.
He is better now as we go into the warmer weather, but I will keep this in mind for next year. I much prefer the idea of following your suggestions than buying most of the creams that are sold in stores.
Hi Craig, I suffered from eczema on my hands when I moved from California to London, UK and it was awful. The change in the temperature must have affected me in a negative way, but one thing that helped was staying away from harsh soaps and yes using products that were oatmeal- infused and always applying shea butter after my hands got wet. It really helped keeping my skin moisturised. If you try it out, I really hope that it helps you!