Eczema, or atopic dermatitis, is a skin condition in which patches of the skin become red, dry, and itchy. The scientists have found a link between eczema and allergies since most of the people suffering from this condition deal with asthma and rhinitis.
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Even though eczema can severely affect the physical, mental, and emotional life of the patient, it has never been subjected to an intense research since this condition is not a serious disease.
Nevertheless, the people with eczema often deal with pain, scratching, stress, anxiety, peeling skin, as well as a need for immunosuppressive agents, antihistamines, and cortisone shots.
Why Is Eczema Difficult to Treat?
When it comes to treating eczema, the dermatologists tend to analyze exclusively the symptoms rather than the cause.
Usually, they don’t inform you that there are methods which can reduce the inflammations that cause eczema, nor that there are known triggers which can make an immune response worse. Here is why you are not informed about the triggers:
- Each individual suffering from eczema is not affected by the same triggers.
- Certain treatments need a lot of time and patience. Although the eczema patients want a quick relief, they shouldn’t address only the symptoms. Rather, this condition requires an elimination of the initial triggers.
- Food allergies can lead to eczema. However, this cause usually remains undiagnosed because the methods of testing are not covered by the medical system.
What Are the Triggers for Eczema?
The breakdown in eczema is in the innate immune system. This part of the immune system is responsible for informing the body about foreign and not foreign things in the lungs, skin, and gastrointestinal system.
When something foreign affects some part of the immune system, the entire system faces difficulties.
In the case of eczema, the gastrointestinal tract is where the breakdown occurs. This condition can occur even before birth.
In case the mothers have genetic predispositions or eczema, they can pass the condition to their babies. Fortunately, the appearance of eczema in the babies can be reduced and prevented by probiotics and good bacteria.
Different types of eczema are linked to different foods. Some of the foods which are related to eczema include dairy proteins, potatoes, tomatoes, wheat, wheat gluten, nuts, synthetic and refined sugars, citrus fruits, citrus juices, peaches, cherries, and apples from trees connected to oral allergies.
Nevertheless, there is a lack of sufficient evidence about the link between eczema and food allergies.
Moreover, stress is another cause of eczema. The stress hormones have an ability to increase the inflammation.
Increased stress levels are considered to be the major culprits for the development of eczema since this condition is characterized by an occurrence of chronic inflammation.
Why Is It Important to Identify the Root Cause?
The immunosuppressive agents, such as tacrolimus found in Elidel and Protopic, are excellent for controlling eczema. However, the usage of these medications comes with many severe side effects.
One of the adverse effects caused by these creams is cancer. This, however, doesn’t mean that the people should avoid them because they do have positive safety profiles.
Nevertheless, the root cause of eczema needs to be identified in order to protect yourself against any potential risks and to successfully treat this condition.