Life With Eczema: 3 Months On
To start off with the bad news first, to get it out of the way, I have suffered with eczema my whole life and even whilst implementing a lot of lifestyle changes, I have yet to figure out how to stop inflammation in the coldest months of the year. My condition seems particularly prone to flaring in the coldest, darkest months when we have the heating on and very little sun. However I will admit this could also be partly down to over-indulgence during the holiday period (which I will never be able to resist as my will-power is just not strong enough).
Since watching what I eat a lot closer, fasting regularly and using light therapy at hospital twice a week, I have managed to almost completely clear up my skin using no steroids or creams whatsoever. It is hard to cut out certain foods; I particularly struggled initially with pizza and would have such a craving that I would cave in every now and then and make them. But when the repercussions are that you can’t bathe your kids, wash up or sometimes even open a door without being in agony, the novelty pretty quickly wears off!
I would strongly recommend enquiring about light therapy to your dermatologist rather than being prescribed steroids. The main reason for this being that light therapy has no side effects if executed correctly. Steroids, as I have learned can lead to some very serious health conditions and also only repair the damage when being taken. They are also a lot like anti-biotics as they can lose their effectiveness with long-term use, as well as continuing to cause problems internally. For more information about the long-term side effects, click here.
The key in my case is sensible sun exposure (read more here,) substituting carbohydrates for resistant starch (read more here,) and fasting at least once a week (read more here.) Not only does this rapidly calm any inflammation, it also has done wonders for my waist line!! We have written blogs about all these topics, but for any more information, please do not hesistate to contact us!
We will continue to do everything we can to assist with a healthier and happier lifestyle. It is an long, someimes exhausting journey, but when we get results, we just have to share them! If you have any success stories with regards to inflammation of any kind, we would love to hear them!
-Anna x
