Natural treatments for eczema?

Raye
Raye Posts: 15 ✭✭✭
edited November 2020 in General Health

Hello all,

I'm looking for herbal treatment /remedy recipes, for eczema..would anyone be willing to share? Thank you.

Answers

  • sarah785
    sarah785 Posts: 10 ✭✭✭

    Herbs that soothe the gut lining and feed beneficial bacteria can be helpful. Slippery elm is one example.

  • JodieDownUnder
    JodieDownUnder Posts: 1,483 admin

    @Raye Hello and welcome to TGN. There are a few great herbal remedies for eczema. Comfrey and calendula salve or lotion is great for all skin conditions, including wounds. Witch hazel, manuka honey, tea tree oil are other examples you could try. A strong healthy gut and immune system would also be of great benefit. Good luck.

  • Raye
    Raye Posts: 15 ✭✭✭

    Thank you..I've been reading/studying about various herbs to use..I didn't think about slippery elm or manuka honey!

  • Torey
    Torey Posts: 5,679 admin
    edited June 2020

    Welcome to TGN @Raye

    Eczema can have a lot of causes. Atopic eczema is usually caused by allergies. You could start with your diet and eliminate all processed foods. There may be other things that could be aggravating but that would require an elimination diet to ascertain which foods might be causing a reaction. Dairy, sugar and gluten can be culprits. Hygiene products would be the next thing I looked at; soaps (including laundry products), perfumes, deodorants, body powders, etc. Avoid wool clothing or blankets as well as a lot of synthetics. Cotton or another natural product (hemp or bamboo) would be preferred.

    Externally, for initial soothing relief you could try a chickweed or fireweed salve. Both are refrigerant herbs and will cool and soothe the inflamed itchiness. @jodienancarrow's suggestions are good ones. Calendula and/or comfrey are about tissue repair and could be combined with the chickweed or fireweed. Self-heal is another good herb for skin repair. Witch hazel will help if it is moist or weepy eczema. You could add oils to your bath water. Olive oil is recommended in Ayurvedic treatments. Dry brushing (with a very soft brush) might help.

    Internally, you should look to your liver. It is at the root of many skin conditions. There are lots of liver cleanses out there on the market. Burdock root, dandelion root, yellow dock root, cleavers, red clover, etc. are all good for cleansing and they will probably be in some of the commercial liver cleanses. Sluggish digestion can cause internal stagnation which becomes apparent as skin issues. Bitters are a favourite of mine. I suggest them for almost everything because as a society we have become more accustomed to sweet in our diets compared to the amount of bitter we used to consume. They will do wonders to improve your digestion and liver health. You could buy something like Swedish bitters or Angostura bitters or you can make your own from a variety of recipes available on the internet. Rosalee de la Foret has several recipes on her website; Herbal Remedies Advice. Add bitter greens to your diet; dandelion, sorrel, arugula, etc. Stinging nettles are another good addition to the diet for cleansing *full of essential minerals as well). I like using Oregon Grape Root as a tincture for liver conditions. It supports liver function, increases bile production and improves digestion.

    Rosalee also has a recipe for Roasted Roots Brew in her new book Wild Remedies (using burdock, dandelion and chicory), which would be excellent instead of coffee.

    Hope there are some suggestions that will assist you.

  • Raye
    Raye Posts: 15 ✭✭✭

    Thank you for the reply and great feedback/suggestions. I will look into all of them and also Rosalee's website/book.

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin
    edited June 2020

    Great suggestions! We have found that our chickweed-plantain salve (sometimes combined with comfrey-horsetail) has been very useful for our various skin issues.

    @torey I was unaware of this aspect of fireweed. I have seed that I plan to grow. I had heard, thanks to Moosemeat & Marmalade, that the young leaves are tasty.

  • Annac
    Annac Posts: 4 ✭✭✭

    Hello and welcome to TGN @Raye!

    Usually, what pops up in our skin is an indicator for an internal cleansing issue. Liver cleansers, like yellow dock and burdock, can help to detoxify which in turn helps to clear up skin eruptions.

    As @torey mentioned, calendula is a rockstar for skin conditions. Combined with milky oats, its a very soothing bath additive. Milky oats internally help to soothe inflamed tissues.

  • Raye
    Raye Posts: 15 ✭✭✭

    We have been working on liver and digestion, removing processed foods, detergents, and so on..I'm going to make another salve with some of the ingredients mentioned and see what the results are..thank you all so much for the feedback..I'm thankful to have found this site/forum!

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin

    I was thinking too that perhaps you could check your magnesium levels? Magnesium affects so much! I used it to cure my psoriasis.

    If you used Ancient Minerals salts/oil, it is a fast way to get magnesium into your body without side effects, other than a bit of itchiness. They say to use a saturated solution every day for 3 months, then as maintenance, maybe 3×/week. You put it on your skin (feet are great) for 20 min. then wash it off.

    You will find repaired tooth cavities & more surprises as you get to that 3 month mark. We did!

  • Raye
    Raye Posts: 15 ✭✭✭

    Thank you!

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin

    @Raye You are most welcome.