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5 Home Remedies for Eczema
Atopic dermatitis, the most common form of eczema, can be especially hard to live with during the fall and winter months. The dry, cold air depletes skin moisture, irritates the skin barrier, and triggers symptom flares in the form of dry, itchy skin patches and rashes.
The terms used to describe the condition provide basic insight into the problem:
- Atopic means hypersensitivity
- Dermatitis refers to skin inflammation
- Eczema means to “boil over”
As board-certified dermatologists who specialize in eczema management, our Manhattan Dermatology team knows that the best way to stop the eczema itch is to get the condition under control with proactive care — but that can take time.
Because October is Eczema Awareness Month, we thought this would be the perfect time to help you bridge the interim gap between the need for immediate itch relief and long-term eczema control.
Eczema management basics
The skin barrier functions as the glue that holds your epidermal cells together, helps your skin retain moisture, and protects your body from the elements. When it’s weakened by an inflammatory eczema flare, your skin becomes drier, itchier, sensitive, and prone to infection.
Consistent daily skincare habits help foster long-term eczema control. This includes:
Irritant avoidance
Anything that irritates your skin can trigger an eczema flare — from fragrant soaps, harsh detergent residues, and itchy fabrics to sweat, intense sunlight, and cold winter wind.
To keep your skin calm, use fragrance-free soaps and detergents, wear soft, loose-fitting clothing, and limit your exposure to environmental triggers.
Temperature control
Hot water can strip the natural oils from your skin and trigger an inflammatory response. Using lukewarm water for washing supports a healthy, balanced skin barrier.
Skin moisturization
Apply a gentle, hypoallergenic moisturizer to all skin areas immediately after bathing to lock in moisture. Continue moisturizing dry or irritated skin throughout the day as needed.
How to calm the eczema itch — 5 home remedies
When eczema flares despite your best efforts, you want fast relief, especially if the unrelenting itch derails your daily life and disrupts your sleep. The following strategies are both eczema-friendly (safe) and effective (soothing):
Cool your skin, then moisturize
Use a cool compress to soothe itchy skin. Run cold water over a clean cloth, wring it out until it’s damp, and apply it to the irritated area while you’re relaxing. Keep the cool compress in place for a few minutes, and repeat the process with fresh cold water as desired.
When you’re done, gently rub a fragrance-free moisturizer into your skin.
Slather on a soothing ointment
When your skin is very itchy, try soaking in a lukewarm bath for 10-15 minutes. Then, after gently patting your skin dry, swap out your normal moisturizing lotion for a thicker ointment.
Eczema-friendly moisturizing ointments like petroleum jelly and mineral oil ointments can provide greater itch relief than standard creams and lotions.
Add colloidal oatmeal to your bath
Finely ground into a dissolvable powder, colloidal oatmeal helps calm and soothe inflamed, itchy skin when added to a lukewarm bath. For adult bathers, simply add half a cup to one cup of the oatmeal powder to the running lukewarm water; for a baby or child, use a third of a cup of colloidal oatmeal.
Soak in the bath for 10-15 minutes, then gently pat your skin dry and apply moisturizer right away. Colloidal oatmeal can make the tub slippery, so take extra care when using it.
Take a diluted bleach bath
For the uninitiated, the idea of taking a diluted bleach bath may seem harsh or even unsafe. But dermatologists have been recommending this treatment for decades to great effect. It’s proven to reduce bacteria and inflammation on the skin, ease eczema itch, and provide relief — and it’s safe for adults and children.
Add a quarter of a cup of fragrance-free household bleach to a tub of lukewarm water, and mix thoroughly. Soak in the bath (avoid submerging your face) for up to 10 minutes. When you’re done, drain the tub, rinse off in a lukewarm shower, gently pat your skin dry, and moisturize.
Alleviate the itch with coconut oil
Topical coconut oil has many eczema-friendly properties. It’s gentle, highly moisturizing, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial — meaning it can actively reduce dryness, soothe and repair an irritated skin barrier, alleviate itchiness, and combat infection.
When it’s applied consistently to dry skin, research shows that virgin (raw or cold-pressed) coconut oil acts as a natural moisturizer that can reduce eczema itch and even improve the condition.
It also helps your skin retain more moisture by reducing transdermal water loss, or the amount of water that evaporates through your skin.
Eczema care in New York City
Are you looking for more ways to control eczema and relieve the itch? We can help. Call us today to schedule a visit at our Murray Hill or Midtown East office in Manhattan, New York City. You can also book online here.
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