Atopic Dermatitis
This is not medical advice. This was the first paper I wrote in my A&P Holistic Approach class.
I chose to focus my study for this paper on atopic dermatitis. I selected this topic to better help the overall health of my family. There are 7 types of eczema, but we will be focusing on the most common atopic dermatitis. What is atopic dermatitis? Atopic dermatitis (eczema) is an allergic reaction, that causes inflammation (Roiger & Bullock pg107) . Most of the definitions I’ve researched never mentioned an allergic reaction. Most will say it is dry, itchy skin, rashes, chapped skin, but never have I seen it listed as an allergic reaction. I found this interesting, especially since hearing from multiple allergists throughout the years that eczema, allergies and asthma go hand in hand and yet they have never said to me it was an allergic reaction.
Common areas on a body to find eczema is behind the legs and elbows, as well as areas of skin that can rub against each other such as inner thighs however, it can appear on the face or any other area on the body (National Eczema Association).
While eczema is not contagious, people seem to be leery about touching it or getting too close to someone who has it. This can be very hard emotionally and not just for children, but adults can feel this way too. This can give feelings of isolation, which in turn can cause the patient to become withdrawn and not wanting to participate. This can be especially hard for children who can get teased. Not only can self esteem suffer, but children are likely to miss at least one day of school due to eczema while adults tend to miss 11 days of work a year. Both adults and children tend to have a decreased productivity (NEA-Eczema Stats).
When suffering with eczema, there are times when there can be “flare ups” which would entail bigger areas of symptoms with possible increase of itchiness. These increases can be due to a filaggrin deficiency which is a higher than usual water loss, as well as allergens getting through the skin (National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Disease), extreme exposure to heat or cold, clothing fabrics/detergents, as well as liquids from fruits, vegetables as well as meats to name a few (NEA).
Typical treatments include topical creams (over the counter or prescribed), if there is an infection, an antibiotic can be prescribed and anti-inflammatory pills are some ways to treat (Mayo Clinic). Children under the age of two may not be able to do these treatments. From personal knowledge, doctors will say to use a tiny amount of hydrocortisone 1%, lotion, and an oatmeal bath (however, do not bathe daily as that can add to drying of the skin). Other ‘home remedies’ may include applying diluted apple cider vinegar to the area. You can also use this as a wet wrap by soaking some gauze in it. Switching detergents to no fragrance or a gentle, less chemical alternative may cause some relief.
While these may help, do they really provide a long-term relief? These don’t seem to address the source of where eczema begins. When looking up eczema, I found multiple definitions of it, all really, they were all the same. Most triggers were listed were the same was well. However, natural liquids like the juice from fruit, vegetables and meats really stood out to me. I believe this would fall under food intolerance (NEA). Which, had no doctor ever mentioned this to myself or any family members before. Because of this, let’s look into probiotics, vitamin and mineral supplements and ‘leaky gut’.
The gut’s microbiome plays an essential part of our overall health. Poor diet and lack of nutrients can cause an unbalance in the gut. Leaky gut is starting to show in children with food allergies, autoimmune disease, and eczema to name a few (Appleford,S). If there is a change in the gut microbiome, this can greatly impact the health of the skin (Mahmud et al). Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium are two bacteria that are can help against skin aliments. Adding lactobacillus has shown to decrease the size of acne while Bifidobacterium has shown to reduce water loss and skin erythema (Mahmud et al). As mentioned above, water loss can be a cause of eczema. Different strains of lactobacillus such as L.salivarius was studied in children who were reported show improvements in their eczema after 4 weeks (Goddard, Lio).
Vitamins and minerals are a key ingredient in not just for a healthy inside, but also, a healthy outside. A promising study came out showing children with eczema which was worsen by the cold winter temps, had a significant improvement after taking vitamin D (Goddard, Lio). This was later reproduced with a larger group and also showed an improvement. Natural sunlight is best (15-30 minutes daily depending on skin type), but pill form works.
Vitamin B is another vitamin worth looking into. B complex can help with digestion as well as hormones. This also can aid in cell health. Vitamin B12 helps with keeping your blood and nerve cells healthy. Those with unhealthy guts or those on certain gastric inhibitors may not be getting enough vitamin B12. B12 has shown to help with mood and depression (among other ailments) (U.S. Department of Health).
Magnesium can not only help the skin by boosting anti-inflammatory benefits, but could also help with better sleep, anti-anxiety and help with depression that a client may have due to having eczema. Magnesium Lcan help create and repair DNA and RNA (Ajmera, R).
Essentially in my findings during the research, it mainly comes down to leaky gut and the probiotics/vitamins/minerals that support the digestive system. These should help not just the eczema, but overall health of the patient. These vitamins will also help to boost mood, but I would suggest going to talk to a therapist as well while having isolation or other negative feelings. Not researched for this paper but used by personal experience, is to use in a short-term basis, I would recommend using UV light. Natural sun light works as well as does a tanning salon to help minimize the redness and appearance of eczema. This also seems to work within a few treatments. Again, this is short term only as exposed to too much is not good and can cause long term negative effects. I would test for food allergies. I would do the scratch test as well as bloodwork. Although I have found blood tests may not be 100%, avoiding foods that can cause a trigger will certainly help. While personally I haven’t tried apple cider vinegar (yet) on a human, it works very well on horses for fungus and other skin issues (personally can vouch for that).
This paper has sent me down an amazing maze of rabbit holes and is opening me up to so much. I was hard for me to write this paper and not just keep researching deeper and deeper. I am astonished by just how much a leaky gut influences so many other health conditions.
References
Ajmera, R. (2022, February 7). 12 magnesium health benefits. Healthline. Retrieved February 28, 2023, from https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/magnesium-benefits
Appleford, S. (2019, October 17). Symptoms of leaky gut in Kids. Nutrition For Kids. Retrieved February 28, 2023, from https://www.nutritionforkids.com.au/blog/symptoms-leaky-gut#:~:text=A%20baby%20is%20born%20with,leaky%20gut%20and%20microbiome%20imbalances.
Cronkleton, E. (2022, April 29). Vitamin B complex: Benefits, side effects, dosage, Foods & More. Healthline. Retrieved February 28, 2023, from https://www.healthline.com/health/food-nutrition/vitamin-b-complex
Eczema stats. National Eczema Association. (2022, September 27). Retrieved February 28, 2023, from https://nationaleczema.org/research/eczema-facts/
Goddard, A. L., & Lio, P. A. (2015). Alternative, complementary, and forgotten remedies for atopic dermatitis. Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM. Retrieved February 28, 2023, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4518179/
Karey. (2021, July 16). Leaky gut and atopic dermatitis: Does the concept hold water or is it full of holes? National Eczema Association. Retrieved February 28, 2023, from https://nationaleczema.org/blog/leaky-gut/
Mahmud, M. R., Akter, S., Tamanna, S. K., Mazumder, L., Esti, I. Z., Banerjee, S., Akter, S., Hasan, M. R., Acharjee, M., Hossain, M. S., & Pirttilä, A. M. (2022). Impact of gut microbiome on skin health: Gut-skin axis observed through the lenses of Therapeutics and skin diseases. Gut Microbes, 14(1). https://doi.org/10.1080/19490976.2022.2096995
Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. (2022, October 28). Atopic dermatitis (eczema). Mayo Clinic. Retrieved February 28, 2023, from https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/atopic-dermatitis-eczema/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20353279
McLean, W. H. I. (2011, January 14). The allergy gene: How a mutation in a skin protein revealed a link between eczema and asthma. F1000 medicine reports. Retrieved February 28, 2023, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3042307/#:~:text=Filaggrin%20deficiency%20leads%20to%20a,(atopic%20eczema%20and%20allergies).
MediLexicon International. (n.d.). Eczema (atopic dermatitis): Home treatment and remedies. Medical News Today. Retrieved February 28, 2023, from https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/324228
Roiger, D., & Bullock, N. (2023). Anatomy, physiology & disease: Foundations for the health professions. McGraw Hill.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Office of dietary supplements - vitamin B12. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. Retrieved February 28, 2023, from https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminB12-Consumer/
What is eczema? National Eczema Association. (2022, December 2). Retrieved February 28, 2023, from https://nationaleczema.org/eczema/