Eczema is a group of skin conditions characterized by inflamed or irritated skin. The skin disorder affects between 9 to 30% of the U.S population and more commonly affecting infants and children. In some cases, eczema may continue into adulthood or actually first show up later in a person’s life. Many children’s eczema go into a permanent remission as they get older, but unfortunately, their skin may remain drier and easily irritated that people who never had eczema. The most common type of eczema is known as atopic dermatitis, or atopic eczema. Typical symptoms of eczema include itchy, red and inflamed patches of skin. It usually appears on the hands and feet but can also appear on the face and scalp and sometime on the creases of the elbows and behind the knees. Although there is no cure for eczema, the condition is not contagious and can't be transmitted from person to person.

The cause of eczema is not completely understood but recent research strongly suggests that the skin disorder is related to the reaction of the immune system to triggers. Factors, such as emotional stress, heredity and diet are believed to be triggers and not the causes of eczema. These three triggers are just some of the most common ones associated with eczema and not everyone respond the same way to each of the triggers.

Most cases of eczema are believed to be symptoms of allergic reactions such as certain food allergies. Some other common allergies that may cause flare-ups include household products like soap or detergent, plants, latex, perfumes, cosmetics, rubber, certain metals such as nickel, silver and gold. Upper respiratory infections or colds may also be triggers. Stress may cause the eczema condition to worsen.

There are other triggers associated with eczema outbreaks. For instance, Candidiasis and leaky gut syndrome are believed to be triggers. In both conditions, the intestinal wall becomes inflamed and porous, allowing undigested foods from the intestines to pass straight into the bloodstream, triggering the immune system to attack these undigested foods as foreign objects, producing symptoms of an allergic reaction in the form of eczema, psoriasis, acne, or other skin ailments. 

There are several ways to naturally treat eczema. The best way is to try to find the triggers that cause eczema, whether they are food allergens or associated with the environment and avoid the things that cause eczema. Because every person’s allergic reaction is different, your doctor’s guidance should be helpful in identifying your specific triggers and the best eczema treatments to help you avoid those conditions to minimize your outbreaks. However, bear in mind that it may takes some time to pinpoint the cause and the best eczema treatment for you.

Any treatment for eczema will only work better ifyou stick to a diet regimen with foods that do not provoke any allergic reactions. Instead, choose foods that improve the immune system to prevent flare-ups of eczema.

A few of these natural cures for eczemaare:

1. Drink at least 2 to 3 liters of clean, pure water a day. Water is important for the proper functioning of the body including the elimination of toxins from the body.

2. Keep a journal to note the foods that triggers eczema breaks out and avoid these foods. Cut down on food such as salt, wheat, sugar, chocolate, fats, dairy products, eggs, onions, radish and shellfish.

3. Consume more raw vegetables and fruits, foods high in vitamin A or beta-carotene and potassium, which are beneficial to healing eczema. Another benefit of eating raw fruits and vegetables is the increased ease of bowel elimination. Regular bowel movements help remove toxins from the body and are especially important for people with eczema.

4. Adding probiotics to your diet is highly recommended too. Probiotics are also called "friendly bacteria" or "good bacteria." Probiotics is added to yogurt. Other products such as sauerkraut, different soy sauces, and other oriental fermented food may also contain probiotics.

5. Soak at least once a day in the bathtub filled with colloidal oatmeal. After the bath, rub coconut oil to help sooth the itching and burning sensation from the eczema and to keep the skin moist.

6. Rub pure, not synthetics, vitamin E from capsules directly on the skin. Vitamin E promotes healing of the skin and provides relieve to the itching that comes with eczema.

Here is a video with tips on how to live with eczema.