Topical treatments help to alleviate the discomfort associated with eczema and other rashes but there is usually a root issue that needs to be dealt with also.
Eczema is associated with a “leaky gut” or gut dysbiosis. This happens when the small intestine becomes permeable and allows toxins and bacteria to leak out into the bloodstream. Increasing good bacteria in the gut by taking probiotics and eating fermented foods will help to alleviate this issue. It can also be associated with food allergies and stress. Eczema is a symptom of what is going on inside the body.
At Grandma’s Lavender we make an Eczema/Rash Bath Tea and Eczema Rash Cream to aid in alleviating the symptoms associated with eczema, dry itchy skin, redness and scaliness.
The Bath Teas contain organic oatmeal, lavender, comfrey leaves, calendula petals, chickweed and chamomile and the Eczema Rash Cream contains organic coconut, almond and olive oils and organic lavender, calendula petals, comfrey leaves and root powder, chickweed and chamomile.
Oatmeal, when used topically or in a bath, has anti inflammatory properties reducing redness, dryness and scaliness and it also nourishes and soothes the skin. Many of you may remember taking an oatmeal bath as a child when you had chicken pox or poison ivy because our mothers and grandmothers understood the soothing properties of oatmeal. You will see it in many commercial bath products and lotions but unfortunately it is often combined with harmful chemicals. At Grandma’s Lavender, we use non-GMO oatmeal and combine it with organic herbs in our bath teas creating a pure soothing bath product.
The herbs we use in the Bath Teas and Eczema/Rash Cream have been specifically chosen because of their regenerative and healing properties for the skin. All of our products contain Lavender that is organically grown on our farm. Lavender has antibacterial, antifungal and anti inflammatory properties and stimulates cellular growth. It calms inflammation and speeds up healing. Chamomile, chickweed and calendula all have anti inflammatory properties along with antiviral properties from the chickweed and antibacterial properties from the calendula. Chamomile is also great at relieving itching. Comfrey contains a substance called Allantoin which is used to treat wounds, ulcerations, psoriasis, eczema and acne. It is an antioxidant that encourages new cell growth and speeds up the shedding of dead skin cells. It also has skin softening properties.
Soaps remove oils from the skin and if you have eczema, removing oils from the skin can cause it to breakdown more easily. We recommend with eczema to bathe with only water or with water augmented with our Eczema/Rash Bath Tea. Even without the use of soap, skin with eczema or other rashes often becomes dry and scaly. We use specific oils in our Eczema/Rash Cream to combat this. Olive oil penetrates deep into the epidermis and is high in polyphenos which have an antioxidant and anti inflammatory effect. Almond oil helps to relieve itching and nourishes dry skin keeping it soft and supple and coconut oil aids in cellular health and tissue repair. For more about these oils refer to the article in our Blog-Natural Oils for Skin Care.
Even though we cannot cure eczema with topical treatments we can help control the symptoms and discomfort associated with it by using these natural oils and herbs. Try the Bath Teas and Eczema/Rash cream and let us know your results. We recommend using the Bath Teas at least once a week and the Eczema/Rash cream twice daily to affected areas.
Kathie Kesterson
Founder and creator of Grandma’s Lavender
My son has had terrible eczema since he was 6 months old. We have been able to slowly figure out what’s causing it and take care of what’s happening on the inside. To handle a flare up, I never wanted to use steroid creams. I only use eczema cream and it works wonders. Takes care of the itching and redness. When his skin gets really bad, we do the eczema bath and it always calms his skin! I’m very thankful I’ve been able to use this on him and not chemical-laiden creams. It’s one less thing I have to worry about.