Eczema Children should be self-employed

Eczema: Children should deal with the chronic disease on their own

10.01.2011

Experts warn that children with eczema are too strong „to pack in cotton wool“, as this causes the disease to control the lives of those affected and not enough room for hobbies and friendships, said Natalija Novak of the Department of Dermatology and Allergology, University of Bonn

Eczema is relatively common in industrialized countries, especially children. According to the German Institute for Medical Documentation and Information, around eight to sixteen percent of children in school age in Germany suffer from atopic dermatitis (atopic eczema). Depending on the severity of the condition, there are significant limitations in everyday life. In addition there are sometimes negative reactions of the peers, due to the changed appearance of the skin. To strengthen the self-confidence of the affected children, they should not be coddled by their parents and be able to deal with their own disease, said the expert in the Department of Dermatology and Allergology in the current issue of the magazine „children“.

Children should handle neurodermatitis on their own
According to Natalija Novak, the affected children should gradually take over the essential points to consider in an atopic dermatitis disease such as regular creaming, the special diet and dealing with the itching independently. This not only strengthens the children's self-confidence but also their independence, which benefits the pursuit of hobbies and the building of friendships. In order to make it easier for adolescents to deal with negative reactions from their peers, parents should play with their children, for example, on how best to respond to teasing, advises Natalija Novak in the current issue of the magazine „children“. It is also important to educate other children about the disease and to let them know that eczema is not contagious, Novak said.

Eczema symptoms: red, scaly, eczema and itching
Neurodermatitis occurs in 90 percent of cases up to the age of five. In adulthood, the symptoms are usually more and more and about 70 percent of those affected are symptom-free in later life. The clinical picture is mainly characterized by red, scaly, sometimes also weeping eczema on the skin, combined with a strong itching. As a rule, atopic dermatitis occurs in batches and is characterized by individual, extremely different clinical pictures, with a connection to the age of those affected. Although numerous treatment approaches exist, eczema is considered to be incurable.

Atopic dermatitis requires a customized treatment
In the course of therapy, conventional medicine primarily treats the characteristic skin changes and externally applied anti-inflammatory agents. In addition, there are numerous other treatment approaches, such as the strict adherence to an individual adapted diet plan. However, it can not determine a generally effective eczema diet, so that according to the experts despite diet plan with occasional setbacks and episodes of illness is expected. However, foods that are suspected of causing eczema should be avoided as much as possible. In the short term, cortisone-containing ointments can be used to achieve significant treatment success, but physicians advise against long-term use, as cortisone can cause further damage to the skin if used for too long. In addition, there are also some treatment approaches based on naturopathic funds, the immune system and skin, for example, with the help of phytotherapy, self-blood therapy or acupuncture should be brought back into a healthy balance in the long term. Bathing and radiation therapy are also methods that are used in natural medicine for the treatment of atopic dermatitis. In addition, there are innumerable other therapeutic approaches and treatment tips for Atopic Eczema, but ultimately the measures must prove their effectiveness individually. (Fp)

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Picture credits: Gaby Kempf