How to soothe eczema at home

Don't walk around wearing oven mitts, trying not to scratch your itchy skin. Find relief now: soothe your raw, sore skin with these six helpful tips.

• Allergies to milk, wheat and other foods may sometimes cause flare-ups in kids with eczema. While food allergies are usually rare among adults with eczema, don't rule them out.
• In one Danish study, 25 percent of adults with severe eczema were allergic to at least one food. Before you start cutting whole food groups out of your diet on your own, though, talk to an allergist, a dietitian or a naturopath about the best way to test yourself.
• Often this involves keeping a detailed food diary, removing one suspect food from your diet for several weeks, and then eating it again to see what happens.

• Long, hot baths or showers can take the natural oils out of the skin, making it drier and more easily irritated. While some experts recommend a long soak in a tepid tub to soothe skin, many others say it's better to go a day or two between showers or baths.
• When you do wash up, keep it short and use warm—not hot—water. Use a mild soap that's not too drying; avoid antibacterial or deodorant soaps, which may strip more moisture from your skin.
• In fact, use soap only where you really need it: on your face, underarms, genitals, hands and feet. Try using just water everywhere else. When you're done, pat yourself dry, then apply moisturizer.

• If you have eczema, you know firsthand how dry, itchy and sensitive your skin is, and that dryness makes itching and rashes even worse. That's why it's important to apply a thick layer of moisturizer once or twice a day to seal the water in the top layer of skin.
• Keeping your skin moist may mean you'll need less steroid cream to control rashes. Be sure to apply moisturizer generously.
• In one German study of 30 adults with eczema, those who applied the amount their doctors recommended saw their itching, dryness and skin crusting improve about 20 percent more than those who skimped. If you're using moisturizer and a steroid cream, apply the steroid first.

• Too much humidity in the air can make you sweat; too little can leave skin parched and flaky. Both situations can prompt an eczema flare-up.
• Keep your home's humidity level comfortable by using an air conditioner in summer and a humidifier in winter if your heating system dries out the air too much.
• Research suggests that big temperature swings can also trigger flare-ups, so keep the temperature on an even keel.

• Rough, scratchy fabrics and clothing that's too tight can irritate sensitive skin. Instead, choose smooth cotton weaves and knits to avoid irritation and allow skin to breathe.
• Avoid itchy wool and synthetic fabrics that trap sweat. Wash all new clothes before you wear them to remove irritating chemicals used to make them look smooth and wrinkle free in the store.
• If you suspect that your laundry detergent or fabric softener is irritating your skin, switch to products without perfumes or dyes and rinse clothes twice in the washing machine.

• Many everyday things can rub hypersensitive skin the wrong way. Among them: perfumes and dyes in laundry and personal care products, dust, cigarette smoke, walking barefoot in sand (or letting it rub the creases of your legs or arms at the beach) and chlorine or bromine left on the skin after swimming in a pool or soaking in a hot tub.
• Avoid them or get them off your skin as soon as possible. Sunburn is another trigger.