Eat Your Way to Eczema Healing

A strong immune system is crucial to healing eczema. The important key to a strong immune system is through a healthy diet. This basic information regarding the importance of a nutritious diet is something that each dermatologist or physician should discuss with their eczema patients. It’s not that the body needs to be medicated; but rather, that it needs to be fed the nutrients for which it is deficient.

For the following days, I will be talking about the essential food groups which you need to eat your way to healing eczema. This does not mean that you must eat everything I listed all at once. However, try to make sure that these essential nutrients become a part of your or your child’s daily diet.

This post I will start by talking about some essential vitamins:

Vitamin A

Commonly we associated Vitamin A with good eyesight and skin. Not many of us realize that this is an immune boosting nutrient as well. Because eczema is an immuno-disorder, you can understand the importance of this essential nutrient towards the healing process. In other words, an eczema flare up signifies a deficiency in Vitamin A (especially beta carotene which is a major contributing factor in eczema healing). As a matter of fact, and if I had to do order of importance, replenishing this nutrient would be my first focus.

There are two forms of vitamin A: beta carotene & retinol. You want to focus your attention on the beta carotene form. Some of the foods that contain this essential nutrient are green vegetables (like broccoli, collard, kale, mustard, & spinach), green & romaine lettuce, carrots, squash, sweet potatoes, and pink grapefruit (to name a little more than a few). Daily servings of one or more of these vegetables will begin the healing process. Green vegetables are especially important as they play the dual role of providing both the beta carotene and the fiber which are critical to healing eczema.

A word of caution here, just as vitamin A deficiencies can cause disease, so can over-dosage. This is why you need to be careful when supplementing this vitamin, as in the form of pills. I would prefer consuming this essential nutrient through whole food consumption which is the safest way.

Here is a brief guide of the dosage of Vitamin A you need.

Vitamin A (retinol palmitate) RDI

children under 1 years of age – 1375 IU
children 1-3 years of age – 2000 IU
children 4-6 years of age – 2500 IU
children 7-10 years of age – 3500 IU
females 11 years and older – 4000 IU
pregnant women – 6500 IU
males 11 years and older – 5000 IU

Vitamin B

B2 (riboflavin) helps the body cells to use oxygen and promotes tissue repair/healthy skin. B3 (niacin) is essential for cell metabolism and the absorption of carbohydrates which also helps to maintain healthy skin. Whole food sources for vitamin B2/riboflavin are milk, cheese, liver, fish, & poultry. A major whole food source for B3/niacin is liver.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is a natural antihistamine which regulates histamine release in a healthy manner without promoting the harmful side effects as those created by steroid and other eczema medications. And, of course, Vitamin C is essential for boosting the immune system. You must make sure your body gets a constant daily supply of Vitamin C as it is not stored in the body.

Here is a list of Vitamin C whole food sources:
broccoli
brussels sprouts
black currants
cabbage
cauliflower
cantaloupe
grapefruit
guava
kiwi
kale
orange (& other citrus not mentioned)
pimentos
pear (green)
papaya
peppers (red, green bell)
strawberries
sweet potatoes
tomatoes

Are you or your child taking enough raw organic greens? These foods contain ‘live’ enzymes and phytochemicals that have very special properties. If you’re anything like me, you don’t eat enough raw, green vegetables or don’t have the time to prepare and eat large bowls of raw salads, I have good news for you. Thanks to science and technology, we now can ensure our body get our daily dose green goodness from taking its concentrated form.

Fiber

Fiber is especially important for good digestive health. Fiber promotes good digestion. This will not only help rid the constipation problem; but it will also remove candida. Candida is a yeast like parasite that promotes eczema. Fiber promotes healthy digestive flow and helps in ridding the body of the candida that promotes eczema flare ups.

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