Winter is flaring up eczema for about a third of Aussies who suffer from the irritating skin condition
An irritating skin condition is flaring up for a third of Australians trying to keep warm this winter, made worse by heaters, woollen jumpers and long, hot showers.
Eczema is a dry, itchy and inflammatory skin disease that usually begins in childhood and affects one in five children and one in 10 adults that suffer redness, scales, bumps, skin cracks, oozing fluid and crusts.
Children are more likely to experience eczema because their immune system has not matured. People with a family history or from East or South Asian countries or others who suffer from hay fever or food allergies are also affected.
The condition can be deadly when it is left uncontrolled and extremely inflamed, although rare. People can get serious infections from the disease, or the body can divert all of its blood away from vital organs to the skin.
Dermatologist Deshan Sebaratnam told NewWire that a lot of people would notice eczema flare-ups due to the cold change in weather.
'When it is cold, there's often less humidity in the air, so your skin loses water to the air easily,' he said.
'There's also less sunlight, and sunlight dampens down the activity of the immune system in the skin and because it's cold, people aren't using their creams and moisturisers as much as they should.
'Wearing long clothes and things like wool can also be irritating on the skin, so now's a common time for eczema to flare up for a lot of Australians.'
Dry air, heaters and long. hot showers that strip the body of natural oils can flare up eczema.
The best way to avoid the condition is to use thick and greasy moisturisers that contain glycerine and ceramides to trap water in the skin and avoid products with fragrances, perfumes or food.
'You shouldn't be spending lots of money on your moisturisers,' Dr Sebaratnam said.
'Products from the QV ceramide range are really good or QV intensive as well.
'Funnily enough, people can use a cream their whole life, or a moisturiser or make-up, then suddenly develop allergies to a product.
'No one really knows why, but one day your immune system just decides it doesn't like it, then every time you put it on you get eczema.
'That's called contact dermatitis, and that can also make eczema worse.'
Dr Sebaratnam said people with concerns about their skin should see a GP or dermatologist, a medical specialist in skin disease and health.
'No one understands your skin like a dermatologist, and they can help you know with eczema,' he said.
'It is a really itchy and uncomfortable condition that affects your sleep and has a cosmetic impact in terms of people's confidence if it is on their face.
'It can affect children's schooling, and even adults. If you're constantly scratching you can't focus at work, it affects every facet of your life.'
Dr Sebaratnam said there were lots of myths about eczema. He said food rarely caused problems with the condition and steroids were a safe treatment option when supervised by a doctor.
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