foods & cream that help

Hi

I posted this in a reply but under introductions so this is a copy for the rest of you who might find it helpful:

I've been trying out some foods and wanted to check their efficacy before recommending them.

A little more on my condition: my serious bout of eczema started in March last year, beginning on my arms & progressing to hands, neck, chest above my breasts, 2 patches below my ribs, and a little on the legs. I suspected contact dermatitis since on my legs the rash was where I had cuffs on my long johns. So I changed laundry detergent (had gotten one with a special fragrance) and it seemed to help. But it just got worse, till I was at one stage a very angry red & inflamed & oozing.

The treatments I've tried include a short dose of oral steroids (helped a bit but rash came back worse when I stopped); acupuncture and chinese herbs over 4 months (costly and slow to work but my rash did tail off); dead sea salt baths, colloidal oatmeal baths, creams & ointments with natural ingredients, essential oils - mostly gave me just temporary relief.

I find it very hard to start avoiding foods but have been abstaining from seafoods & beef. I try to take more fish & have upped fruits & vegetables.

I started taking grapefruit again (one a day). It has lots of flavonoids which are natural anti-histamines. My brother also gave me a recipe which helped clear up his all-over body rash; he got if from a book written by a Japanese:

5 small pieces radish
2 small pieces carrot
2-3 tablespoons vinegar or juice from half a lemon
Blend all the above together with water to make a cup of pulp (I find it easier to take with more water). Take up to 3 times a day

Be warned, it can taste pretty awful! I almost threw up my first swallow & had to add more water before I could down the rest.

I've managed only 1 cup a day - my mum thinks too much can be too 'cool' for my body (we're Chinese).

When I started on the grapefruit, I had residual rashes on my neck, and my ears and underarms were just beginning to recover from an infection (pseudomonas and candida, according to the docs when I was warded for intravenous antibiotics). Now the neck rash is all gone, and I have a small and fading patch on the inside of one elbow, my ears are almost healed (just itch a bit, no more oozing). My underarms are still on the way to healing (hard to keep them 'aired', know what I mean?)

Oh, and I find derma-e's Psorzema cream works on my itch and inflammation. It's made in the US with organic ingredients like chamomile, bearberry in a base of neem. You have to keep it in the fridge 'cos otherwise it starts to smell like stale coconut oil and I don't know if it's effective anymore. It works well most of the time but I find I need to apply more on the more stubborn areas.

I've also developed the almost super-human skill of controlling my scratching so that I don't break skin when I scratch. It helps to scratch over clothing rather than bare skin. I used to tape my fingers with a cloth tape (3M) but can't find it here where I've moved.

I hope some of you will try these things and tell me how they work for you. I'm quite happy with them so far...
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