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an eczema cream
Hydration makes for happy skin. If you have eczema its extremely important to keep your skin hydrated Dr. Anthony says.
In looking for an eczema product there are three categories of ingredients to know about
Emollients help repair your skin barrier Humectants draw moisture into your skin Occlusives lock in moisture and hydration.
You see all three of them in some of the products we use for eczema Dr. Anthony explains. And some popular ingredients pull double duty acting for example as both humectant and occlusive or emollient and occlusive which can make things confusing.
He walks us through the categories including ingredients to look for.
1. Emollients help repair your skin
Emollients fill in the cracks in dry skin which helps soothe soften and ultimately heal. They restore some of the natural fats in the skin Dr. Anthony says. Fats are important in enabling the skin barrier to exist and emollients help repair your skin barrier.
But some emollients are better than others for eczema. Good choices include
Ceramides Cocoa butter Coconut oil Fatty acids Paraffin Petrolatum petroleum jelly Shea butter.
Ceramides fats derived from plants or animals are especially good for eczema. Data shows that products that are high in ceramides work well for a lot of patients with eczema due to their antiinflammatory effects Dr. Anthony says.
2. Humectants bring in moisture
Humectants are designed to try and draw moisture into the skin Dr. Anthony explains. They attract and bind to water pulling it from the air and from deeper within your skin. They include
Aloe vera Glycerin Alpha hydroxy acids like glycolic acid and lactic acid Hyaluronic acid Urea sometimes called carbami
Applied on their own humectants can cause stinging and burning. Instead eczema creams combine these ingredients with more soothing emollients and occlusives.
3. Occlusives lock in the good stuff
Occlusives are like a sealant keeping moisture and hydration where they belong in your skin. Without an occlusive some of that goodness is lost to evaporation. But adding an occlusive on top seals the deal by literally sealing hydration and moisture into place.
Occlusive ingredients good for eczema include
Coconut oil Mineral oil Petrolatum petroleum jelly Silicone derivatives like dimethicone.
Vaseline which is made of petroleum jelly is both an emollient and an occlusive. For the most part its safe to use on eczema. But like other occlusives petroleum jelly alone wont moisturize your skin.
You have to get the moisture in there first whether from other ingredients or from water and