Infantile eczema
Our five-month-old son has infantile eczema on his face and body. We have used prescribed steroid creams which work but it comes back as soon as we stop using them. Can you suggest an alternative?
You need two remedies; once to apply topically to the skin and one to give your baby internally to help build his immune system back up. The topical salve you should try is the new organic baby salve from Green People (mail order on 01444-401444) which combines hemp with anti-inflammatory calendula, lavendar, red clover, sunflower oil and beeswax.
The salve costs £6.45 for 75ml and the reason you can be sure it works is that is has been formulated by the founder of the company, Charlotte Vontz, whose trained as a biochemist in Denmark but who started to make chemical-free skincare products for men, women and children when conventional treatments failed to clear her own daughter’s eczema.
I know it sounds odd to be using cannabis (hemp) in a baby salve but according to Vontz, hemp, which is used in numerous Scandinavian formulations, is rich in the omega oils that are crucial to healthy skin and provides the perfect ratio (2:1) of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids.
You should also give your son an infant probiotic to support his immune system. I recommend you use Bifidobacteria infantis from Biocare (0121-433 8702) which costs £23.85 for 60g. Give him half a teaspoon a day, mixed with a little warm water.