I had a patient this week ask me about eczema in their child, and so I thought I would talk a little bit this week about what causes eczema in children.

The underlying issue with most all eczema or skin related issues, is gut dysfunction.

Let’s begin with being born.  Now, what can commonly happen is to begin with, the mom has some gut irregularities.  They could themselves have a poor colony of good bacteria which they pass onto their children.  They could have yeast, and once the baby comes out of the birth canal, the baby also gets that exposure and is compromised from the beginning.  Now, the baby also gets good bacteria from the mother’s breast milk as well.  But, if the baby is bottle fed, it can miss out on another source of bacteria.

What about C-section?  Well, C-section, the baby misses out of the bacteria from the mothers birth canal.  The only bacteria the baby is exposed to is in the air.  As you know, there are tons of bacteria in our air.  One of our number one means of defense is through our mouth and air canal.  Since the baby is only exposed directly from the air, they miss out on all the good natural bacteria. Not to mention worse trauma for their cranial bones…..

Worst combination of gut health?  C-section and bottle fed baby.  Set up for gut dysfunction.

So, many children can be given a rough start as far as gut health.  Then you can throw in antibiotics, that are given very frequently to children and adults.  The issue with these is that they further wipe out any good natural bacteria as well.

When there are not sufficient bacteria in the gut, the mucosal lining of the gut starts to wear down.  Bad bacteria and fungus can overgrow and there aren’t enough good bacteria to combat them.  This creates weak areas in the digestive tract.  If you are feeding your children inflammatory foods with sugar, gluten, ect. then this can add to the weak areas and even create “holes” in the lining.  We call this leaky gut.  This means that food isn’t absorbed, or broken down, and can pass freely through the bloodstream.  This can increase the chances of the immune system to attack and cause food sensitivities and allergies.

When the body is in a state of inflammation then all sorts of symptoms can occur.  Particularly, for kids they don’t have a whole lot of trauma in their bodies.  When their immune system is down because they don’t have enough bacteria (your gut bacteria is your number 1 immune system), then they can get rashes, sicknesses, food sensitivities.

Another source of irritation to the gut can also be exposure to heavy metals and chemicals.  This is becoming very common as our food sources are sprayed by millions of toxins.  However, in particular if your child has any amalgum/metal fillings or has been vaccinated they will undoubtedly have some toxic metal exposure.  If probiotics alone aren’t doing the trick, it’s important to test for heavy metal toxicity to see what else is hindering their immune systems. As this can also be a source of decreased immunity and skin reactions.

Any skin reaction is an immune response.  So we have to look at why is the immune system attacking itself?  Or what is it attacking?

Solutions?

If your child has eczema or skin irritations, looking to the gut is key.  You must first heal the mucosal lining of the gut.  A good herb source is either marshmallow root or slippery elm.  This will help to calm down the area, decease the inflammation and create a better environment for the good bacteria to live in.

Supplement with probiotics or fermented foods. Fermented dairy like Kefir is a great option (make sure its not the ones loaded with sugar).  Put back in that good bacteria!

If you’ve tried probiotics and they aren’t doing the trick, your child might need some fiber to help the good bacteria grow.  It can also be beneficial to get some food allergy IgG testing done to see if there are any sensitivities that you must eliminate to start the healing process.  Remember a leaky gut can cause more food sensitivities, so healing the gut is key.  Also eliminate inflammatory foods such as gluten and sugar.

And additionally, it can be vital for some kids to get heavy metal testing if they’ve been exposed at any point.  Remember you can also pass down heavy metal toxicity from mother to baby.

Look at all the ways their little immune systems can be boosted.  I’ve had cases of eczema go away with just supplementing the fermented dairy.  Our gut health is so vital for soooo many things!!

And, of course make sure their nervous systems are functioning optimally with cranial and chiropractic care. This will also boost immunity and allow the gut and organs to function their best without interferences.