Eczema affects a large portion of the population. No cure exists, and most treatments still leave your skin itchy and inflamed.
Scientists still don’t fully understand all causes or factors of eczema. However, common patient complaints are a lack of real symptom relief or too many adverse side effects in current treatments. Could CBD oil be the missing link other treatments lack?
We’ll explore what eczema is and how CBD can provide relief.
Let’s jump in…
What is Eczema?
Dermatitis or eczema usually starts in your early childhood and persists through adulthood. However, you can develop the chronic skin condition at any time in your life.
Atopic and chronic eczema are most common.
Gene variations, bacteria, and irritants might be reasons for why you have eczema. Allergies can play a role too, but science doesn’t have a singular answer to explain any exact cause.
The most common risk factors for eczema are allergies, food intolerances, hay fever, asthma, and if you have a family history of it. Stress can also trigger a flare. But none of these conditions guarantee you’ll have eczema or pass it down since it’s not contagious.
Food is one of the biggest contributors to eczema breakouts from personal experience. I noticed that when I cut out bread and sugar and increased greens and fresh vegetables, I completely stopped having flare ups.
I can’t say conclusively that this is the case for everyone but I can say that it alkalines your body and lowers histamine levels which are related to inflammatory flare ups like eczema.
What are the symptoms?
- Dry skin with red, brown, or grey patches
- Moderate to severe itching
- Small bumps filled with fluid
- Cracked, scaly skin
- Raw skin
Eczema Treatment Options
To date, science and medicine have found no cure for eczema. Most treatments include preventative measures and trigger avoidance.
Common Ways People Treat Their Eczema:
- Avoid triggers
- Oral or topical steroids
- Take prescribed or over-the-counter antihistamines
- Use creams, oils, and ointments frequently to keep your skin hydrated and protected
- Alter bathing habits
- Stress reduction
- Wet wrap therapy
Since most treatments on the list work to prevent or calm your eczema flare, it’s difficult to put a time frame on them. Preventative measures can take days or weeks, depending on what caused the eczema.
If you discover you have an allergy or intolerance to dairy and cut it from your diet, it can take weeks before you notice a change in your eczema.
Another trigger tends to be the dyes and perfumes in personal hygiene products, dishwasher soaps, laundry soaps and dryer sheets. Opt for unscented and undyed varieties. Even naturally scented with essential oils can contain synthetic fragrances which cause your eczema to flare.
Oral steroids and steroid-based creams and ointments can ease inflammation and itchiness quickly. However, the topical version does introduce side effects that include skin irritation and thinning of your skin. Oral based steroids can also affect your mental health. According to the Mayo Clinic, corticosteroids can cause severe mood swings and memory issues. Taking them can also lead to weight gain.
Non-steroid creams, oils, and ointments hydrate the skin and can maintain a barrier to protect skin from environmental irritants. This can bring some relief, but generally, it’s minor until your active flare heals. Few side effects aside from skin irritation will occur, but it’s based on individuals and their reaction to ingredients.
Antihistamines can treat your itching symptoms quickly, but it doesn’t treat eczema or stop it from occurring. It simply reduces the itchiness by blocking the histamines.
Some side effects of antihistamines include drowsiness, which might be beneficial if taken at night. Headache and stomach pain are two more symptoms that are common.
If you have eczema, you must be careful of your bath water temperature, the soaps and shampoos you use, and how hard you scrub. Avoid hot water in the shower and bath water since they tend to dry out delicate skin.
Wet Wrap Therapy sees the most use in children. It’s effective in relaxing and calming both the child and their eczema flares. However, as you can see in the video, it is time consuming and only relieves symptoms; it’s not a cure.
CBD oil is one of the better topical and oral treatments for eczema. Since CBD has natural anti-inflammatory properties and zero side effects, it can be used to relieve both symptoms and the underlying cause.
How CBD Works on Your Skin
The largest organ in your body is your skin. It also takes a beating with daily exposure to weather, pollutants, and possible irritants in the products you use. Inflammation occurs commonly for many people, and one way it shows on your skin is through eczema.
Without your skin, you would be unable to regulate your body temperature, including the ability to feel hot or cold sensations that could lead to severe burns or frostbite. It’s important to take care of your skin and address inflammation quickly.
CBD oil has skin health benefits; most notably are the anti-inflammatory and microbial properties. Since eczema is a form of inflammation, it makes sense that your treatment should be anti-inflammatory in nature.
Microbial properties, on the other hand, protect your skin by battling bacteria and halting infections.
Scientists are still studying and researching uses for CBD oil with eczema, but early results do show promise.
Your skin contains cannabinoid receptors, according to scientific discovery. Your body already produces its own cannabinoids and your receptors naturally bind with them. Because of their structure, your body will also bind with phytocannabinoids found in the cannabis plant and CBD oil.
What does this have to do with eczema?
Your endocannabinoid system has a direct correlation to allergic inflammation, which scientists and health professionals claim is the leading cause of eczema. This thought largely stems from animal studies because they lack an endocannabinoid system, which makes them more prone to allergic reactions.
CBD oil softens and protects skin like other moisturizers, lotions, and creams too.
Moisturizing is important beyond hydration because it relieves itchiness. And as you know, the more you scratch, the more you risk infection and skin damage.
CBD for Eczema
CBD is a natural substance in the cannabis plant that we extract into oils and topical treatments. In its natural extract or oil form, you can take it by mouth or apply it directly to the affected area. In fact, many people use it on their whole body because of its deep moisturizing benefits.
Oral applications work from the inside out, providing you with additional health benefits for anti-inflammatory conditions both related and unrelated to your eczema.
These symptoms include pain, anxiety and depression, reduce cancer treatment symptoms, and possible diabetes prevention.
If you’re new to oral dosing of CBD oil, you should start at the lowest dose unless directed by your doctor. We typically say to start around 5mg. If that doesn’t work, you can gradually increase it once you have established your baseline.
The common way of taking oil is to mix your dose in a smoothie, juice, or simply place the tincture under your tongue.
If you don’t love the idea of taking oil by mouth, you can use capsule and gummy versions too.
Topical creams or blends offer near instant relief while protecting your skin from environmental factors. They’re also amazing for moisturizing your skin and keeping your skin supple for longer than typical lotions.
Essential oils make a complimentary addition to CBD creams as they provide natural fragrance and healing compounds to boost the effectiveness. Tea tree, eucalyptus, and chamomile essential oils are great choices with scientific data to back their use on eczema prone skin.
Generally, CBD oil has no side effects for most people which makes it a great choice for eczema relief.
Related: Best way to take CBD oil: Top 4 ways & what they’re good for
CBD for children with Eczema
CBD oil without THC is perfectly safe for people of all ages, including children. Unless directed by a doctor, never give growing children CBD oil with THC because it can cause harm to their developing brains and nervous system.
Keep in mind that THC free products should follow the industry standard of 0.3% THC or less. Our CBD contains 0% THC meaning it’s safe for all ages.
Studies show some promise that CBD oil helps severely epileptic children who don’t respond to medications. However, scientists and doctors are still conducting and analyzing their research.
If your child suffers from eczema, you can start an oral dose or use creams. Child studies have used a 5mg dose and upward of 25mg dose, but you should start at 5mg unless directed by your child’s doctor. Mix the appropriate dose in juice nightly and apply creams as needed.
Often times using a combination of both oral and topical works best. The oral CBD works on the internal inflammation and underlying issues while the topical creams provide immediate relief.
Summary
CBD oil shows promise for chronic and acute eczema because of its strong anti-inflammatory properties and relation to your endocannabinoid system. You can use it to treat symptoms or flares as well as preventing new ones. It can also benefit other unrelated conditions, and new research continues to uncover more and more benefits.
It’s safe for adults and children, and it doesn’t carry lengthy or off-putting side effects like traditional treatments. It’s also easy to use and comes in multiple forms, including gummy versions. Give CBD oil a try if your current methods aren’t working.
