Alcohol and Eczema

[heatherfraserxo]

Hi everyone!

I have suffered from atopic eczema from a young ages, but from the ages of 10-18 I had no problems with it apart from minor flare ups that were controlled.

Since i moved away from home 10 months ago, i have had a horrendous time with my skin. Constant weeping and a killer itch! i eventually got referred to dermatology after the first 7 months of being in hell. They prescribed steroid after steroid and antibiotics galore! it would help for a couple of days until i visited home. It would flare up bad when back home, which is a completely different place from where i am staying just now. Its an island so pretty much everything is somewhat different - especially the water, which i thought it might have been.
I lately have switched to washing with bottled water when home but no relief. I usually am out drinking with my friends when i'm home and I am wondering whether this could have an effect. The next day its hell - besides having a hangover.

I'm so sick of using steroids as i dont feel they are good for my body at all and i am looking at things i can remove from my life to control my skin condition more.

So just wondering if anyone has had any problems with eczema and alcohol before?

Thanks everyone!

Heather xo

[Marcie Mom]

Hi there!

My kid has eczema and she's not of drinking alcohol age but it's quite commonly reported by eczema sufferers that they have a flare-up after consuming alcohol. Best to stay off it and see if your skin improves, keep us updated!
Mei

[heatherfraserxo]

Hi Mei,
Yeah i have a party this weekend, im going to have a wine or something but make sure i keep hydrated all night and see if that helps!
what brings on your childs eczema then - like triggers?
Its just comforting knowing that other people are having a super bad time with eczema also and know what your going through! I just feel there is so many triggers i dont even know where to start! i have a few food allergys and asthma also so its really difficult!
Hope everythings going well with your child!

Heather xo

[Marcie Mom]

Hi Heather,

Yes, stay hydrated is good! You know the myth right - drinking more water doesn't give you glowing skin since the water cannot direct itself to just the skin but drinking not enough definitely gives you bad looking skin.

It turned out that my child has no trigger, possibly that's why she has a better chance of outgrowing eczema. Now we're mainly struggling with all the bad habits inherited from having eczema from 2 weeks old - scratching, biting, tensing up... basically bad habits that replaced the scratching.

Hugs,
Mei

[Amanda123]

Hi, my name is Amanda. I have had severe eczema since the day I wad born and feel u could write posts on all of these forums right now. With regards to alcohol and eczema ( as much as I enjoy a cheeky drink) now at the age of 29 I have to unfortunately say no. Every time I have any alcohol, the day after my skin is more horrendous than normal. My eczema will flare up all over, get red, flaky itchy and begin to weep. Drinking too much is never a good thing if you have eczema as you becime dehydrated. I have tried everything, drinking more water when drinking alcohol to keep myself hydrated but nothing works. It can then take me a week before my skin has calmed down. I also suffer from a few other skin conditions and over active immune system so my story and advice may not necessarily compare as well to your story. The only thing that controls my eczema now and helps with reactions are my constant medications of steroid tablets, antihistamines and immune suppressants. I have had everything over the years, creams which I reacted to, light treatment which worked for a while and homeopathic remedies and treatment. I have now tried several immune suppressants and I am about to start taking methotrexate. These all come with serious side affects. Continue to go to see your doctor and make sure that you are being listened too. Eczema can be controlled, yet, it also has the capability to spend like wildfire.
Thanks for reading and I hope no one is feeling particularly itchy at the moment......some days I wish I didn't have hands to itch

.

[Marcie Mom]

thanks for sharing, good advice, esp. staying off what you already know will trigger your eczema, take care!

[Paul12385]

High all.
I had woeful eczema my life long. It was thru out my body. So bad at times that during sleep, it would glue itself to the bed cloths and when I'd pull the bedclothes off, a chunk of skin would go with the clothes. Drink does not help between dehydration, yeast and sugar. Justabout two months ago, I discovered a new product called Asea which is a mix of salt and water but has also got redox signalling molecules in the mix which are known to pump up your immune system. My eczema is gone as a result. I'd advise anyone looking for an escape door to look it up. It is expensive but once you realise what it does, it's essentially cheap. There's a gel form from the same company called Renu28. Best wishes.

[ItchyGal]

Hi everyone,

I am new to the forum *gives wave* and thought I'd give my 2 cents on this subject.

I definitely react to drinking alcohol (my skin as well as my dancing abilities), some more than others. Unfortunately I react mostly to my favourites, like sweet liqueurs and wines and the reaction is almost instant with burning red skin over my face and chest. NOT a good look! Over the next week+ I will suffer and have to detox hard to recover.

I found a website (I cant find where I bookmarked it) a while ago that suggested taking vitamin C before drinking and then taking charcoal tablets before each drink to help with some process in the gut or liver or something. They also suggested drinking 'cleaner' drinks without all the sugars and yeasts and such; drinks like a good quality tequila (blergh!) and soda were recommended. I gave it a go and although I didn't love the taste, I didn't get all the nasty reactions like I normally would. Having said that, I didn't drink as much as I normally would either on account of the taste. So perhaps that all works in our favour?

Drinking alcohol is obviously a bad idea for people with eczema, regardless of the type consumed. Its just so hard to stop because it basically requires a total social network overhaul!

What is irony? When the body you are given causes you so much anxiety and stress that alcohol would give you a break from thinking about it. But the body you are given is under further anxiety and stress from the alcohol, just from thinking about it.

Sigh.