Monthly Boost October 2008

Mentioning eczema, I will dive straight into the case studies of eczema following on from the last Monthly Boost. Just before I do, I would like to add that most eczema cases that I see are usually suppressed cases, in other words whereby the eczema has been ‘pushed’ back into the body and not allowed to ‘heal’. In such cases the eczema can take some time to ‘treat’ from 3 months to 1 year or so. It very much depends on each individual case. ..Let me introduce to 2 cases …

Jatinder
Jatinder was 5.5years of age when his parents brought him to see me. He was riddled with eczema from head to toe to the point that he had lost all his eye brows and was literally covered in what I would call ‘crocodile skin’. His parents had brought him due to his ‘diagnosis’ of ADHD by his school teacher and he was not ‘doing well at school’. May I add this diagnosis was not made by any other professional. Although I noted down the symptoms of what was perceived as ADHD behaviour, it all seemed to stem from Jatinder being aggravated by his eczema in the classroom. They had tried to put him on Ritalin but his eczema had gotten worse.

It was obvious that the ADHD ‘diagnosis’ was far from correct. Jatinder was being tormented by his eczema. His eczema was worse when he was indoors in a warm room, his bedroom window was always open even during the winter months to alleviate his itching and restless nights. So sitting in a stuffy classroom with the central heating on amongst 27 other children was not helping him physically or emotionally. The classroom environment made him itch which prevented him from concentrating and it also made him thirsty so he was ‘always being disruptive by asking for a cold glass of water’ (these are words of his mother). Primarily, I recommended that they get a diagnosis from a qualified health professional as there was no indication of ADHD in my session whatsoever.

Jatinder’s diet was ‘poor’ to say the least and the fact that his parents owned a confectionery shop did not help his eczema. Primarily, his diet was addressed by removing all sugar as much as possible as well as dairy and wheat. Some nutritional supplements were recommended to address any underlying nutrient deficiencies as well as build up his immune system as the colder months would bring on the ‘chesty’ colds too.

At the follow up 2 months later, Jatinder was no longer ‘riddled’ with eczema. He still had eczema but not to the same extent. His eyebrows were growing back. He was also ‘chatty’ previously he was very quiet and shy.

7 months later I continue to see Jatinder as there is much to be done in relation to his eczema and overall health. Although his eczema started when they bought the confectionery business which indicates diet to be the main factor the eczema has also been suppressed with steroid creams as well as anti-histamines. So there is much to be getting on with but most importantly his family feel more empowered to be able to address Jatinder’s health issues as well as their own.

Finn
Finn a 3.5 year old came with his mother for his eczema. His eczema was very mild and it was on his face. I did not notice it until his mother pointed it out. He was also pretty ‘snotty’. All these symptoms started 6 months ago when he started nursery at the same time as the birth of his younger sibling and he also started to wet his bed at this time.

His mother wanted a food ‘allergy’ test and a mineral sweat test to address his eczema and his ‘constant cold’. I explained to his mother that spending £175 on a food allergy test and £60 on a sweat test would not ‘treat’ the eczema if anything it will only manage it but the tests can help in devising a nutritional plan for Finn BUT not necessarily in 'treating' his eczema. His symptoms all seem to stem from some ‘major changes in his life’ which if addressed can more than likely ‘cure’ his eczema and cold as well as the bed wetting.

We sent off for an allergy and sweat test at his mother's request. At the first session, I recommended various nutritional lifestyle changes as well as switching from tap water to more ‘pure’ water.

I did not prescribe on the emotional aspect that triggered Finn’s eczema as this was not ‘acceptable’ to Finn’s mum at this time. The follow up session was 4 weeks later by which time Finn had seen a dermatologist for his ‘eczema’ and was prescribed steroid cream and he had also just finished a course of antibiotics as he had got a urinary tract infection. He still had a ‘snotty’ nose and the eczema had worsened since the antibiotics were taken and Finn’s mother asked ‘if Finn should take more antibiotics for his skin and cold’.

I explained the following:

• Finn’s tests (food allergy and sweat test) showed no food ‘allergies’ but did show that he was low in zinc. The zinc would help in ‘reducing’ his symptoms but not in curing them
• The fact that he is on steroid cream for eczema is ‘suppressing’ the eczema and can later manifest as another symptom in a deeper organ (such as the lungs..see the September Monthly Boost for more)
• Although the antibiotics ‘cleared up’ the urinary tract infection (suppressed in naturopathic terms), the antibiotics have added further burden to his detox organs and since the skin is a detox organ the eczema has ‘flared up’
• The ‘snotty’ cold is more to do with Finn starting nursery and feeling ‘unsure’ which can lower his immunity and makes him more prone to developing colds.

Finn’s mum was more able to accept this ‘theory’ as she saw the impact of the antibiotics

In more not so ‘Politically Correct’ terms…this is what I perceived happened…

At 2.5 year Finn started nursery just 3 weeks before the arrival of his sister. He cried when he was dropped off at nursery, but all children do when they first start…so eventually Finn stopped crying as he got familiar with this change. By then he had the ‘snotty’ cold to date. On the arrival of his sister not only did he get ‘eczema’ within two days he also started to wet his bed. In Chinese medicine the kidney (including urinary tract) is considered to ‘harbour fear’. So as a practitioner, this was indicating that Finn felt vulnerable and maybe even fearful (by the arrival of a new person who is taking away his ‘mother’). The fact that he went onto develop a urinary tract infection just confirmed this.

So at the second session, the mother had decided to stop the ‘steroid cream’ for a while to give the naturopathy a chance to ‘work’. I prescribed a zinc supplement and a homeopathic remedy called pulsatilla. Pulsatilla covers all the above symptoms, from eczema, ‘snotty’ colds as well as ‘vulnerability’. This addressed ALL of Finn’s symptoms. His cold and eczema were ‘cured’ and his bed wetting also stopped, not to mention no more steroid cream.

Finn's mother considered this 'cure' miraculous> I would like to say this is mind-body medicine which can come across as mircaulous in today's day and age of Wesetrn medicine. We can not ‘treat’ conditions without addressing the whole person otherwise we are just ‘controlling or managing’ the condition.

Next month we will be looking at antibiotics also known as ‘anti-life’.

To ‘miracles’!

Khush