It’s itchy. It’s embarrassing. And it affects more than 30 million Americans. It’s eczema. And if you have it, you know the toll it takes on your self-esteem.
It leaves you with dry, red, itchy skin, which eventually turns into rough, leathery or scaly patches that get oozy or crusty because you just can’t stop scratching.
But the toll of eczema is more than skin deep. If you suffer from this chronic, uncomfortable skin condition you’re at a greater risk for other serious health problems your doctor has probably not even mentioned to you, like…
- Heart disease. In 2015, researchers found that people with eczema are more likely to have heart problems….which isn’t all that surprising when you consider that they’re 54 percent more likely to be severely obese, 48 percent more likely to have high blood pressure and 33 percent more likely to have high cholesterol… all three of which are major risk factors for heart disease.
- Obesity, high blood pressure and high cholesterol aren’t just risk factors for heart disease… they’re risk factors for stroke too. And in the same 2015 study, researchers confirmed that people with eczema are indeed more likely to have a stroke than those without it… which means that itchy eczema patch is more malicious than you think.
- A lot people who suffer from eczema experience their first symptoms as a child. And about 70 percent of these people will develop asthma in the months or years after their first eczema rash. A 2009 animal study found that this happened because the damaged skin secreted a substance which circulated throughout the body and triggered asthmatic symptoms.
- A 2015 study found that people with eczema are 35 percent more likely to have adult on-set diabetes. Once again the obesity factor seems to tie these two disorders together. But in the case of diabetes, it may be the diabetes that leads to the skin issues and not the other way around. In fact, skin rashes are common symptom of type 2 diabetes, mainly because bacteria and yeast multiply more quickly when blood sugar is high.
- Depression and anxiety. There’s an undeniable connection between depression, anxiety and eczema. But whether this connection is all related to the mental anguish caused by how eczema affects your appearance is hard to say. Either way, there are some noteworthy commonalities between the three disorders… like the fact that people with all three disorders are more likely to have low levels of omega-3 fatty acids.
Sadly enough, those are just a few of the health problems tied to eczema. There are actually a lot more. Scientists can’t completely explain why eczema is connected to so many serious health problems… at least not yet. But they have a pretty good suspicion…
They think people with eczema may be dealing with chronic inflammation that’s affecting their whole body… and it just so happens to show itself in their skin too.
So if you’re an eczema sufferer looking for some relief, your best bet is to take a whole-body approach to healing your skin…
And the first place to start is your diet. You need to eat an anti-inflammatory diet that is high in omega-3s… like the Mediterranean diet or supplement with a high quality omega-3 supplement (and here’s why krill is better than fish oil.) These top 5 inflammation fighting foods can certainly help too.
You also need to get your gut health in check by taking a daily probiotic. And for some more immediate relief, you can try applying any one of these eczema-relieving remedies externally to your skin:
Sources:
“Understanding your eczema.” The National Eczema Association. https://nationaleczema.org. Retrieved July 30, 2016.
“Eczema’s effects more than skin deep.” MedicalXpress. http://medicalxpress.com. Retrieved July 30, 2016.
I. Silverberg, P. Greenland. “Eczema and cardiovascular risk factors in 2 US adult population studies.” Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 2015.
Demehri et al. “Skin-Derived TSLP Triggers Progression from Epidermal-Barrier Defects to Asthma.” PLoS Biology, 2009; 7 (5).
Klokk, K.G. Gotestam, A. Mykletun. “Factors accounting for the association between anxiety and depression, and eczema: the Hordaland health study (HUSK).” BMC Dermatology, 2010.
