Clitheroe youngster beats eczema (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Clitheroe youngster beats eczema

11:43am Friday 4th February 2011 in News By Neil Docking, Reporter

REGIME: Florence Hampton

A SIX-YEAR-OLD girl who lived with eczema for most of her life is celebrating after beating the condition.

Florence Hampton developed the irritating skin condition when she was just two months old.

The Clitheroe youngster's body was covered in itchy red patches keeping her awake at night.

She would sometimes scratch until her skin bled leading to skin infections.

But her parents discovered a food intolerance test which solved the problem and are now advising others to do the same.

Florence’s mum Wendy said lanolin or petroleum-based emollients, suggested by doctors to help moisturise her daughter's skin, had only made the condition worse.

She said: “It was dreadful. In the end we just started putting plant oils on her because we needed to do something.

“The problem is children don't have the self-control adults have. If it itches they scratch it.”

Wendy, 48, had previously suffered from eczema and went on a strict diet to find out if she had any food allergies.

But Wendy and her husband Ben were wary of putting a growing child on such a strict regime.

They decided to send off a pinprick of her blood to YorkTest, a food intolerance testing laboratory in York.

They discovered that Florence was intolerant of 12 different food types, including dairy produce, eggs, wheat, gluten, brazil nuts and almonds.

Her parents set about removing all the foods from her diet, for example switching from bread to rice cakes and using egg substitute.

And, after three months, Florence's condition began improving and cleared up completely.

ECZEMA EXPLAINED

• Eczema is a form of dermatitis, or inflammation of the epidermis - the outer layer of the skin.
• Almost six million people in England, around one in nine, have been diagnosed with the disease by a clinician at some point in their lives.
• Areas of temporary skin discolouration may appear and scratching can result in scarring and enlarge the rash.
• Atopic dermatitis is caused by a variety of allergens and often starts in early childhood.
• Possible causes include food allergies, house dust mites and exposure to pet animals.