skin conditions- causes and what to do?

July 11, 2008

My son has various skin problems and I am wondering if anyone can help

me out with determining the cause and how i can help make them better

from a more naturalistic approach than what a doctor would typically

recommend (head n shoulders YUCK!).

So his scalp on the crown has sort of thick, on the greasy side flakes

that are hard to get off. Then he has what feels to me to be goose

bumpy skin on his trunk. The ped suggested lotion for that one, but no

other explanations on how to get rid of it or the causes. I figure

these are caused by either a definciency in his diet or an over

abundance of something in his system and if anybody know about that

stuff, it would be you guys!

Thanks!

July 11, 2008

Hi. Jeanne here. I'm no doctor, but the flakes on his head do they look

like cradle cap? If they do use therapeudic neutrogena shampoo for a

few days. Let it soak in his scalp for 2 min rub it in and rinse. I

don't have an answer for the other skin problem.

>

> My son has various skin problems and I am wondering if anyone can help

> me out with determining the cause and how i can help make them better

> from a more naturalistic approach than what a doctor would typically

> recommend (head n shoulders YUCK!).

>

> So his scalp on the crown has sort of thick, on the greasy side flakes

> that are hard to get off. Then he has what feels to me to be goose

> bumpy skin on his trunk. The ped suggested lotion for that one, but no

> other explanations on how to get rid of it or the causes. I figure

> these are caused by either a definciency in his diet or an over

> abundance of something in his system and if anybody know about that

> stuff, it would be you guys!

>

> Thanks!

>

July 11, 2008

Of course i realise AFTER the fact that I leave out important info

that may help! lol

We have been only drinking rice milk around here for about 5-6 months

b/c I thought it may help with his skin and for other reasons. We make

sure to buy only gluten free. We do add coconut milk sometimes and my

3 yr old does eat cheese and yogurt. I try my best to get him to take

pro efa and evening primrose. We take calcium gummy suppliments and

juice plus gummies. My husband is on a gf/cf diet, so what my son gets

is semi limited, but we aren't strict about it with him. I have dry

skin myself and itchy scalp. We don't use anything with parabons,

mostly burt's bees for the kids.

>

> My son has various skin problems and I am wondering if anyone can help

> me out with determining the cause and how i can help make them better

> from a more naturalistic approach than what a doctor would typically

> recommend (head n shoulders YUCK!).

>

> So his scalp on the crown has sort of thick, on the greasy side flakes

> that are hard to get off. Then he has what feels to me to be goose

> bumpy skin on his trunk. The ped suggested lotion for that one, but no

> other explanations on how to get rid of it or the causes. I figure

> these are caused by either a definciency in his diet or an over

> abundance of something in his system and if anybody know about that

> stuff, it would be you guys!

>

> Thanks!

>

July 11, 2008

My daughter has that too--it's psoriasis of the scalp, a slivery greasy

yellowish scales on her scalp. I too thought it was cradle cap but it started

when most kids end the cradle cap period. She has had it starting 1 year or so

when I weaned her off of my milk and introduced cow's milk and wheat. Well, I

never really made the connection until I took her to the homeopathi/biomed

trained pediatric doctor for her skin and that made me aware of the underlying

causes and how her speech disorder her skin issues, behavioral etc. can be all

link.

If you've been following the DAN /biomed posts, you'll learn more and see if it

rings a bell. But no skin conditions are ever just skin conditions--unless they

are completly external, like bed bug bites etc, but if they are chronic they

have an internal cause and that's why no amount of topical applications is going

to help with the real problem, only temporary improve symptoms only to have them

reemerge. Dermatologists and most regular doctors only treat with topical

applications and the brave and bold ones recommend either drugs or God forbid

some dietary interventions. But their training limits them to the skin, and

these type of problems are metabolic disorders of the immune system. Very often

malabsorption of some kind is involved--as was my daughter's case, severe in

fact even though her diet was about as good as it gets on this planet with

organic veggies, greens, fruit no junk food EVER, no refined sugars grass-fed

organic everything and she'd been taking

generous amounts of fish oil since birth. But was not absorbing. That's the

key. Reason--gluten casein/soy corn intolerances which often come with skin

disorders among other like immune system and neurological.

I suggested you search the archives for the biomed DAN posts and find a good

biomed trained MD who specializers in pediatrics and you'll find out a lot more

about your child's health once you go there, but it will be well worth it as

over time more than just the skin and the neurological system can be affected

--as if that wasn't bad enough, but you get internal organ damage as the immune

system weakens and of course the BRAIN is always at the top of the list for

responding to gluten peptides attacks by shutting off various paths ---like

speech, behavioral etc.

You'll find if you read reputable research that most chronic degenerative

illnesses particularly those with skin/neurological manifestations are due to

some malabsorption factors and some metabolic unbalances. The whole fish oil

vitamin E that is such a critical topic on this list is just a little part of

that. The truth is, many if not most kids who are not absorbing the Omega

3/vitamin E from their diet are also deficient in other vital brain nutrients

and the reasons vary based on each individual's genetic make up, and that's why

a good biomed can get ton the bottom of these things.

All i can say is that before the biomed interventions my daughter's speech was

progressing so slowly and she was gaining the ability to pronounce things in

therapy with PROMPT but with very little carry over to her home/school life.

Once we did the diet, her behavior changed a lot and her words began to stick,

and then with the supplements, especially the B12 shots done right just under

the skin--well, my husband and I were just commenting that yesterday in the car

she was carrying out a conversation and we understood most of the words. She's

now making sentences and explaining things, commenting, and this child had less

than 25 words last Christmas.

So the difference is HUGE

.. Read the posts as Ii've said, it will give you a better understanding of why

these things are all connected to the gut where 80% of our immune system lies.

Oh, and BTW, her skin conditions have improved considerably too, but it takes a

while to get the gluten out of the system completly and for everything to get

sinked in, all the nutrients and whatever detoxification issues ma be present as

well since that too was our daughter's case.

Good luck and please take this seriously because it is serious, skin problems

are never just that. Since our daughter's metabolic issues have been identified

my husband too has seen a doctor who treats biomedically and so have I and all I

can say is that all the issues we've been having and were chucking off to having

a special needs child at a not so young age and therapy everyday and too much to

do, well there are severe problems due to malabsorption in my case too, pretty

similar to my daughter's (gluten intolerance and --which can be innate or

acquired due to vitral/bacteral/parasitic or even antibiotic exposure etc. and

so I too am doing the B12 shots and the omegas and the other supplements I've

been identified as having a deficiency in despite the super good diet. My health

was gradually deteriorating, brain fog, forgetfulness, nausea at times,

bloating, some abdominal pains and tingling of the pinkies, used to have

restless leg syndrome and TMD too which are also

autoimmune in nature, but those went away to be replaced by other neurological

immune system issues. You see the body constantly ada[pts and many symptoms of

metabolic and neutrologic dsfunction go away apparently only to be replaced by

other ones, often times worse.

So now I'm getting adequate treatment and feeling way way better and so is my

husband, even though his issues were different but the bottom line the same,

food intolerances, which weaken the absorption and immune system leaving us more

open to bacterial and viral/parasitic issues which further create internal

imbalances and lead to chronic degnerative dysfunction .

Believe me, biomedicine is the future of health care, not he " one drug fixes

all " approach that has made the pharmaceutical industry the global power it is.

I know it's a change in how we think about our health and our health care

providers and it's not easy because there's no magic pill to fix us, and we have

to take more responsibility and research and work with the biomedically trained

doctor to understand what our individual issues are. If you take the time to

look and read, the research is all there and has been for decades,

alternative/integrative practitioners have always known and treated the whole

body, it's only Western alopathic medicine that hasn't caught up and has

conveniently separated all our body parts so they can treat with drugs each

individual symptom. It is unfortunately very much a " turf " issue, very political

and it will take a long time for regualr clinical practice to catch up given

that they are so invested in drugs and surgical procedures

refusing to even consider the gut/brain connection and all the truths that

biomeds address. But it will happen, it is inevitable. the question is do you

really want to wait around until a corrupt and delayed health care system gets

their act together and suffer the consequences or are you willing to educate

yourself and take a more active role in your family's' health and work with open

minded medical doctors who have training in moth regular medicine and

biomedicine, homeopathy etc and are leading this health revolution?

Anyway, if you have any questions after reading more on the biomed stuff let me

know, but I do urge you to read and see how much of what you're reading there

applies to your own family's health. Remember, no two patients have the exact

same genetic make-up or the same environmental exposure, we're all affected a

little different, but there are enough similarities and now also tests to be

able to put the pieces together and create treatment plans that address our own

specific needs--it's not like reinventing the wheal for each patient, it's

customizing medical treatment according to what the individual needs are--which

we now have the technology to test for and understand better.

-Elena --mom to Ziana --age 3.10, severely apraxic, but otherwise a happy,

healthy child and improving her speech all the time now that appropriate speech

therapy.diet/supplements have been implemented.

tgowest <mcnham@...> wrote: My son has various skin problems and I am

wondering if anyone can help

me out with determining the cause and how i can help make them better

from a more naturalistic approach than what a doctor would typically

recommend (head n shoulders YUCK!).

So his scalp on the crown has sort of thick, on the greasy side flakes

that are hard to get off. Then he has what feels to me to be goose

bumpy skin on his trunk. The ped suggested lotion for that one, but no

other explanations on how to get rid of it or the causes. I figure

these are caused by either a definciency in his diet or an over

abundance of something in his system and if anybody know about that

stuff, it would be you guys!

Thanks!

------------------------------------

July 11, 2008

I just read your additional comments now and you are definitely on the right

track, with avoiding chemicals coconut oil etc/. We do that too, of course my

daughter turned out to be intolerant to coconut too it turns out but that's a

collateral damage due to the leaky gut which will most likely reverse as will

the other 30 food intolerances she showed positive immune response for--and you

know, it was EXACTLY what she was eating the most of at the time--avocado,

banana, melon, pineapple, almonds, cashews, peanuts, eggs, etc )

So consider a good evaluation from a biomed. These things can't be done just

sometimes or mostly, even minute amounts of gluten /casein and or other

intolerances which kind of get started once the intestines become permeable as

in my daughter's case, well anyway, they all need to be identified and

temporarily eliminated until the gut heals to remove as many stressors as

possible and allow the gut to heal. Then the core intolerances

gluten/casein/corn/soy very often are for life, but health is more important.

Research shows that it takes 6 m to a year to completly red the body of the

effects of the gluten in particular, and if you have even minute exposures when

eating out (like herbs that are sprinkled with glutenous powder to keep them

from caking and they end up on your grilled chicken because they're considered

" just herbs " so how could they have gluten? --well it takes a lot of vigilance

and a lot of home cooking. Sharing the toaster with gluten bread etc. will also

do it so it's best when everyone in the house keeps the diet and very often they

all need to it turns out. My case is a complete surprise, i always thought it

was all my husband's fault But as i said, gluten is a toxic protein to any

body's brain and once you get permeable intestines for what ever reason, you can

get a heightened immune response that then stays with you for life in this case

and can bring on so many other chronic health problems. So one exposure is

enough to keep the immune system on

alert and not really get the benefits o9f the diet. I think this is very often

why many parents try it, but don't really eliminate all the gluten and don't

necessarily check the absorption factor so it rarely works when it is done that

way, I'm surprised any of them notice any positive effects at all, but I guess

we really are all different and for some even reducing can help a lot. i guess

those people are really affected the most though and could benefit even more by

really keeping the diet and supplementing wahtever deficiencies because any

gluten issues come with other problems as well, more metabolic unbalances that

must also be addressed for optimal neurological/immune system functioning..

Your best bet is to see the doc and do it it in a systematic way, for long

enough and addressing all the issues and chances are it will improve. My

daughter's crusts are less severe now, and fewer of the thicker yellow ones, now

it is more like whitesh thin dandruff but larger patches, and at preschool they

gave her gold fish for snack with her snack sitting right there next to her.

New staff, no proper system to mark kids who are on special diet. Oh well, there

go the efforts of 8 m. But without the diet/supplements the conditions get

worse, so that's why you really need to take what your body is telling you

seriously.

All the best,

Elena

tgowest <mcnham@...> wrote: Of course i realise AFTER the fact that I

leave out important info