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eczema ... thoughts
Bumping this thread to post a little snippet about Grant's eczema from another thread. I started this thread to talk about whether there could be a clue in the sound of the word eczema. But no reason that we can't use this post to go on and talk more about eczema.
old post:
In another thread I said the words "eczema of any organ". It got me thinking about the sound of the word.
egg sema... (sema is "sign" in latin) egg sign? (btw, the word egg comes from old english aeg)
Hubs had eczema as a child, and stopped eating eggs. Couldn't you just see a child doing that? As a child, that probably made sense to him. He never saw the word written out, but he heard it said.
My overproduction of eggs (as a chicken "farmer") and trying to "use them up" is (maybe?) one reason why we all got toxic. We were eating abnormal amounts of eggs. (An average of one a day is probably closer to "normal").
In a fractal world, are there clues in words? (cue twilight zone music). Or could it even be that someone somewhere was telling us something? ("when you are eating high amounts of egg, and you come out in a rash, that is a sign to stop!")
Thoughts on eczema?
Ooh ooh, this leads me to something I've noticed: sources of preformed vitamin A mostly seem to have to do with Babies: I mean yes, of course we all, young or old, have livers. But otherwise, dairy and eggs certainly have a lot to do with baby animals. Which makes me think that babies need more A than adults. But perhaps it's not because it's a vital nutrient. Maybe it is for priming an infant's immune system (one of those studies talked about how, when high doses of A are given alongside certain immunizations, there are more antibodies produced and the vaccine works better. However, the baby given both the A and the vaccine is MUCH more likely to die than when given the vaccine alone. A tricky balance.)....
Hehe even a pathetic one piece of egg/day increases carotenoid antioxidants(thanks to their huge half lifes):
https://academic.oup.com/jn/article/136/10/2519/4746690
Lutein and zeaxanthin accumulate in the macular pigment of the retina, and are reported to be associated with a reduced incidence of age-related macular degeneration. A rich source of lutein and zeaxanthin in the American diet is the yolk of chicken eggs. Thus, the objective of the study was to investigate the effect of consuming 1 egg/d for 5 wk on the serum concentrations of lutein, zeaxanthin, lipids, and lipoprotein cholesterol in individuals >60 y of age. In a randomized cross-over design, 33 men and women participated in the 18-wk study, which included one run-in and one washout period of no eggs prior to and between two 5-wk interventions of either consuming 1 egg or egg substitute/d. Serum lutein 26% (P < 0.001) and zeaxanthin 38% (P < 0.001) concentrations increased after 5-wk of 1 egg/d compared with the phase prior to consuming eggs. Serum concentrations of total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, and triglycerides were not affected. These findings indicate that in older adults, 5 wk of consuming 1 egg/d significantly increases serum lutein and zeaxanthin concentrations without elevating serum lipids and lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations.
@joe2 you said on another thread:
"Grant wrote about reabsorbing the retinoic acid in his eczema if he did not remove what came out through his skin in one of the books. Makes sense when one considers how skin makes vitamin D with sun exposure, excretes it and then reabsorbs it over the following 2 to 24 hours (if not washed off)."
I'm not sure what exactly Grant said about getting the VA off his skin. Maybe Joe can point us to the quote in the book? But I too have found that it's less likely that I will become itchy from sweating if I can get a shower before the sweat dries.
Quote from lil chick on September 16, 2024, 6:49 am@joe2 you said on another thread:
"Grant wrote about reabsorbing the retinoic acid in his eczema if he did not remove what came out through his skin in one of the books. Makes sense when one considers how skin makes vitamin D with sun exposure, excretes it and then reabsorbs it over the following 2 to 24 hours (if not washed off)."
I'm not sure what exactly Grant said about getting the VA off his skin. Maybe Joe can point us to the quote in the book? But I too have found that it's less likely that I will become itchy from sweating if I can get a shower before the sweat dries.
While I will reread his books, it is not time for me to do it now. Betting it is in his first one. I remember he was writing about looking at his skin under a microscope or a magnifying class watching the cells dissolve in real time. That was where he postulated the RA coming out and figured it was going back in.
I have 40 plus years similar experience with washing it off to feel better. I always thought it was urushiol. My wife had to tolerate me ranting much more than usual for a couple weeks when I saw what he wrote about the molecular similarities of urushiol and retinoic acid. My bet is their action is identical.
Have you ever run hot water over an eczema rash?
My husband used to run super hot water over his eczema. He thought it took the itch away.
I have had poison ivy and I see the parallels to how I feel after a detox sweat! For sure. The poison ivy is turning beautiful shades of red and orange right now, showing off their vitamin-A-like pigments. I've read that it is nature's way of reclaiming land after it being cleared and then abandoned. In a way, part of her immune system...on a systemic level.
Have written extensively along with a few other people on LYL about best ways to cope with urushiol and eczema rash while waiting for the benefits of low vitamin A to pay off. My rashes are already easier to deal with. Nice to see the pay off coming in.
One person remarked to my question that the hot water gives a euphoric feeling. My doc of 30 years told me after I described this protocol that I was using a natural antihistamine. No problems with using it repeatedly.
I have used this hundreds of times in last 20 years. Thought I was dealing with urushiol until I read Grant's books. I now use this for early diagnosis. The process reduces rash time by 50% routinely. It allows for good sleep and much more rapid healing.
Take handheld shower head. Set water to hot enough that you can only tolerate the stream on the skin while moving the head along. Hold it in one place more than 2 seconds and it burns too much. While moving it over entire body if an area is hit and it no longer hurts hold the stream there. Depending on age of rash and severity, this spot is often euphoric. It is better than scratching that itch. Turn the heat up to tolerance level. Hold stream there as long as desired. My longest is 20 minutes. When done, pat dry and apply zinc oxide / shea butter cream. Keep it covered with sleeves, socks whatever cloth to keep it from drying and scabbing to cause more itch. Go get some sleep and do it again when it starts itching in eight hours.
Noteworthy
have done this before any blisters even appear. It works beautifully.
have noticed that a clear defined border appears. Uncontaminated skin turns red at the edges of the rash area from the burn off the hot stream. The rash area remains white as if never scalded.
So interesting, thanks for posting it. Maybe this explains hot-tub enthusiasts?
We've often considered adding one of those small, wooden hot tubs that don't have water re-use capabilities. You fill them, heat them (often they are wood-fired), use them for a weekend and then empty them. Detox the fam each weekend! These are popular with off-the-grid people, they are also traditional in Japan.
People do seem to recognize that hot soaks are beneficial or euphoria-inducing. This benefit might be clouded by re-use of (VA toxic?) water and water chemicals.
NEVER get in a tub with poison ivy oils on you. Ask me how I know.
Quote from lil chick on September 24, 2024, 6:10 amSo interesting, thanks for posting it. Maybe this explains hot-tub enthusiasts?
We've often considered adding one of those small, wooden hot tubs that don't have water re-use capabilities. You fill them, heat them (often they are wood-fired), use them for a weekend and then empty them. Detox the fam each weekend! These are popular with off-the-grid people, they are also traditional in Japan.
People do seem to recognize that hot soaks are beneficial or euphoria-inducing. This benefit might be clouded by re-use of (VA toxic?) water and water chemicals.
NEVER get in a tub with poison ivy oils on you. Ask me how I know.
Does not work in bath setting. That makes it far worse and spreads it to every nook and cranny.
DO NOT USE A HOT BATH with the rash.
The hot stream of water has worked every time and well. Have only tried a bath twice. Second time to confirm. Confirmed. Will not try a third. Even though I love hot baths, I now know better than to sit in it with a rash of any sort.
Quote from Joe2 on September 18, 2024, 12:35 amHave written extensively along with a few other people on LYL about best ways to cope with urushiol and eczema rash while waiting for the benefits of low vitamin A to pay off. My rashes are already easier to deal with. Nice to see the pay off coming in.
One person remarked to my question that the hot water gives a euphoric feeling. My doc of 30 years told me after I described this protocol that I was using a natural antihistamine. No problems with using it repeatedly.
I have used this hundreds of times in last 20 years. Thought I was dealing with urushiol until I read Grant's books. I now use this for early diagnosis. The process reduces rash time by 50% routinely. It allows for good sleep and much more rapid healing.
Take handheld shower head. Set water to hot enough that you can only tolerate the stream on the skin while moving the head along. Hold it in one place more than 2 seconds and it burns too much. While moving it over entire body if an area is hit and it no longer hurts hold the stream there. Depending on age of rash and severity, this spot is often euphoric. It is better than scratching that itch. Turn the heat up to tolerance level. Hold stream there as long as desired. My longest is 20 minutes. When done, pat dry and apply zinc oxide / shea butter cream. Keep it covered with sleeves, socks whatever cloth to keep it from drying and scabbing to cause more itch. Go get some sleep and do it again when it starts itching in eight hours.
Noteworthy
have done this before any blisters even appear. It works beautifully.
have noticed that a clear defined border appears. Uncontaminated skin turns red at the edges of the rash area from the burn off the hot stream. The rash area remains white as if never scalded.
Hi @joe2,
I’m new here but have been lurking for a while, and I wanted to chime in on your post about using hot water. This topic really resonates with me because I’ve been managing full-body eczema outbreaks for years, and hot showers have been a crucial part of my routine.
I only started exploring a low-vitamin A diet about a month ago after discovering Grant’s work, but my reliance on hot water predates that. For a long time, I’ve used hot showers to relieve the intense itching, even though I thought it was likely damaging my skin. It was the only thing that brought relief. Without it, I honestly don’t know how I would have coped.
In the past, when my skin was at its worst, I’d hit the affected areas with hot water for that euphoric relief you mentioned. Like most eczema advice suggests, I avoided soap and scrubbing because I believed they would cause further irritation. But deep down, it always felt like the hot water was somehow doing more than just soothing my skin—it felt like it was releasing something.
About a week ago, I reconsidered my approach in light of what I’ve learned about vitamin A toxicity. I thought, If toxins are being released through my skin, then I need to wash them off. So, I changed my routine entirely: I still used hot water for relief, but afterward, I used real soap and a scrubbing sponge, treating my skin as though I’d been exposed to poison ivy.
The results have been surprising. That first night, my skin felt the best it had in a long time. I’ve continued this process over the past week, and it seems to reduce both redness and itchiness more effectively than just using hot water alone. For example, one day, a large circular rash appeared on the back of my hand during the shower. Instead of leaving it alone like I used to, I applied hot water and scrubbed it with soap. By the time I was done, the rash was gone.
It’s only been a week, but I’m hopeful this method will help me get through this detox process and that the itching will eventually become less frequent. Have you noticed this happening in your case? Are you finding that you rely on hot water less often over time?
I’m also thinking about trying sauna therapy with niacin and charcoal as the next step to sweat out more toxins. What are your thoughts on that?
Looking forward to hearing your experience and suggestions!