Allergies

• As a parent treating your child for eczema, the first thing you need to do is to consider the possibility that your child might have allergies that are triggering eczema flares. You can start eliminating suspected items that you belief might be the cause of eczema one-by-one. If you notice that the eczema begins to disappear after eliminating a perfume, a soap, a particular cream, or even a food source, you can them keep your child from using that product or consuming the food in question to help prevent future flare ups. You might also want to take your child to see a dermatologist and/or an allergist to determine the possible causes of the eczema, too.
  
  

Skin Protection

• Anything that irritates the skin can cause an eczema flare. You will want to make sure that your child's clothing is soft and that the material is not irritating to the skin. Refrain from giving your child clothes containing Rayon or wool since such fabrics can rub against the skin and make the child itchy. It is recommended that you offer your child clothing that allows his or her skin to freely breathe and that you rely on fabrics with fibers that are natural or made of 100 percent cotton.
  
  Keeping your child's skin protected also involves the use of protection whenever the child is in the sun, or in environments that are extremely dry. You will want to invest in a good sunscreen, and you will also want to refrain from using creams, or body moisturizers that are oily and/or heavily perfumed since this can irritate the child's skin and set an eczema flare in motion. It is also a good idea to invest in a humidifier to keep the air in your home from becoming overly dry and from affecting your child's skin condition.
  
  

Soaps and Cleansing

• Bath time is a time when you should take excellent care of your child's skin. Invest in a non-drying soap and only bathe your child in water that is set to a tepid to lukewarm temperature setting: extremes of hot and cold can irritate the child's skin. When the child is done bathing, be sure that he or she pats the skin dry instead of roughly drying the skin with a towel, too.
  
  The soap you select for your child is very important: the product must be as mild as possible, and should be used in minimal amounts. Glycerin soap and goat milk soap come highly recommended for Eczema sufferers since these types of soaps do not contain the alcohol, lye, petroleum, and other harsh chemicals found in traditional soaps. What's more, goat's milk soap and glycerin soap promote bodily healing of the skin; Glycerin is a soap that attracts necessary moisture to help keep skin soft, while goat's milk soap has ingredients identified as capric-capryllic triglyceride which offers similarly impressive moisturizing properties.
  
  

Medications

• You can choose an over-the-counter medication or you can get a prescribed medication for your child to help treat difficult eczema flares. Prescription creams include things like Atopiclair: a nonsteroidal medication. The latter medication is applied to the skin topically two to three times per day to help control the irritating itchiness of the condition. Similar creams which are prescribed are identified as Protopic and Elidel, but the latter products are not ideal for children that are under the age of two years old.
  
  The doctor might also give you a mild steroid cream to apply topically like Elocon or Dermatop. The latter creams can be used the same way nonsteroidal creams are used and they should be applied the minute you notice your child scratching at affected areas to keep the eczema flare under control; generally, such creams are applied twice every day until the condition subsides.
  
  Over-the counter medication choices for eczema treatment usually involve the use of antihistamines, the most popular being identified as Benadryl. The latter medication is sold in liquid and tablet form, but it can cause drowsiness. You can opt for the brand of Benadryl that offers you a non-drowsy formula so that your child experiences minimal side effects from the antihistamine's use.