Dietary Causes of Eczema

My walk down eczema diet lane. My path towards identifying my dietary causes of eczema.

I’ve explored many of the dietary causes of eczema, both through my own readings (some of my favorite books related to the topic include Deep Nutrition and Woman Code) and through working with medical doctors and naturopathic physicians.

At this point…dear goodness, if there’s a diet that can supposedly help combat eczema or contribute to the dietary causes of eczema, I’ve probably tried it.

Dietary changes can be game changing for some people.

For example, if you haven’t tried giving up dairy and/or gluten, please consider it (after talking to your doctor/nutritionist of course!) and see if you notice any changes in your skin. Dairy and gluten may be some of our dietary causes of eczema.

Same goes for sugar and alcohol – try cutting back on both even just a bit and see if you notice any changes. Ideally, you’d give up both, strictly, for at least 30 days.

I’ve found that reading labels of nearly everything you buy in the grocery store is critical for avoiding sugar (aside from whole fruits and vegetables, obviously). I knew it was said that nearly everything contains sugar these days, and when you’re truly trying to avoid it, you find out that’s true. Giving up sugar and/or alcohol can also be monumental for some people with eczema.

Unfortunately, none of my dietary adventures have worked in curing my eczema. I’ve not yet found my dietary causes of eczema.

I’ve tried so many diets that for a time whenever I was planning to go out to dinner with my friends, one of the primary questions in picking a restaurant was: “Wait, what diet are you on again now?” Ugh.

The running list of dietary changes I’ve made to try to cure my severe eczema:

Vegan Diet for Eczema

This didn’t last long. I’ve learned through several diet trials that I just feel better when eating dairy. I know that’s odd. My mom grew up on a dairy farm – maybe it’s something to do with my microbiome or epigenetics I inherited from her? Who knows.

Vegetarian Diet for Eczema

I was vegetarian for several years before I saw a naturopath to discuss my eczema. She suggested I try adding back in meat for more protein and certain nutrients. I certainly feel more full more more quickly now that I’m eating meat again. I’ve never been a bit meat lover, though, so I often consider going back to full vegetarian.

I’ve also learned through my dietary explorations, though, that my body doesn’t like to be perturbed. If I go full vegetarian again, it will be a gradual process.

The Eczema Cure Diet

This is a great eBook resource for eczema sufferers. It outlines many of the dietary causes of eczema.

Much of what’s suggested in the eBook is similar to what’s suggested in Deep Nutrition, which I found eye-opening. I.e., avoid processed oils, eat (way) more good fats, drink more bone broth, and supplement with fish oil (specifically fermented cod liver oil). I more or less follow the Deep Nutrition diet now and generally like how it makes me feel, even if it didn’t cure my eczmea.

“Low Chromate, Low Nickel, Low Balsam” Diet

I’ve not been able to find much on the internet with this one, but this was the diet suggested by my dermatologist after my contact dermatitis testing came back “inconclusive.” Essentially we decided to be ultra conservative and cut out potential dietary triggers in addition to all of the fragrances and products you might expect to cause eczema.

My doctor certainly did not recommend this one for long term as much of the diet consists of eating white, low nutrient carbs. E.g. I recall fettuccini alfredo and grilled cheeses were approved food items on this list. I’m sure some folks are incredibly jealous of a diet that consists of fettuccini and grilled cheese, but it got old pretty fast, I didn’t feel well, and it did not help me.

No Dairy, No Gluten

I worked with a naturopath who suggested I give up both dairy and gluten strictly for 8 weeks. Strictly meant I was also not allowed to eat sheep’s or goat’s cheese (some “no dairy” diets allow this). I was very conscious of my gluten intake, too. I read labels on everything I ate; I didn’t just avoid things that appeared to contain flour.

Unfortunately, my skin got worse and worse while on this diet which was perplexing to both my naturopath and me. Maybe I’m just a hearty Midwesterner who requires dairy in her diet. No clue. It was a bit weird.

Whole 30 (which includes no sugar, no alcohol)

About a year after I tried the no dairy, no gluten diet, I tried the whole 30 with my husband. Whole 30 avoids: sugar, dairy, grains, legumes, alcohol, processed foods, junk food, and baked goods.

You really have to read labels while on this diet. I did notice some improvement around day 4 while on this diet and was incredibly hopeful. Unfortunately, mid-diet, I started to get both bad face eczema again, which I hadn’t had for a while and acne!! I very rarely get acne given my skin is a desert, so this was alarming. Getting pimples while simultaneously having dry skin patches so severe you can’t bend your body without them cracking is quite the experience. Let me tell you.

I read some stuff on the internet that suggested skin has to “get bad before it gets worse”, but I wasn’t buying it. I really didn’t eat that much sugar or processed foods before the diet, so it was hard to believe my body was having to go through some crazy, abnormally long detox process. 30 days is usually plenty for most people to see some positive changes in habits, mood, skin, energy levels etc.

We ended up stopping the diet after day 25 or so because we just couldn’t justify spending so much time and money cooking for something that was making me more miserable. I should note, I also added in the autoimmune protocol (AIP) diet towards the end of whole 30 to see if that would help; it did not help for me, but has been hugely beneficial for others.

Ayurvedic cleanse/detox

I worked with an ayurvedic doctor to do a cleanse to try to cure my severe eczmea.

In western med/internet speak, this was essentially a microbiome cleanse to “starve” the bad actors out of my gut. I was so very desperate when I tried this. It was essentially “panchakarma lite” if you’re familiar with that term.

I spent 8 days preparing my body with herbs. On day 8 I got a whole body massage (which was great). On day 9, I fasted the entire day until evening, and took an herb that made me poop literally all day. That evening, I was allowed to eat rice cooked in a ton of water (essentially rice soup), with a bit of salt and a dash of cumin. On days 10, 11, and 12, all I could eat was this rice soup, for every meal. I was in grad school at the time and this was brutal.

I must say, though, this fasting regimen did reduce my itching for whatever reason. Some folks swear by fasting to clear their eczema (again, I seem to think this would only work if you’re really treating your body poorly on the regular; most folks who are trying to heal their eczema are not). Of course talk to your doctor/nutritionist before embarking on any fasting or cleansing related journey.

A side note on Ayurveda

Overall, the cleanse wasn’t successful for me, but I should note – some of my best weeks have been when I was following Ayurvedic principles (more on that here). I was lucky enough to do a yoga retreat in Spain one spring where we ate only vegetarian, ayurvedically-friendly foods. I felt so amazing that week. It could have been many things – fresh air, twice daily yoga, low stress, good company, but the food certainly didn’t hurt. I remember starting the week having to scratch my elbows at nearly every yoga pose and by the end of the week I was actually pretty comfortable in my skin. Ayurveda for the win?

Other Diets for Severe Eczema

I’ve also experimented in a less regimented way with avoiding fermented foods (e.g. pickles, soy sauce) and avoiding high histamine foods (e.g. aged cheese, wine, beer, vinegar, some fruits, vegetables, and nuts). Coincidentally, these are all some of my favorite foods. Allergists say often the foods you crave are actually what you should be avoiding! Bummer.

I’ve not noticed any changes from avoiding these, though. And, at least on fermented foods, the internet (and the naturopathic community) is split: Some folks say you must eat fermented and probiotic foods to fortify your gut; others say these foods can “stir things up” too much and cause trouble.

So, listen to your own body.

My body says: “Cheeseburgers and chocolate are actually fine…we just don’t like 29 out of 30 random days of the month – you’re going to have a crazy flare those days...muah ha ha ha ha.”

At least from all of these experiments, I did learn that my body definitely doesn’t like to be perturbed – with new supplements, environments, etc. That’s why I try to only introduce one change (in diet, supplements, lifestyle, etc.) at a time now, whenever possible. For example, I’d never give up both dairy and gluten at the same time again. I also try now to limit travel as much as possible. Sticking with a routine, ideally at home, has worked better for me than sticking with any diet. I think this may be why Ayurveda worked well – it’s very routine-based.

I hope one of these diets works for you!

NOTE: I am not a doctor, and this is not medical advice. It is solely based on my opinions and my experiences.