Atopic Eczema: What climate is best, dry or humid?
I have a three year old son who has recently showed signs of becoming sensitized, to possibly everything. He has been diagnosed with ATOPIC ECZEMA. I have been researching all over, I understand there is some questions between dermatologists and allergists on what the cause for such a severe condition could be. Me his mother, being the genetic donor of such a horrible affliction, knows the condition first hand.
I strongly believe this condition has several parts to it. One being an immune issue, the second being allergies, and the third part extremely dry and sensitive skin. So with a sliver of knowledge, I am taking aim to improve his condition without the use of the enormous amount of drugs dermatologists have prescribed him at 3 years old. We are working closely with a wonderful allergist who has the patience and knowledge to deal with my family. My question is we now live in Albuquerque, NM. He has been through two RAST tests (blood tests to check for IgE levels), and a patch test which had no results for us to read. He, according to the RAST test has low and moderate levels to most allergic foods (wheat, dairy, corn, soy, eggs, and peanuts), he also shows a low moderate to dogs and elm.
At this point I have not noticed hay fever symptoms for our dogs we have, but with this new information from the blood tests, the dogs and his reactions to them are under my careful observation. He is on a very restricted diet and his skin is clearing with out the prescribed drugs. We will begin introducing one food at a time very soon to see the effects.
So sorry about the long preface to my question. We live in Abq., and have an opportunity to move to Fort Smith Arkansas. With the knowledge he has the possibility for his allergies to get worse (sensitized), which climate would be more likely to exascerbate his condition, the dry and very pollen filled Abq., or Arkansas a humid climate I know very little about? — Kendra, Albuquerque, NM
Being an ENT (Ear, Nose, Throat) Allergist, the doctor I work for only treats Atopic Eczema on a limited basis. He usually refers those with Atopic Eczema to a Dermatologist as well.
However, Atopic Eczema and/or Allergic Dermatitis is part of the Allergic Triad. I mentioned that in an item I wrote for National Allergy Supply here. I also discussed it here. Since Atopic Eczema is part of the Triad, we do see patients often who have this skin condition.
Eczema does not fare well in dry weather. But sweating and high humidity can irritate the skin as well. Last year we had quite a few days of >100 degree temps with humidity in the 80’s and 90’s in Fort Smith.
Perhaps others who have eczema will offer more help to you. I would think a middle-of-the-road climate would suffice better, but I am not sure if such a climate really exists! Has anyone found a good climate for eczema sufferers?
Comment by AllergyNurse — February 24, 2007 @ 8:01 pm
Santa Maria, California seems to be a great climate for allergies in general. We are on the central coast but not on the water. Just 30 miles up the coast our house near the beach had black mold (it was near the beach) and our allergies were horrible. Also, north of here, about 30 minutes, but more inland, the pollen was terrible (San Luis Obispo) and even my dog had atopic exzema and we went through $4200 in allergy testing and medical emergencies ultimately resulting in her going blind. However, her horrible facial lesions did clear up when we moved to Santa Maria into a place with tile floors, new carpet and plenty of sunshine. I keep her off dirt in general, where mold grows, and I don’t get my carpets shampooed because if they don’t dry out, you get a rampant mold problem. None of the diet changes seemed to be related to her problems, but getting rid of her systemic yeast and all parasites helped her immune system stop overreacting. Good luck!
Comment by Tracy — March 2, 2007 @ 12:10 am
I also suffer from excema,asthama, and allergies of all sorts. Ive been researching all this past summer because Im totally feed up! I developed all this conditions by living here in El Paso,TX. After all my extensive research, I have found cali and FL are the best climates for allergy suffers. So I am planning to move out to cali by the end of next summer. Anywhere which is “inland” 30mins from the ocean is great for ppl like myself. On the flipside, Living not only in El Paso, but also Lubbock, San Antoino, Arlington, Dallas,Houston, Austin, Pecos, Alpine, and Fort Worth; I can say your best bet is not to move ANYWHERE in TX. The pollen levels across this state are not healthy for allergies suffers let alone non-suffers. The humidity is also an uncomfortable humidity, so while you’d think it would help, it actually makes your conditions worst, especially for excema suffers. So having lived here all my life, I can say please do not move to TX.
Comment by Cupcake915 — September 5, 2007 @ 1:53 pm