Dyshidrotic eczema is a specific type of eczema marked by inflamed skin marks caused by dry skin triggers. It’s related to general atopic eczema and like a sunburn with dry skin and blisters. And these days have been more dry so it can happen more often.
But there’s more causal facts to the condition behind the hood than just dryness, where self-care is just part of the solution.
And if this is something you or others you care about face in life for weeks or seasons, then knowing how to shorten flareups (or better yet prevent them altogether) is the best happy daily life answer.
For starters, you can do something empowered about it with food-as-medicine!
…Where eat-from-the-rainbow foods are real skin medicine and cures in a bowl. 🥣
Healthy food is something I believe in wholeheartedly. And if I were to leave here tomorrow, I would not regret eating healthy foods at all, as I make them delicious (it’s in my former catering-self blood!).
For dyshidrotic eczema, a starting anti-inflammatory food list like this specific one can be turned into a tasty menu!
This healthy good grocery food list is one you can print out for your grocery shopping. …And on this site, I always share what healthy flavors I pair and recipes so you can make them daily for your bowls and plates… and I mean daily, where the easy-to-source healthy foods do the heavy lifting as flavor and texture ingredients.
And where eczema symptoms are made better eating these anti-inflammatory foods (and worsened with unhealthy foods).
In the dyshidrotic eczema case, clear blisters are clear signs to this type of eczema caused often by environmental and/or genetic factors.
…Plus, a natural earth metal you’ll learn more about below. 👇
While flareups are temporary, an anti-inflammatory diet helps restore the inflammatory skin symptoms sooner, as long as you don’t itch-n-scratch.
And you do baby yourself in self-care and moisturize skin often like you would prioritize changing a diaper.
And as you gain experiences and grow, eczema of any sort gets easier along with your reflexes to help restore to normal.
I know this deeply as I entered this unknown with my first few eczema lessons. They looked slightly different, but had the same common skin inflammation at the core.
And since those early years, I’ve learned so much and about which food-as-medicines, help or hurt. I’m a talking and walking test case under the microscope.
And as life is changing so fast these days, I’m constantly adapting to and refining my options to the evolving ingredients that end up in processed grocery foods. And so should you!
And while sorting through which foods are good (in this ever-changing food landscape), may be overwhelming, the silver lining is you get to build a good relationship with anti-inflammatory healthy foods that you might not otherwise have put in your cart.
You get to healthy eliminate and re-evaluate.
You wise up to what certain healthy foods that are good… but that you don’t want to eat too much of…
…Like go-to plant-based foods that are healthy in general, but (downer alert) come with natural negative plant baggage.
And more on that below, so you can focus on the positive foods!
Variety and moderation is still the best general answer.
Being more food and ingredient selective is also a healthy opportunity to detox, lose weight, and eat more fiber.
Wild salmon, lean chicken, white rice, sweet potatoes, turmeric, bananas, berries, probiotic Greek yogurt, honey, and bell peppers are examples of my good food-as-medicine, any day, year-round, any time and any condition.
These were good footprints in my childhood, and they are good now… and you too will find clues from your tracks as to what good foods are good for you now.
Some good foods can be surprising, like bell peppers was for me. Ring the bell please! 🫑 And oolong tea daily works, and is even better for a few reasons than green tea (…which btw, they come from the same plant source that looks like an ordinary bush with green leaves).
And those good foods and beverages become effective partners for healing the body and skin. They’re friendly, edible medicine.
And your custom list should give you grocery food confidence, knowing you buy the right stuff.
Confident positive thoughts put your mind at ease and help lower stress in the body (through the mind-body connection) that can play a big part in whether you have eczema flareups, not, or never.
Besides lowering stress and foods, what also helps is lowering sugar.
Low-sugar recipes are enjoyable (not compromising in taste) and using healthy food alternatives.
And less sugary tastes help lower your body’s sugar addictions and daily cravings.
I went from an addicted sweet tooth to not needing daily sugar… and definitely not 1/2 cup of sugar or more in dessert recipes.
And you can too if that’s your mission as sugar does your body no favors.
But you already knew that… because that’s healthy eating wisdom for all peeps.
And something you’re probably not aware of for dyshidrotic eczema flareups, the biggest trigger factor of them all is high nickel foods.
That’s something few people talk about, so I’ll give you what you need to know here…
Nickel is a naturally occurring metal found in soil and plants, as a micronutrient. And it’s in the water and everywhere on earth, so being surrounded, it’s easy to start an allergic storm.
…And that’s why you hear some people are allergic to wearing certain gold or silver jewelry. It’s because of the nickel metal mixed in, that’s the job of the alchemist (great book by the way!).
…And maybe why it’s a good thing we don’t carry coins around as much today in our climate erupting era.
And worse than metal to touch is ingesting nickel foods that are all around.
Some surprising nickel foods are healthy anti-inflammatory foods like plant-based cocoa, chocolate, nuts, seeds, legumes, and whole grains.
And as healthy food confusing as this can sound, memorizing a list of general anti-inflammatory foods won’t be good for dyshidrotic eczema symptoms in general.
Better to use a known food list like the one above, at least as a start.
The good news is there’s a large food variety you get to choose from (and for dyshidrotic eczema inflammation).
If you have a skin flareup, skip those food offenders until you’re in the clear.
And don’t be afraid to test some healthy foods that can be “maybe” foods for your body.
Like eggs for some types of eczema?
I believe it would be tragic to give up a healthy food you love that you didn’t need to.
And while you’re having a skin flareup…
If you enjoy the food, don’t feel skin irritation, and nothing lights up, then take that as a good sign.🚦Put that on your grocery food list.
…Like based on research first, I found iffy eggs, grapefruit, and corn tortilla are all good with me. And wasabi too… wasabi! I’m lucky because I’m not naturally allergic to any foods under ordinary circumstances.
And if I didn’t at least try when tested (because I was scared, which is not my M.O.), I’d be missing out. And I’m a Joy of Missing Out type. And that’s healthy!
But Baker-me also played smart safe away from all flours for a temporary elimination diet, and felt better about it because most flours (whole wheat and gluten-free) are high in nickel. It’s not the gluten that’s the potential trigger for me, it’s the nickel!
…And that may be for you too?
So it’s a good idea (and a gift?) to be able to see (as in test and try) what your body below your neck thinks about the food you eat.
And then you won’t be wondering (scared?) and stuck in habits eating the same boring foods all your life.
Variety is the spice of life! And the way to how you can love the taste of healthy foods. Plus spices.
Our ancestors tested foods-as-medicine centuries ago, long before we came along and they saved them from their small, temporary ailments.
They didn’t have the same variety, environment, and processed gluten and dairy like we do today.
Those triggering factors vary in degrees between people and eczema types. We all have different skin.
But superfoods are good for most skins.
…Like broccoli, organic berries, apples, avocado, wild salmon, potatoes, and minimally processed foods like quinoa and white rice.
Idea: You can make white rice balls and serve with low-histamine foods like lean chicken, bell peppers, and root vegetables that you can add to a plate or a tasty turmeric soup bowl.
And if you’re craving sweets, try an applesauce fruit roll, a lemon strawberry trifle parfait, or no-flour Pavlova fruit dessert.
These are great example of celebrating healthy food tastes while telling inflammatory symptoms to take a hike!
And for beverages besides water, maybe try a freshly squeezed guava or watermelon juice. I also like to add fruit to my coffee like watermelon to my coffee. And to enjoy fruits in my daily brunch meals that include: orange coffee and oven bruleed grapefruit as part of my tested jam.