Eczema and Hard Water: Does Soft Water Help Eczema?

Will installing a water softener in your home help your eczema? Researchers had high hopes that it would after some parents reported that their children's eczema improved when they put a water softener in their home. Are eczema and hard water linked?

Eczema, also called atopic dermatitis, is a skin condition most common in children It's characterized by inflammation and itchy skin that crusts, oozes and scales. There's a strong genetic component to this disfiguring skin disease, and it occurs more commonly in kids who have other allergy-related problems such as asthma and hay fever.

Up to 1 in 20 children and 1 in 12 adults deal with the itchy skin rash and crusting of eczema on a daily basis. Needless to say, parents are looking for answers on how to relieve the itching and skin rash so common with eczema.

Eczema and Hard Water: Does Hard Water Make Eczema Symptoms Worse?

According to a study carried out at the University of Nottingham on 336 kids, installing a water softener to help eczema symptoms may not be worthwhile. When these kids used soft water from a water filter for three months, their eczema didn't improve. These results are a disappointment since even some dermatologist believed minerals like calcium and magnesium in hard water irritated the skin of eczema sufferers.

Although this study didn't pan out, there are anecdotal reports of soft water improving eczema symptoms, so it may still be worth installing a water softener if you or your child has eczema.

Other Ways to Help Eczema

Skin is protected by an outer layer called the epidermis, which is made up of skin cells and fats. These fat or lipids prevent dryness by reducing moisture loss through the skin. People with eczema don't make enough of these lipids, which means their skin is dryer and more sensitive. That's why keeping skin with eczema moisturized is so important.

One way to reduce moisture loss and help eczema symptoms is to run a humidifier. This keeps the moisture level in the air higher, which reduces water loss through the skin.

The standard treatment for eczema symptoms is emollient moisturizers and, in severe cases, topical corticosteroids. If the thought of using topical steroids troubles you, several natural treatments show some promise including evening primrose oil, borage oil and chamomile extract. Both borage and evening primrose oil contain essential fatty acids that help reduce inflammation.

Eczema and Hard Water: The Bottom Line?

This study shows that soft water may not help eczema symptoms after all. A better option is to get a home humidifier, and talk to your doctor about natural treatments such as evening primrose oil and chamomile extract to help eczema symptoms naturally.

References:

The University of Nottingham website. "Water softeners not found to improve childhood eczema"

Holist Nurs Pract . 2003;17:56-62.

The Journal of Family Practice. Volume 58, No. 5. May 2009. Page 280-1.