What are eczema and atopic dermatitis?

I was compensated by Med-IQ through an educational grant from Pfizer, Inc. to write about the signs, symptoms, and treatments available for eczema/atopic dermatitis in communities of color. All opinions are my own.

If you’re looking for tips on treating dry skin and eczema, I’m so glad that you’re here. For as long as I can remember, I’ve suffered from itchy skin and constant skin issues and now our two boys are dealing with constant skin irritation as well. There are studies that are showing that these types of skin issues are more prominent in people of color and we’ve been doing what we can to educate ourselves on treatment options that we can do at home.

Thankfully, I’ve found a solution that has not only offered me comfort and eased my dry skin woes but it’s also an amazing resource that can help our boys tackle their skin issues head-on as well.

If you’re interested in learning more about managing skin issues, you’re not going to want to miss out on this.

What are eczema and atopic dermatitis?

Before you can learn how to handle it, you first must learn what it is. Eczema is the overall name for a group of skin conditions that can arise due to a variety of triggers such as allergens, the weather, or even stress..

Atopic Dermatitis is a chronic, itchy, red rash that can appear during different times of the year and come and go as it pleases. It’s uncomfortable and often embarrassing to have to deal with on a daily basis.

In people with darker skin tones, the redness might not show but instead could be thick spots of dry skin that appear darker, are scaly, or get bigger over time.

Who does eczema affect?

It can affect all types of skin tones, skin colors, and racial backgrounds but it does appear to be more prominent in African American andBlack children and is often more severe among African American, Black, and Hispanic children and adults.

Parents can start to notice the signs of these skin issues when their baby is little but it also something that can develop in their toddler and teen years, too.

Currently, more than 31 million Americans have some form of eczema.

How does atopic dermatitis affect patients and families?

Truth be told, it can have quite severe impacts on a person’s quality of life. The painful skin areas can cause massive itching which can cause bleeding or infections, or it’s also been known to cause insomnia because it’s hard to relax and get to sleep.

How our family is dealing with eczema

First, it’s important to understand that this type of skin condition will never just go away. It’s one of those types of issues that will always be there, no matter what.

However, in saying that, there are ways that you can take charge and control it to find peace and comfort. And this is exactly what my family has done.

Getting educated about this skin issue is one of the first things that we did. We knew that in order to better “fight” this, we had to do our research and get the correct information regarding it.

Once I learned more about eczema and atopic dermatitis, I knew that we were on the right track. We are currently understanding that by doing the proper skincare regimens, we’re taking charge and doing what we can.

These simple activities at home include warm baths and lots of moisturizer throughout the day. Just these two simple options have really already helped us all.

In addition, there are other treatment options that you can seek as well if you’re not finding comfort in options you can do at home. We also use a topical steroid that was recommended by our dermatologist.

These are experts that I spoke with that have experience in treating dermatologic conditions in skin of color and Dr Alexis will soon be leading a FB live that will go into a lot more detail about this post and how to get help.

Candrice R. Heath, MD

Assistant Professor
Department of Dermatology
Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University
Philadelphia, PA

Andrew F. Alexis, MD, MPH

Professor and Chair
Department of Dermatology
Director, Skin of Color Center
Mount Sinai West and Mount Sinai Morningside
New York, NY

If you can join online when they’re live, it would be the perfect solution to getting some of your skincare questions answered live as well.

Taking the time to educate yourself about how you can ease issues with your skin is so important. I’m so glad that we’ve partnered up with Med-IQ to find out all the factual information about our skin and how we can help to alleviate some of the pain, stress, and worry.

With the cooler weather coming, I’m confident that we can get through the colder months of the year and manage our skin irritation flare-ups much easier this year!

Med-IQ is conducting an anonymous survey and would appreciate your input. The survey will take less than 10 minutes to complete. Survey responses are shared only in aggregate. Your responses to these survey questions will provide Med-IQ with important information about your experiences with atopic dermatitis, which will help us develop future educational initiatives. Once you’ve completed the survey, you will have the option of providing your email address to be entered into a drawing administered by SOMA Strategies to win 1 of 10 $100 VISA gift cards. If you choose to enter, your email address will be used only to randomly draw the winners and notify them of their prize, and to send a follow-up survey as part of this same initiative.