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Skin Rash, itchy skin, dermatitis and eczema

"Feeling Your Oats?"

Recently I have been treating people with severe, persistent atopic dermatitis with a simple soupy paste made from cooking oats and warm water. Now, in no way did I come up with this treatment; it has been around for many years, but I, like most involved with allergies, until recently had never actually tried it.

I mix 1/4 of a cup of Quaker Oats in a cup with several ounces of warm water, mix it well with a spoon, and then coat (using the tips of my fingers) the red, itchy skin of the dermatitis sufferer with this soupy oat-water. What is so amazing to me is that it almost always works almost instantly to stop the itch, and as you do this you can literally see the redness subsiding, and you can feel the skin smoothing out under your fingertips. In many cases this simple oatmeal mix (applied once or twice a day) quickly clears up skin that has not been helped by any other type of over-the-counter or prescription lotion or cream.

Many types of creams and lotions recommended for eczema have a base of either lanolin or some type of oil. Individuals with sensitive skin may often react badly to oily lotions, and lanolin (which is made from sheep) can irritate the skin of anyone who is at all sensitive to wool products.

This oatmeal soup appears to be so effective (and so low in cost and remarkably fast and easy to concoct) that more skin rash sufferers should be encouraged to at least give it a try. Even if someone simply has itchy or dry skin, and not a full-blown rash, the oatmeal mix will often bring quick relief.