As we approach the end of Allergy Awareness Week we thought it was worth revisiting how softened water can actually be beneficial to skin conditions such as eczema.
What is eczema?
For those of you unlucky enough to suffer with this skin condition, you will be all too aware at how painful and uncomfortable it can be. Eczema is an inflammatory skin condition that causes dry skin, itchy skin, rashes, scaly patches, blisters and skin infections. Itchy skin is the most common symptom of eczema. Eczema can begin during childhood, adolescence, or adulthood and it can range from mild to severe. Newborn babies can experience eczema within the first weeks and months after birth. Young children with eczema can experience dry and itchy skin that can lead to blisters and skin infections due to excessive scratching. Many people with eczema use the phrase “flare-up” to describe a phase of eczema when they are experiencing one or more acute symptoms. While the exact cause of eczema is unknown, researchers do know that people develop eczema because of an interaction between genes and environmental triggers. Many people with eczema often report comorbid symptoms of hay fever, allergic asthma and food allergies. Proper, consistent skin care is essential in the prevention and management of eczema. Moisturisers, antihistamines, topical steroid creams and corticosteroids are among the potential courses of eczema treatments and research in more recent years has also found that softened water can make a huge difference to the condition.
What can cause eczema?
Many factors can contribute to eczema, including an interaction between your environment and your genes. When an irritant or an allergen from outside or inside the body “switches on” the immune system, it produces inflammation, or a flare-up, on the surface of the skin. This inflammation causes the symptoms common to most types of eczema. Many common household items are also potential environmental irritants and can cause allergic reactions leading to an eczema flare. Additional common triggers of eczema may include some types of soap, shampoo, bubble bath, body wash, facial cleansers as well as laundry detergents and fabric softeners with chemical additives. Eczema can also be caused by extended exposure to dry air, extreme heat or cold which is why keeping your skin moisturised is a must.
How does softened water help?
If you live in a hard water area, the mineral content of your water supply is very high. Not only will these minerals clog your pores and dry skin, water containing these will also not work too well with soap, leaving a film on your skin which is difficult to rinse away. You may have noticed the soap scum buildup on your shower or bath? Well this is the same scum which is left on your skin so it’s not surprising that this can cause dryness and irritation and problems with your skin health. Softened water does not have the mineral content of hard water so, when you look at the issues raised above, the benefits are immediately obvious. Also, as softened water works far better with detergents than hard water, you can get a better lather by using half the amount of soap, body wash or bubble bath. Washing in softened water will leave your skin feeling smooth and silky often without the need for additional moisturisers. A study by the University of Sheffield has found that exposure of skin to hard water can increase sensitivity to the kind of irritants found in soap products as the protective barrier is damaged. This can contribute to the development of eczema and mean that sufferers are much more sensitive to the effects of hard water than people with healthy skin.
If you suffer with eczema or other skin conditions and would like to find out more about the difference that using softened water can make, please get in touch!