My Little Seed: A Story of Eczema and Betrayal

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My Little Seed: A Story of Eczema and Betrayal

Blog Of The Week

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Paige Goldberg Tolmach, Safer Chemicals Healthy Families:

Editor’s Note: Paige was one of the hundreds of amazing women who submitted her story to our Mom on a Mission program last year. Now, we’re looking for 2011 submissions and this year’s winner will receive $5,000 to support her efforts to create healthier environments for children. Submit your nomination for a Mom on a Mission today!

Three years ago, I had a baby. A beautiful, perfect, amazing baby. Within eight weeks of birth, my perfect baby developed eczema. Extreme eczema. Every doctor on the planet told me that his skin condition was a product of genetics and a reaction to the weather. This seemed odd to me as neither my husband nor I had eczema.

Though I continually insisted that my baby must be allergic to something in his environment, the doctors dismissed my notions and explained that there was absolutely nothing that I could do to help him other than using topical and oral steroids to manage his breakouts. If we were lucky, they said, he would grow out of it by age six. They also told me to stop breastfeeding.

This wasn’t good enough for me. In my heart, I knew that they were wrong. I refused to listen and kept on searching for answers. I continued to breastfeed my baby and started doing a tremendous amount of research on eczema, allergies and possible environmental factors that might have played a role. What I discovered was shocking – my home was toxic.

Hazardous chemicals were in all of my household cleaning products. Jackson’s crib mattress off gassed toxic flame retardant. His plastic teething toys and bottles contained phthalates and BPA which were linked to allergic skin conditions and worse. His cotton clothing (everything that he wore) was tainted with residue from the cancer causing pesticides that were sprayed on the crops before they became onesies, towels or crib bedding. Carcinogenic substances such as synthetic fragrances, artificial colors, parabens, mineral oil and/or petrolatum were in all of his bodycare products. Even the products suggested by the doctors to help his eczema!

I could not believe that I didn’t know these things. I felt lied to by every author who wrote every book on pregnancy and child-rearing. I felt betrayed by the many baby stores where I had spent hundreds of dollars on clothing, bedding and bathing products – not to mention toys which went directly in my baby’s mouth and skincare which covered his entire body. I felt tricked by our government who clearly makes us think that all is “safe” for baby. No wonder he had eczema. And worse, I had no idea that I had options.

I immediately threw out everything in my son’s nursery – his furniture, mattress, bedding, toys, bottles, clothing and bodycare. I then searched the planet looking for safe alternatives like toys without lead, clothes without pesticide residue, bottles without BPA and a mattress without toxic flame retardant. This was no easy task. I ordered rattles from New Zealand, bottles from Texas, stuffed animals from Sri Lanka, and clothing from England. I got rid of all chemical cleaners and started using vinegar and water to clean my house. I dressed him in organic clothing and swaddled him in organic blankets. I also paid a visit to my genius acupuncturist who gave me creams to help heal Jackson’s beautiful baby skin that had been ravaged by excessive scratching and bleeding. Within weeks, his eczema went away and his skin began to glow.

I was overjoyed. I wanted to shout my discovery from the rooftops and I knew just where to begin – my own backyard. With my friend, Soleil Moon Frye, I opened a non-toxic and eco friendly baby store called The Little Seed. I didn’t want anyone to have to go through what I did without help or support.

I know that every parent out there wants to make a better world for their little ones. With my new found knowledge I hope that I can be of some assistance along the way. Because, as you know, we are all in this together.

Thanks to Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families for sharing this story. Take a minute today, to sign the petition asking President Obama to make chemical regulation a priority. Toxic chemicals do not belong in our homes.

The opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and not necessarily those of
Healthy Child Healthy World.

Posted by Marcie Mom on 06/30/2011 at 10:58 PM

My baby girl has eczema from 2 weeks old, and triggered by heat. I hardly use detergent/chemical to clean my home, usually with water and believe it or not, tissue paper (so that I don’t need to wash the wipe cloth).

I have a blog eczemablues.com to share about tips on managing our child’s eczema and also starting a support group. Do drop by.
http://eczemablues.com/support-group/

Posted by Leigh on 03/30/2011 at 11:14 AM

Thank you so much for sharing this! My son too had eczema and still does! I did similar to what you do for your son in changing things out, using natural home-based household cleaners that I made at home with vinegar, water, Dr. Bronner’s soap, etc. I really empathized with your words on feeling betrayed because that is what I felt too. I almost felt hopeless at first like I had no where to turn because it just seems like it is all around you with phlatates, parabens, etc. After doing endless amounts of time researching, I hope I have found better products for my family. I will Goodsearch your store and see what all you have found too! God Bless you and your endeavors! :)

Posted by Cheryl Fitzgerald on 03/21/2011 at 07:02 PM

Hi Elizabeth,
I knew that there were lots of hazardous chemicals in the home. As a distributor of Shaklee products my agenda is to educate anyone who is open to learning about the health issues that may be directly linked with what they use for household cleaning, laundry, and personal care products.

Thank you for sharing the information on the chemicals used to make the baby bedding flame retardant and the residue that comes from the chemicals sprayed on the cotton baby clothing.

I will be sharing this information.

God bless….
Cheryl & Anthony Fitzgerald
Your Independent Shaklee Distributor

Posted by Carolyn Reuben, L.Ac. on 03/20/2011 at 09:53 AM

Wish I’d thought of starting a business when I did the research for my book Cleansing the Body, Mind and Spirit (Berkley, 1992) which revealed to me the same horrific quantity of toxins in our homes (the most dangerous square foot is probably under your kitchen sink!) and nurseries. One shocker: a grammar school with kids and teachers constantly ill called in a researcher (the parents called her in, not the administrator) and she used a sample of the air directly above the rug the kindergarteners played on in a closed system with mice and the animals died. While my book is on detoxing, good books to educate yourselves and teachers on environmental allergens is Doris Rapp, MD’s Is This Your Child? and Is This Your Child’s World? (in addition to the great one titled, natch, Healthy Child Healthy World by Christopher Gavigan and this organization.

Posted by Cintia on 03/20/2011 at 12:22 AM

I did almost the same, changed my son’s matress, Naturepedic is the one that I choose, skin products, Mustela has a great line to use for eczema, it is the Stelatopia. I also did what a doctor recomended, to buy dust mite covers for our mattress and pilows, all made with organic cotton, started to use chlorine free diapers and wipes. I did almost all of it without my husband’s agreement, he would prefer to follow most of the doctor opinions and use steroids. My son doesn’t have eczema anymore! What a blessing, his case was severe, it was almost like if his skin was burned. I am glad that I found information and good products!

Posted by Dawn on 03/19/2011 at 05:03 AM

I too have suffered from eczema my entire life. I’m so glad that all worked out for her and her baby. However, she went to great expense to purchase all the new organic and non-toxic items. Most people cannot afford to buy all new organic items—-they are expensive. What is needed are affordable options for the less fortunate.

Posted by Betsy (Eco-novice) on 03/18/2011 at 09:25 PM

My husband has had eczema pretty much his entire life, particularly on his hands. When we switched to natural personal products and cleaners, it went away. Recently when we were visiting a relative (who uses harsh cleaners), it came back, and then cleared up as soon as we came home. I’m not sure why peds don’t suggest switching to more natural products first. It seems like an obvious thing to do to me. My babies both had very sensitive skin too, but by bathing less and only using very mild products, it has never been so bad that we needed any medicated creams.

Posted by Tiffany on 03/18/2011 at 01:06 PM

My infant son had eczema but we already had many of the things you suggested ( safe cleaners, allergen free bedding, BPA free bottles, etc.) so after seeing a naturopath, she suggested a gluten free diet. That worked. Days later, his eczema and horrible diaper rash disappeared and never returned as long as we kept his diet to basically fruits, vegetables and meat. We did occasionally given him gluten free snacks, as well. We never used steroids on his body and are so fortunate to have found that diet was the cause. I highly recommend anyone that has a child with eczema to look into diet as one of the causes!

Posted by Stephanie on 03/18/2011 at 11:37 AM

Thanks so much for sharing this story. I started my company the same way…out of maternal instinct. As a small business up against big chemical, pharma & cosmetics, it’s a tough fight. But together we are stronger. Educating the public (that has a very short attention span) is where the shift begins. Consumer demand is powerful. thanks again HCHW and Paige!

Posted by Elizabeth on 03/16/2011 at 09:02 PM

Good for you to trust your maternal instincts! Much more important to follow than what anyone else says!

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