help help fast from indiana

[Teri]

Hi- I am pretty new- 7 batches CP- several batches of bath products- My assistant principal is going through brain radiation- I am going to make body butter for her head but have been told that she has eczema and so I have to make sure no fragrances, colors, etc....is cocoa butter and grapeseed oil ok for eczema? Please advise ASAP.....thanks! Teri

ok- I am using the whipped cocoa butter body butter from this site- subbing all grape seed oil (- 2 ounces of grape seed oil for the apricot kernel and almond oil for castor oil)....would this have an adverse effect on eczema> please advise as my friend is already in her 2nd week of brain radiation and I want to help the burn on her head. Please advise ASAP. Thanks!

Please for the love of God- post as to whether Grape seed and cocoa butter are ok (in you opinion) for eczema- the problem we are really treating in my opinion is radiation burn- please advise ASAP- she is only on radiation for a few more days and the burn is there- please help...Thank You!

 

[cmzaha]

Sorry to hear about your friend. I have a lotion I sell at City of Hope that is getting very good feedback from patients with the bad burns. I use beeswax, aloe butter avocado, sunflower, kokum butter, argan oil, hemp butter, jojoba, shea. Sorry I do have a few additives but they are proprietary. This is my basic formula and is a good starting point. I would stay away from the grapeseed since it is an astringent oil. If you use shea check that she has no latex allergies. Shea has some of the same properties as shea. I also forgot to add that I add in vitamin e.

 

[Ellacho]

I would make whipped Shea butter instead but cocoa butter and grape seed oil are fine, in my opinion. I personally don't like to use castor oil in body butter because it's bit too thick. You can also sub the olive oil for almond/apricot kernel oils.

 

[dixiedragon]

Different people with eczema respond to different things. I know of a few people who used one of my soaps with fragrance oil and color and reported their excema improved. If you want to make special soap for this person, maybe some pine tar soap.

Re: the head balm - do you want something that absorbs quickly or that forms more of a surface layer? If you want something that absorbs quickly, grape seed, avocado, sweet almond and shea are very nice. If you want something that stays on the surface more, I like cocoa butter, lanolin and beeswax.

Perhaps consider a very small amount of lavender EO, especially if she will be using this at night.

My personal preference is not to use castor in anything but soap. It is a laxative and I'm always worried about a pet or a child eating it and getting diarrhea! Don't know how big a danger this actually is, just a preference.

Prayers for your friend.

 

[Lin]

I would use avocado instead of grapeseed. If you can't get avocado locally, sweet almond (which may be more difficult to get than avocado) or sunflower. The cocoa butter is fine.

 

[Twiggy]

I've heard that Shea is amazing for eczema!

 

[dixiedragon]

You may want to consider doing some kind of lotion bar that she can rub on her head. If you aren't familiar with them, a lotion bar is basically a giant stick of lip balm in some type of roll-up container, like a stick of deodorant.

Another thing you may want to consider for excema is neem oil.

 

[cmzaha]

Different people with eczema respond to different things. I know of a few people who used one of my soaps with fragrance oil and color and reported their excema improved. If you want to make special soap for this person, maybe some pine tar soap.

I absolutely would Not make pine tar soap for a chemical burn from radiation or chemo or even for eczema. It is true, people with eczema do respond differently, but pine tar is actually a high allergen. Usually the result of the therapy leaves such a thick hard burn it takes more than just a lotion. You could try the oils I mentioned and add in some mallow root extract. I have seen my lotion work on these side effects of chemo and radiation. Make your friend a castile with oatmeal extract or even oatmeal water. Meadowfoam oil is also another nice oil. Do check on what she is allergic to and this is especially critical since the treatment is especially hard on the immune system and eczema is an auto immune disorder so her eczema could escalate if she has severe eczema. Sorry for all the ramblings from me, but I see so much of this at City of Hope I put a lot of thought into my products I sell out there. I always give the patients a printout of ingredients for the docs and nurses. Please have your friend do a small 24 hour patch test of any product. Usually the inside of the elbow is a good test point.

You will also need to give her a complete printout of the ingredients for her to give her doctors for approval before she uses any product.

 

[pamielynn]

I would think she'd be better off with a single oil to rub on. The more ingredients, the higher the chances of a reaction. Her system is compromised and may not react as it would normally.

 

[judymoody]

I would try a salve - maybe 20% beeswax and the balance in butter and oil. Grapeseed is light and easily absorbed. I would check to see if she has allergies to cocoa or shea (latex and shea allergy are related). If not, I think either would work but cocoa butter is harder so you'd use less of it.

 

[Teri]

Thanks to all who responded- I really appreciate the replies- I am only using Cocoa Butter, Olive and Grapeseed oil in my whipped body butter. It seems to be helping w/ my friend's radiation burn. Thanks so much!