Skin
When skin flares, think cooling.
For itchy, red or burning skin, practitioners reach for cooling drinks and a calmer plate before anything else. Here is what they suggest.
Two cooling drinks
Hibiscus tea
Up to two cups a day, between meals. It is cooling and tart.
Skip it if you have low blood pressure.
How to make itAloe vera juice
A quarter cup of food-grade juice on an empty stomach in the morning.
Avoid it in pregnancy, and check with a clinician if you take medication.
From Jennifer Temple.
On your plate
Lean toward
- Bitter
- Fenugreek, bitter greens, bitter gourd
- Astringent
- Berries, cherries, apples
- Soothing grains
- Rice, millets, wheat
- Cooling
- Cilantro, cucumber
Go easy on
- Pungent
- Onion, garlic, capsicum, chilli
- Sour
- Lemon, tamarind, pickles
- Fermented
- Overnight dosa and idli batter
- Hot and dry
- Fried and heavily roasted snacks
From Dimple Jangda and Jennifer Temple.
On the skin
Melon rind for itch
After eating cantaloupe, rub the pale inner rind gently over itchy, burning skin. Try a small patch first.
Oil before the shower, not after
A light layer of oil before washing protects skin from drying out.
A mild wash
Swap harsh soap for the gentlest cleanser you have.
From Dr. Vasant Lad and Nidhi Pandya.
For a child with eczema
Practitioners who treat children's eczema start with the whole child, not the skin: what they eat, how they digest and sleep, and their mood. Bring those notes to your child's doctor.