Breast milk eczema lotion

[YorksLass]

Just thought I'd share...
We all have eczema in our house, so really dreaded it for my daughter even before she was born. I took probiotics in pregnancy in the hope that it would make a difference and, to be fair, I don't think her eczema is as bad as mine was at her age!

A couple of months ago, it got a bit out of control... the doc prescribed cetraben, which didn't do anything, and I didn't want any steroid creams for my baby, of course.
I looked for a recipe for a breast milk lotion as I knew that rubbing it on her skin helped... found a few and adapted them (most said to use grapeseed oil, but coconut oil seems to set and lock the milk in much better). It cleared up my daughter's eczema to nearly nothing in two days
Now, it's all I use for her nappy cream too!

Does anybody know... they say to only store breast milk to drink in the freezer for...6 months? I forget... But would it matter how long if I'm storing it to make lotion and not to drink?

In case it helps anybody, this is the recipe I use:

Put a glass bowl over a pan of simmering water and add to it 1oz coconut oil with 1/2 teaspoon beeswax.
When the wax is melted, take the bowl off the heat and add a few drops of vitamin e oil.
Whisk the mixture thoroughly while adding 1oz breast milk so everything is well combined.
Pour into a small jar and leave to cool before refrigerating.

Apparently the lotion will keep for up to 3 months in the fridge, but I get through it too quick to find out!

 

[candymycandy]

Thanks for this yorkslass. Can I ask what probiotics you took? No idea about how long it would keep either, not sure if BM goes off like cows milk?? But I'd assume the same as you re it not being for drinking x

 

[YorksLass]

I took actimel or yakult and ate plenty of bio-live yoghurt. I've been looking into it further lately and it's debatable how much of the useful bacteria from those actually survives the stomach acids! Apparently a brand called Symprove came out best in tests (but I can't afford that right now!)
Prebiotics seem to be the thing to do too, which you can get in sachets - they act as a fertiliser for the bacteria that's there and make it healthier and more prolific.
Generally, looking after gut bacteria seems to benefit lots of things, from allergies to sleep problems - I need to get the money to test these things out haha!
I suppose that's why breast milk works as a topical treatment, as it contains live cultures. And of course one of the reasons it's best for baby to drink!