Eczema is an inflammatory skin disease of allergic origin characterized by an itchy rash. At present, at least one in ten babies suffers from eczema during the first year of life and it is estimated that half of them will develop some other type of allergy in the future such as asthma or pollen allergy.
Like all allergic diseases, eczema spreads by leaps and bounds in the child population, so research is constantly done to find a way to prevent it.
In that sense, a research team from the Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Technology (CSIC) of Valencia has studied the role of intestinal bacteria in the development of the baby's immune system.
They have found that supply prebiotic bacteria (those that help strengthen our immune system) to babies and their mothers with a family history of allergic conditions reduces the appearance of eczema or atopic dermatitis.
We have already known that probiotics could help relieve infant colic and that they also help protect against food allergies, so the possibility of adding these substances in baby milks would be considered.
Let us clarify that babies fed with breast milk benefit from an extra dose of immunization against allergies, and therefore also against eczema, thanks to the antibodies and natural prebiotics that milk contains that provide a healthy balance of intestinal bacteria, first defensive barrier of the organism.
