E numbers

[netty.m]

My 2 year old son has bad eczema on his arms.  The doctor has told me to put him on an E number free diet.  I am confused.  Do E numbers have to be listed on the ingrediants or can they be listed in their full name?  Will it be all E numbers? Has anyone else had to have an E free diet?  Help.

[willow74]

They SHOULD have their full E number but if not here is a list of the full names too. It may be worth having this in your purse

http://www.food.gov.uk/safereating/additivesbranch/enumberlist

[morg_monster]

Some will just be listed as E numbers however some such as Guar gum, carrageenan etc may eb given their full name. Depends on how long the name is! Here is a list from the food standards agency

http://www.food.gov.uk/safereating/additivesbranch/enumb erlist

Does your doctor plan to find out which E numbers exactly are a problem for him? Because they are a LOT of E numbers and not all of them will be problematic. Remember, being given an E number just means that an additive has been approved to be added to food. They aren't all colours like tartrazine etc which can ause hyperactivity etc. for example vinegar has E260. This list

http://curezone.com/foods/enumbers.asp

tells which numbers are suspected of being bad for various disorders. search for 'eczema' or 'skin' to find the baddies - it's a long list! Might help you to pinpoint the culprits and then you won't have to cut them all out. good luck!

[milly1984]

netty.m I don't know if you have read my Imposter post, but just so you know it was not me who posted that answer above and hope it gets removed shortly. There are kids on this site who enjoy spoiling it for others by using there usernames and posting horrible comments and questions.

[Scarlett]

What your Doctor is really saying is that additives and processed food can cause/aggravate eczema. As can dairy products. Perhaps you should avoid all dairy for a couple of weeks and see if he improves (look on pakcets for milk/whey/whey powder). You can avoid all E numbers by just not eating processed food. Eat lots of fruit, veg, chicken, fish and whole grains- rice, chick peas, etc. Read the Carol Vorderman detox book for ideas- I swear by it. He could also be allergic to your washing powder. Switch to non-bio, or an allergy-free powder/liquid. If all else fails, take him to a homeopath. Many people absolutely swear by them- myself included. If you use steroid cream from the Doctor, all this will do is suppress the inflammation; it won't deal with the cause of the problem. Good luck ! x

[morg_monster]

No offense intended Scarlett but I just want to qualify your above posting:
it probably isn't wise to totally cut out dairy products from a 2-year old's diet without getting some advice from a doctor or dietician first. Dairy is an important source of fats, calcium and many other vitamins and minerals, which are vitally important and if you simply removed milk, cheese, etc then his diet would become deficient unless you replace them with something suitable, to ensure the little lad is getting everything he needs to grow healthy and strong.

[Scarlett]

None taken! My sisters kids all started to get eczema at around 1, and since it runs in our family, she took them off dairy, and they have been fine ever since. She is very careful to endure they get all their nutrients from other foods- soya milk for example, often has more calcium and vitamins than milk, as they are specifically added for that reason. Yes, small kids need milk- their Mother's milk, but very often a cow's milk just doesn't sit well with our insides, especially if you have allergic tendancies in the family.