This week is an important one – it is National Eczema Awareness Week. It is a cause close to my heart as I suffered badly with eczema on my hands as a child and any sort of cold weather was a nightmare and meant constant pain from my cracked hands.
Back then there were no wonder creams for eczema – it was a case of using thick layers of Vaseline on your hands and wearing gloves if it was in any way cold. And the Vaseline did work – I remember it kind of sealing the deep cracks that were all across the back of my hands and giving some alleviation to the pain that came with the condition.
Luckily in the past few years, my eczema has calmed considerably. But I am now a devout hand cream user and always have gloves with me. I am still cautious about exposing my hands to any sort of cold air – it’s amazing how something from your childhood can stick with you! I am always trying new hand creams – and currently, these are still my favourite.
La Roche Posay is a brand that I have been loyal to for many years – I even talked about it here way back in 2015 and although the blog has changed in many ways (certainly the image quality for one!) – my thoughts on the Toleriane Moisturizer remain unchanged. There is always some of this in my skincare collection and even a backup most of the time. When I learned about La Roche Posay releasing their Lipikar Stick AP+ which is their first instant sooth and repair stick for eczema prone skin I knew that I wanted to share.
According to IrishSkin.ie, 1-in- 5 children and 1-in-12 adults affected by eczema and although as far as I am aware there is no cure yet but there are treatments out there to help. It depends a lot on the severity on what avenue of treatment you use.
The Lipikar Stick AP+ is small and handbag sized and the stick is meant to be used when you feel the urge to scratch. I love the small size of it – perfect for throwing in your handbag in the colder months. Basically, when you use if it offers relief as it restores balance to the skin microbiome. By doing this it claims to reduce redness, inflammation and frequency of flare-ups and reinforce and repair the skin barrier. La Roche Posay is a brand that I trust as to date I have not had issues with skin reactions so I am looking forward to trying this out. You can even see back in 2015 here that I was using some of their Lipikar range – in their hand cream! 🙂
Dr. Niki Ralph, Consultant Dermatologist with La Roche Posay commented; “Eczema is one of the top five skin conditions affecting people in Ireland and the number one symptom associated with this condition is itch (pruritus). This has a significant impact on the quality of life of the person affected, but also their family and friends. Lipikar Stick AP+ provides an alternative to scratching and is an innovative method to tackling the itch-scratch cycle. It is safe for all ages and can be applied to the whole body including sensitive areas such as the eyelids. Its pocket size enables it to be used anytime, anywhere by anyone“.
I will still always have a pair of gloves in my handbag from the end of August onwards, but if this stick means that any flare-ups will be held at bay I have no doubt that this will be a staple in my wardrobe this Winter!
