Dermatology

Dermatology is the first in the 7 “-ologies” in EXeczema® series intended to help people fix their own skin and beat eczema.

Ask yourself, why do so many millions of people suffer from eczema?  The mystery and confusion of eczema raises questions as diverse and numerous as the people who suffer.  Yet skin is simple enough, so how did this unhelpful mystique develop?  Might people lack the answers they seek?  Could they still be searching for the right questions?  Then Dermatology, the study of skin, is a great place to start.

Skin is living packaging which separates the outside world from the inside person.  That’s a tough job so the skin needs to replace itself every couple of weeks.  Each day dried skin cells fall off the outside, and for each cell that falls off a new replacement cell on the inside begins to work its way outwards.  If all those replacement cells mature they join up and make intact skin.  But in eczema the outer skin is cracked and those cracks are filled with whatever products are being applied at the time.

What happens when the healthy replacement skin cells working their way outwards reach the bottom of the cracks?  They meet whatever creams, ointments and emollients have been put onto the eczema, but those cells are still immature and not ready for chemical insults yet.  What if that chemical cocktail killed some of the immature replacement cells?  The contents of those cells would be released into the skin and the immune system would react to that material.  The result would be inflamed, cracked, red and itchy skin – eczema.

In stark contrast, what if none of the replacement skin cells were killed and they all reached the outside to make intact skin?  There would be no cracks, no immune reaction, no redness and no itch.  The eczema would be gone and you’d have achieved EXeczema®, the state of freedom from eczema.

The secret lies in not concentrating on and dampening down the immune reaction.  Put your efforts into keeping the cells intact so there is no reason for the immune reaction. Then you don’t need the steroids and immune-suppressants.

How do you safeguard those replacement cells?  Stop applying those moisturisers, emollients, ointments and creams.  They haven’t ended the eczema, so they haven’t served you well.  It’s challenging if you’ve used them for ages, but it only takes a couple of weeks for the new cells to reach the outside and make normal skin.  That’s a very short period in the overall scheme of eczema, so are you ready?

In all the time you’ve spent considering eczema, how many advisers have explained skin and Dermatology to this extent?  Your answer might explain why such mystique and confusion prevails.  The remaining 6 blogs in the 7 “-ologies” in EXeczema® series will increase your understanding of skin and help YOU overcome eczema.

Dr Harley Farmer PhD BVSc(hons) BVBiol(path) MRCVS,  CEO of NewGenn Ltd, EXeczema® creator and leader, novelist and inspirational speaker.

7-ology intro

Eczema is a complicated state trapping millions of people in misery for years.  The EXeczema® process has allowed many to free themselves in 14 days.  The usual response is to ask HOW.  In response I find it best to take it step by step, progressively bringing people to their own inductive learnings.  They benefit from learning about skin, how it works and how they can best defend it.  They can then keep themselves free of eczema.

First, look at the word HOW and shuffle the letters to make WHO.  Now think back and ask WHO kept the person trapped in eczema.  That simple exercise is revealing as it separates those who want to know and are ready to escape eczema, from those who shudder at the revelation and prefer to hide amongst the millions who, for now, prefer to stay in the diseased state.   The latter simply aren’t ready yet and they should be fully supported while they see others progress from hope to confidence to freedom.

For those who are ready to progress, now look forward and ask WHO will achieve this happy freedom from eczema?  If you personally suffer from eczema the answer is simple; it’s you.  If you are a parent caring for an eczema child the answer is equally simple; it’s you.  When you enter the EXeczema® process I will simply be the guide developing your understanding of skin.  You will be doing the work so YOU will benefit from the reward of freedom.  Would that feel good?  Believe me I’ll gain a fantastic buzz from hearing that freedom has been achieved in your case, but YOU are the vital WHO.

Over the next couple of months I’ll sequentially reveal the 7 “-ologies” I used to create the very simple EXeczema® process.  For those who are keen to know the full list now, it’s dermatology, pathology, immunology, pharmacology, bacteriology, physiology and psychology.  If any one of those is left out it’s very likely that the sufferer will remain in eczema.  During your eczema journey, have you ever encountered an expert in one of those 7 “-ologies” who didn’t know much about the rest?  If so, that person’s advice will have been only part of the required set which means they shouldn’t be blamed for the failure to eliminate the disease state.  That’s why the ‘look back at WHO’ exercise is less helpful than looking forward to realise YOU are the key.

Before I begin the 7-ology series, let me start with an apology for the gap since my last blog.  I was deluged with thousands of comments, for which I thank you all, and I was simply overwhelmed.  I also offer an advance apology if it takes me time to post your new responses and comments.  Please do keep them coming and join in the EXeczema® process; we’ll beat eczema if YOU play your part.

Dr Harley Farmer PhD BVSc(hons) BVBiol(path) MRCVS  CEO of NewGenn Ltd, creator of EXeczema® and lifelong believer in people.

EXeczema freedom fighters campign

A huge thank you is given to the many thousands who’ve taken the time to comment on this EXeczema blog series.  The outstanding global response dramatically demonstrates the immense relevance of eczema in so many lives.

I began writing the blog after sensing confusing emotions among those who had freed themselves from eczema with NewGenn’s EXeczema products.  Typically it took just 10 to 14 days, even if they’d been suffering for decades.  Obviously they were thrilled, but confusion arose when they wondered why they had been left languishing in misery for so long.  Who would allow that to happen?  Was it up to them to help free others?

When I first heard some EXeczema successes use the term “freedom fighters” I took it as a joke.  How wrong I was.  A true spirit of fighting back is now very apparent, so you might ask what or who they are fighting against?

In the simplest terms, it’s the injustice of how they were left in such intense misery for so many years.  Their lives were blighted by a disease they now know could have been stopped in two weeks.  That induced frightening confusion as they had placed so much trust in those who were looking after them.  Now it transpires that many of the products they were advised to put onto those painful red patches of skin were probably maintaining their disease and misery.

It’s hardly surprising that a groundswell of resentment is developing, so I’m now making it my job to channel that energy into constructive campaigns to free many more eczema sufferers.  There are still many millions of people trapped in what I call “the eczema cycle” which raises the question of how to best use the freedom fighters’ energy?

Personally I prefer quiet sustained pressure from within.  We need momentum, and that is calculated by multiplying mass by velocity.  We have such a huge mass of eczema people that each person doesn’t need to provide much velocity for us to generate massive momentum.  I’m very happy leading the EXeczema campaign to freedom, and a good number of EXeczema successes are very willing to do their part in public.  The video endorsements on this website provide an example of how simple it is to take part.

All you need do is free your skin of eczema and provide an endorsement to have joined the campaign.  Others will see hope in your success, feel confidence from the increasing numbers, and gain freedom.  The EXeczema Freedom Fighter campaign is self-generating and it only takes a couple of weeks for each sufferer to become free and play their part.

As with any global campaign, some will join in immediately while others will wait.  That’s right – we can afford to take our time.  The eczema epidemic has grown over three decades, so I’m content to take three years to overcome all that misery.

Will you join me and answer the call to action?

Dr Harley Farmer PhD BVSc(hons) BVBiol(path) MRCVS NewGenn CEO, EXeczema originator, one who leads with will and humility.

Consider building on EFF from EXeczema Freedom Fighters.  In time they can become EFFing excited, EFFing annoyed, EFFing happy, EFF courageous, EFFing delighted.  It would beneficially lower the tone from my PhD level and bring far more momentum in numbers.  The EXeczema Freedom Fighters campaign will become EFFing powerful.

EXeczema campaign

A huge thank you is offered to the many thousands who’ve given their time to provide comments over the months since I began this blog series.  The outstanding global response dramatically demonstrates the immense relevance of eczema in so many lives.

I began writing the blog after sensing the confusing emotions among those who had freed themselves from eczema with NewGenn’s EXeczema products.  Typically it took just 10 to 14 days, even if they had been suffering for decades.  Those who’ve freed themselves have become very active advocates showing an intense desire to help others.

When I first heard some EXeczema successes use the term “freedom fighters” I confess it seemed to be a joke.  How wrong I was.  A true spirit of fighting back is now very apparent, so you might ask what they are fighting against.

In the simplest terms, it’s the injustice of how they were left in such intense misery for so many years.  Their lives were blighted by a disease they now know could have been stopped in two weeks.  That has induced considerable confusion as they placed so much trust in those who were looking after them.  Now it transpires that many of the products they were advised to put onto those painful red patches of skin were probably maintaining the very disease.

It’s hardly surprising that a groundswell of resentment is developing, so I’m now making it my job to channel that energy into constructive campaigns to free many more eczema sufferers.  There are still many millions of people trapped in the eczema cycle which raises the question of how to best use the freedom fighters’ energy?

Personally I prefer quiet sustained pressure from within.  We need momentum, and that is calculated by multiplying mass by velocity.  We have such a huge mass of eczema people that each person doesn’t need to show much velocity for us to generate massive momentum.  I’m very happy leading the EXeczema campaign to freedom, and a good number of EXeczema successes are very willing to do their part in public.  The video endorsements on www.newgenn.co.uk provide an example.

Now we simply need to provide the stepping stones to EXeczema success for millions of others.  First is HOPE, a simple emotion when you see others who have succeeded so quickly with such little effort.  Then comes CONFIDENCE as you realise how easy it is for you to break free of your chronic skin problem.  The third is FREEDOM which you now know is just a matter of days away, even if you’ve suffered from eczema for many years.

As with any global campaign, some will want to join in immediately, and others will prefer to wait.  That is right.  We can afford to take our time.  The eczema epidemic has been growing for over three decades, so I’m content to take three years to overcome all that misery.

Will you join me and answer the call to action?

Dr Harley Farmer PhD BVSc(hons) BVBiol(path) MRCVS NewGenn CEO, EXeczema originator, one who leads with will and humility.

Wet wipes and eczema

Wet wipes are a convenient way to apply liquids to skin, so why do large eczema organisations suggest they shouldn’t be used?  Eczema makes life complicated and any added convenience would be welcomed, wouldn’t it?  Apparently not in the case of wet wipes, so what’s going on?

When people began telling me eczema had disappeared when they used our products, I investigated.  “Eczema can’t be cured” was, and remains, the prevailing view so if we weren’t curing it, what were we doing?  Eczema investigations can become bogged down in complexities, but luck was with me.  We had individuals who’d reported eczema disappearing within weeks of them just using our wipes.  So I purchased all 35 of the branded baby wipes I could find from British retailers, and examined their chemical contents.  Surely baby wipes would be safe and mild, yes?

I was horrified.  Two thirds of them contained chemicals that would not be favourable on normal adult skin, let alone sensitive baby skin.  If the wipes contained chemicals that might damage normal skin, what could they do to broken skin in eczema?  So those who advise against the use of these wet wipes on eczema are correct.

Is it that easy?  Don’t use any wet wipes on eczema?  Not quite – we had reports of well-established eczema disappearing within weeks of our wipes being used, so I looked deeper.

It’s always hard to decide on any one chemical, so I also looked at the number of chemicals used.  Our wipes have only six ingredients, including the water, and those wipes leave a marvellous silky feeling, kill hospital super-bugs like MRSA, are biodegradable, have excellent cleaning properties and, apparently, skin can recover from eczema when they are used.

So you only need 6 ingredients, but 14 was the average among the well-known brands, and one even contained 26.

If ours had been the only wipes to contain just “nice” ingredients, the major brands could have simply said we were unrealistic perfectionists.  Fortunately five other wipes shared that good position with us, even if they did have many more ingredients.  Those brands all offered multiple versions of baby wipes but, unfortunately, only a minority contained just the “nice” ingredients.  So if they could do it sometimes, why didn’t they always do it?  One major brand sold three versions of baby wipes and their ‘sensitive skin’ wipe was in the bad group.

So if we’re not curing eczema with these wipes, what are we doing?  I suggest our wipes don’t cure eczema – they simply do no harm freeing the skin to rid itself of the disease.

What can you do?  Only use wipes containing 6 or 7 ingredients.  We’ve proven it’s possible, so the big guys can easily match us if, and when, they want.  Until they do, try NewGenn wipes and help by joining our EXeczema campaign.

Dr Harley Farmer PhD BVSc(hons) BVBiol(path) MRCVS NewGenn CEO, EXeczema originator, an honest broker in this complicated world.

Can moisturisers dry skin?

One of the skin’s many functions is to help control the body’s water.  It acts as outer packaging to hold in water, yet it also constantly allows tiny amounts to pass through and evaporate away.  That is happening all the time, day and night, usually without our awareness.

Skin is also very thin, so there is ample water within us very close to the surface.

If all that water is so close to the surface, and the skin is allowing water through, how can areas of skin become dry?

One way would be if you applied a skincare product that reduced the amount of water passing through.  What would happen if you applied an oil-based product to a patch of skin?  Do oil and water mix?  Does water evaporate through a layer of oil?  It certainly doesn’t when you see an oil spill on the sea.  What about an oil patch on the skin?  Would you agree that putting an oil-based product onto an area of skin might reduce the passage of water?  If so, might that reduction in water passing through make the skin dry?

Many moisturisers are oil-based so applying them would do precisely that.  Have you noticed that once you begin applying moisturiser the treated area stays dry so you need moisturisers more and more until you need them every day?  Sound familiar?

But didn’t we just agree there was ample water immediately below the dry patch?  And the skin should have water constantly passing through, including the dry area in question?    So isn’t the logic behind needing a moisturiser beginning to fall apart?

Even worse, people often apply other products like creams to areas of dry skin creating a chemical concoction.  Sadly that chemical mix can cause damage and pretty soon you have eczema.  Ask those with eczema whether their condition began with dry skin?  Now consider whether the original dryness began because they applied moisturisers?

Sound too weird?  Imagine if I had a 60 minute bath, a really good old soak.  When I dried off there would be a tingle in my skin which they would have me believe meant I needed a moisturiser.  But I’ve just been submerged in water, so my skin is actually OVER hydrated and certainly doesn’t need a moisturiser.  Yet that is what we’re taught to apply.  A similar effect can occur after a shower.   We wet our skin and then apply something that can make it dry.

Most people don’t need to worry about this, but it seems 10% of people around the developed world do as something is trapping them in the eczema cycle.  This blog is intended to provide them with a better understanding of skin.  It also raises the question of whether one of their favourite skincare products may actually be a major part of their problem.

If this blog helps them escape eczema and join our EXeczema^® club then I’m happy.

Dr Harley Farmer PhD BVSc(hons) BVBiol(path) MRCVS NewGenn CEO, originator of EXeczema.

Shampoos and Eczema

Eczema is easier to understand once you appreciate it’s simply broken skin.  Let’s keep it simple.

Skin is skin.  Day in, day out, 24/7, everyone’s skin is making perfectly normal new skin cells to replace the old skin cells which fall off every day.  The journey from new cell to falling off takes about 14 days and we all do it.

If the new cells are normal and capable of making healthy skin, why do patches of eczema continue for years?  It’s very simple.

In healthy skin all the new skin cells make it to the outside and join together making lovely, soft, pliable, skin.  But what if some of the cells didn’t make it?  We produce just the correct number of cells to do the job, so if some are killed won’t that result in too few cells to produce intact skin?  If that resulted in broken skin, might that present a chance for chemicals to enter the skin?  Correct – that’s eczema.

Once eczema is established, sufferers can become trapped in a vicious cycle in which the eczema seems to perpetuate itself.  Skin has no reason to do that, and I suggest the trap is actually fuelled by insufficient knowledge resulting in inappropriate chemicals adversely affecting immature cells in the eczema patches.

So why is shampoo in the title?  Shampoos are chemical compositions intended to remove oils and scale from the scalp.  Put very simply, they are strong cleaning products.  Would you put a strong cleaning product onto the broken skin of eczema?  Not consciously, but what happens when a person with eczema on their body uses a shampoo in the shower?  Where does the shampoo go when it’s washed from the head?  It goes down, all over the body.  So that person is inadvertently putting a strong cleaning product onto their eczema.

What if that tough cleaning product – shampoo – entered the broken skin and killed some of the new skin cells before they reached maturity?  Would that reduce the number of new skin cells available to make intact, good, skin?  It would, wouldn’t it?

I know people who used to apply all sorts of creams and emollients to their eczema patches before shampooing to stop the pain of shampoo in those sensitive areas.  Those people used the NewGenn EXeczema products to form a silky temporary barrier over the eczema patches to protect the latter from shampoo.  Within days their skin began to fix itself.  The only way that could have happened was if the new cells encountered our products and survived.  Simply put, we didn’t kill any new skin cells, so they all made it to the outside and formed normal skin.

No magic – just common sense based on understanding skin, and the use of some very gentle wellbeing skincare products that leave a lovely silky feel on skin.

No eczema ‘cure’ – just no eczema.  That’s nice and simple, wouldn’t you agree?

Dr Harley Farmer PhD BVSc(hons) BVBiol(path) MRCVS novelist, one who thrives on simplicity.