Eczema so bad baby looked like a burns victim until mum found answer

A mother whose baby looked like a “burn victim” because of severe eczema is urging parents to trust their “intuition” and try natural products before committing to long-term steroid use. Samantha and Daniel Hamson’s son Lake, now one, from Derby, developed a rash on his torso at six weeks old, which was initially dismissed as milk spots, small white bumps that form underneath the skin. As the rash worsened, Samantha, 37, an administrator, and Daniel, 33, an aerospace inspector, rushed Lake to A&E, which led to a severe eczema diagnosis at just nine weeks old and a suspected milk allergy.

Over the next few weeks, Lake was given antibiotics and prescribed ointments and topical steroids, and his formula was changed to hydrolysed – lactose-free – milks under doctors’ supervision. At its worst, Samantha said Lake’s skin was “red raw”, weeping, crusty and producing pus and his scalp was even “weeping” and “smelled like bleach”, which she believes was caused by the change in milks.

The mother-of-two said she tried everything doctors prescribed and spent hundreds of pounds on other products for Lake, including creams and scratch mitts, but “nothing” worked until she tried “lifesaving” natural MooGoo products. Samantha told PA Real Life: “His skin was red raw and weeping and there was pus everywhere – it was literally the worst I’ve ever seen.

“His face was bright red. He literally looked like he’d been in a fire, like a burn victim. It was horrific. “Before I had Lake, I thought eczema was just dry skin – you put some moisturiser on and get on with it – but when you experience it yourself, you realise how severe and debilitating it can be.”

She added: “For other parents, I’d just say trust your own intuition and do what you think is right. If people are happy using steroid creams, then each to their own… but definitely try more natural remedies before you go straight to the steroids as it doesn’t cure anything, it just masks over the problem.”

According to the NHS, eczema affects people of all ages but is most common in young children – and although it cannot be cured, treatment can help manage the symptoms. Samantha and her husband Daniel have both had eczema at different stages in their lives, but their symptoms were mild and cleared up quickly. For Lake, however, Samantha said his eczema was “off the scale” and it all started when he was around six weeks old.

“We took him to the doctors with a rash on his torso and the GP said it’s just milk spots,” Samantha explained. “Then he had his jabs at eight weeks, and from there everything just started spiralling.”

Over the following days, the rash continued to worsen, covering almost all his body, and Lake became very “unsettled” and was “constantly crying”. Feeling “overwhelmed”, the couple, who have another child called Arlo, four, took Lake back to the GP around a week later for further advice.

Samantha said she was told the rash could be related to a milk allergy and she was advised to monitor his symptoms for the following two weeks. However, with his condition “escalating within hours and days”, she called the GP practice and was told to go to their local A&E department, where it was confirmed he had severe eczema at just nine weeks old. “They looked at him and said, ‘Yeah, we think he’s got a milk allergy… eczema can be a symptom of a milk allergy, and this eczema looks like it’s infected’,” she said.

Exploring all possible angles, Lake was switched to an amino acid-based milk formula, taking out any possible dairy, and prescribed a steroid cream, hydrocortisone, along with an ointment. Samantha said she “smothered” his body in the Vaseline-like ointment and applied the hydrocortisone cream, which improved his symptoms almost immediately – but as soon as she stopped using the steroid, the eczema returned.

“His skin was producing pus and weeping and then crusting over, and obviously he’s a baby, so you couldn’t stop him from scratching it and he was making it worse,” she explained. “It was really upsetting to see him like that.”

Feeling at her “wits’ end”, Samantha took Lake back to A&E for a second time but was told there is no cure for eczema. She said Lake was prescribed stronger topical steroids, which “showed immediate improvement” – but within a week or two of stopping use of the steroids, the eczema kept returning and worsening each time.

“We went back to the doctors a few times, and they said, ‘There’s nothing we can do, we can just prescribe stronger steroid creams’, and that’s all I ever kept hearing from anybody,” she said. “I just started looking into things and then I came across topical steroid withdrawal and it started to scare me.

“I thought, ‘If we just keep going stronger and stronger and stronger every time, where do we end?’.” Moreover, Samantha said she noticed Lake’s scalp was weeping and smelled like bleach. She explained: “(His scalp) was sticky, wet and weeping and it smelled like bleach – but the milk also smelled like bleach. The crust would just go gooey overnight, and it would continue weeping and weeping, to the point where his bed sheets were wet.”

After several cycles of using steroid creams and then stopping, Samantha decided to seek natural alternatives and tried giving Lake normal milk again in case the suspected allergy was incorrect.

She said he had no reaction to normal milk and, after doing her own research, she started applying coconut oil and olive oil to Lake’s skin, along with other over-the-counter products and creams. While some showed minor improvements, it was not until a friend recommended MooGoo, which specialises in natural solutions for skin and scalp issues, that she noticed a drastic change in Lake’s condition.

She first used the MooGoo Eczema Cream and the MooGoo Sensitive Skin Balm, and within three days, she said she could see “huge improvements”.

“I didn’t hold out much hope… but I was absolutely gobsmacked, and I literally told all my friends and said, ‘Oh my God, if you’ve got children with eczema, please try this’,” Samantha said. “I couldn’t believe my eyes and I literally cried. I said to my husband, ‘I can’t believe it’s working’.”

Having used the MooGoo products for around six months, Samantha said Lake is now “99% eczema free”.

She occasionally applies coconut oil and a steroid cream, and Lake sometimes experiences a flare-up, but otherwise he is only “getting better and better”. She would advise other parents to do their own research and perhaps try more natural remedies before committing to long-term steroid use for eczema.

“I never appreciated how severe eczema can be, to the point where Lake’s skin was literally coming away from his body, it was so raw and weeping,” she said. “I spent my days and nights just researching. I was literally glued to my phone… and I feel like I’m an expert on eczema now.

“I think it’s just important to remain strong and do your own research and trust your instinct because there are other remedies out there.”