Aqueous cream may have been traditionally prescribed by doctors to reduce the discomfort caused by eczema. But now a new finding opposes this, saying the cream even aggravates the skin condition.
Researchers from University of Bath explained that aqueous cream can make the skin thinner when used regularly. According to them, the cream contains sodium laurel sulphate detergent which makes skin susceptible to irritation by chemicals.
“So to use this cream on eczematous skin, which is already thin and vulnerable to irritation, is likely to make the condition even worse,” Professor Richard Guy who supervised the research told BBC.
During the study, researchers asked volunteers (without eczema) to rub aqueous cream into their forehead for four weeks. Results show that there was 10% reduction of the outermost skin layer stratum corneum.
Another expert claimed that most GP’s seemed not aware of an official advice not to prescribe the cream as a moisturiser. A recent poll found out that one of 10 GP’s recommends the cream for childhood eczema.
Meanwhile, National Eczema Society recommends alternatives like white soft paraffin which has low sodium laurel sulphate content for the skin condition.
Eczema, a common skin disease characterized by drying and cracking of skin, affects millions of adults in the UK. National Eczema Society chief executive Margaret Cox remarked that the reasons why the cream is widely used for eczema is its affordability.