Eczema in Kids: 3 Hidden Root Causes Most Pediatricians Miss (and How to Heal Naturally)

Cleanbody
Nov 4
12 min read

By Diane Angela Fong. ND & Tori Taggart, MS, CNS, LDN

Why creams and meds don’t fix the problem and how to finally help your child heal from within.

If your child’s eczema keeps coming back no matter how many creams or prescriptions you’ve tried, you are not alone.

Most parents feel heartbroken watching their child scratch, cry, and struggle through flare-ups. You follow every recommendation and instruction that your pediatrician gives- moisturizers, allergy tests, steroid creams and yet the rashes and the itchiness always return and sometimes even worse than when they started.

Here’s what most pediatricians and dermatologists don’t tell you:

👉 Eczema isn’t just a skin problem.

It’s an alarm system from your child’s body trying to tell you something deeper, about their gut, immune system and toxin load, and their environment.

At Cleanbody, we believe that true healing starts when we ask why the skin is inflamed, not just how to make the symptoms go away.

Why a Different Method Is Needed

If you’ve seen a pediatrician or dermatologist for your child’s eczema, you’ve likely been told to use creams, steroids, or allergy medications. These can calm the skin temporarily—but they don’t uncover why the eczema keeps coming back.

The Conventional Approach

Traditional medicine focuses on managing symptoms at the surface. Pediatricians and dermatologists often:

Prescribe steroid or antibiotic creams to reduce inflammation or infection
Recommend moisturizers or elimination diets
Rarely test for root causes like gut imbalance, nutrient deficiencies, or environmental triggers

Once the creams or meds stop, the rash often returns, sometimes worse than before.

It’s not your fault. You’ve done everything right. But the answers lie in what most doctors miss.

To truly help your child heal, we have to look beneath the rash and uncover what’s really driving it.

Here are the most common medications used for eczema and why they don’t bring actual healing:

Topical Steroids- Temporary Relief with Hidden Risks

Topical steroids work by suppressing inflammation in the skin, giving quick symptom relief. Unfortunately after continued use of steroid creams, the skin becomes dependent and stopping them can trigger Topical Steroid Withdrawal (TSW) which is a debilitating condition when the skin becomes dependent on the steroid after long-term or frequent use. When the creams are stopped, the skin can “rebound,” leading to intense redness, burning, itching, oozing, or flaking often worse than the original eczema. Even if you have used topical steroids on your child for a long time, please know that over time, with the right support and gentle care, the skin can recover and rebuild its natural balance.

Antibiotics: Helpful at Times — But Harmful to the Microbiome

Recurrent antibiotics are another common part of eczema management, especially if doctors suspect “infected eczema” or infections are found on the skin (such as staph). While antibiotics can help control bacterial infections, repeated courses can cause lasting damage to the gut microbiome, the very system that regulates the immune response. The health of the microbiome is a key aspect of the health of the skin and antibiotics kill off many of the good bacteria along with the bad. In addition, courses of antibiotics can drive up fungal and yeast overgrowth which can also impact eczema.

Immune-Suppressing Drugs (Like Dupixent): Managing Symptoms, Not Causes

Newer biologic drugs like Dupixent (dupilumab) have become popular for moderate-to-severe eczema. These work by blocking certain immune pathways that drive inflammation which can improve symptoms temporarily but they do carry serious side effects and not a lot of research has been done their on long-term use, especially in children. These medications also don’t address why the immune system is overreacting in the first place. Once the drug is stopped, symptoms often return.

The Naturopathic Approach & The Cleanbody Method

Naturopathic medicine, on the otherhand, blends modern science with natural therapies to identify and treat the root causes of illness rather than just suppressing symptoms. It focuses on supporting the body’s innate ability to heal through nutrition, lifestyle, herbs, and other evidence-based natural treatments. For eczema, this means understanding how the gut, skin, liver, and immune system are connected—and restoring balance in all of them for lasting results.

At Cleanbody, we believe true healing comes from understanding the why behind eczema—and rebuilding the body’s foundations so the skin can heal naturally.

The Cleanbody Method for Eczema follows three key steps:

1. Evaluate

We start by looking deeper—evaluating your child’s history, diet, environment, and microbiome through in-depth assessments and functional lab testing. This helps us identify the root causes of inflammation, whether in the gut, skin, liver, or immune system.

2. Optimize

Once we know what’s driving the eczema, we work to optimize your child’s health through the Cleanbody Pillars of Health:

CleanFOOD: nourishing with anti-inflammatory, whole foods
CleanROUTINE: supporting health through a routine that nourishes the body and skin
CleanENVIRO: reducing toxins that burden the liver and immune system
CleanFIT: moving the body to stimulate lymphatic drainage and decrease inflammation
CleanMIND: calming stress and creating a healing home environment

3. Support

Finally, we use naturopathic therapies—targeted nutrients, herbs, homeopathics, and clean, steroid-free topicals—to gently support the body’s natural healing processes and address the imbalances we find on testing, while monitoring progress over time.

This is a root-cause, whole-body approach—designed not just to stop the itch, but to help your child’s skin (and body) truly heal from within.

The 3 Hidden Root Causes Most Pediatricians Miss

As you may have experienced, a visit with your pediatrician or dermatologist typically lasts 15 minutes and ends with meds to reduce rashes and itchiness but not with a discussion on why your child has eczema in the first place or a plan to heal it.

There are a few main root causes to your child’s eczema that most pediatricians aren’t evaluating your child for:

1️⃣ Gut Imbalance: "Leaky” gut & microbiome imbalances show up on the skin.

Up to 70% of the immune system lives in the gut. When the gut becomes unbalanced, inflammation often appears on the skin. This imbalance—called dysbiosis—happens when harmful bacteria, yeast, or toxins crowd out beneficial microbes. Over time, these imbalances can inflame and damage the gut lining, leading to “leaky gut,” where particles and toxins pass into the bloodstream and trigger immune reactions that show up as eczema.

Common Causes of Gut Imbalance

Pathogen or bacterial overgrowth that crowds out good microbes
Fungal overgrowth (like Candida) that stresses the immune system
Loss of microbiome diversity from antibiotics, C-section birth, formula feeding, or a low-fiber diet
Food sensitivities or chronic inflammation that damage the gut lining (“leaky gut”)
Eating processed or inflammatory foods that disrupt healthy bacteria

When the gut lining is compromised, the immune system overreacts—to foods, pollen, microbes, and even your child’s own skin cells—leading to redness, itch, and flares.

The Cleanbody Method for Gut Imbalance (Leaky Gut & Microbiome Imbalance)

When the gut becomes unbalanced—whether from dysbiosis (microbiome imbalance) or leaky gut—it can spark widespread inflammation that shows up on the skin as eczema. The Cleanbody Method targets these imbalances from the inside out, helping to restore gut integrity and calm immune overactivity.

1. Evaluate

We begin by looking deeper—evaluating your child’s health history, diet, birth history, antibiotic exposure, and digestive symptoms. Functional lab tests such as stool analysis or Organic Acids Testing (OAT) help us identify:

Overgrowth of harmful bacteria, yeast, or pathogens
Loss of microbiome diversity
Signs of leaky gut or inflammation
Nutrient absorption issues

This step helps pinpoint why your child’s gut (and skin) are inflamed—so we can create a targeted plan for healing.

2. Optimize

Next, we use the Cleanbody Pillars of Health to restore balance and strengthen the gut barrier:

CleanFOOD: Remove inflammatory and processed foods; add colorful, whole, fiber-rich foods to feed good bacteria.
CleanROUTINE: Establish regular mealtimes and sleep patterns to support digestion and immune balance.
CleanENVIRO: Reduce toxins that can stress the liver and disrupt the microbiome, such as pesticides or chemical additives.
CleanFIT: Encourage gentle movement to improve circulation and lymphatic flow for better detoxification.
CleanMIND: Reduce stress, which directly impacts gut motility, microbial balance, and skin flares.

These optimizations create the internal environment needed for the gut lining and microbiome to repair naturally.

3. Support

Finally, we use naturopathic therapies to help the gut and skin fully heal, such as:

Targeted probiotics and prebiotics to rebalance microbes
Herbal antimicrobials or antifungals to address overgrowths
Gut-healing nutrients like zinc, L-glutamine, omega-3s, and collagen
Clean, steroid-free topicals to calm the skin while the gut heals from within

As the gut heals, the immune system settles, inflammation decreases, and the skin naturally clears.

2️⃣ Toxin Overload: When the Body’s “Bucket” Overflows

Every day, your child’s body works to process chemicals, pollutants, and everyday products. When that “toxin bucket” fills faster than the body can empty it, inflammation overflows often through the skin.

Hidden Everyday Exposures

Everyday products can be overlooked toxin exposures. Things such as:

Lotions and soaps with parabens or synthetic fragrances
Shampoos and wipes with harsh sulfates
Household cleaners and detergents that leave chemical residue on clothes and skin
Air fresheners and candles that release chemicals your child breathes in
Mold, pesticides, heavy metals, plastics

Over time, these exposures can overwhelm the immune system and make eczema harder to heal.

Mold: A Hidden Trigger

If your child’s eczema worsens after rain or being indoors, mold could be part of the problem. Mold toxins (called mycotoxins) can overstimulate the immune system and worsen inflammation.

Functional testing both for your home and your child can reveal hidden mold exposure and help us to make a plan to safely detox.

Pesticides, Heavy Metals, Plastics

Even “healthy” foods can carry toxins like glyphosate (Round Up) or heavy metals that harm the gut. In addition, plastic exposure is prevalent in our daily life. Choosing better and cleaner products is an important step in healing. That’s why we help families choose cleaner food and water, reduce toxic exposures, and support the body’s natural detox pathways through hydration, fiber, and nutrient-rich foods.

The Cleanbody Method for Toxic Burden (Overloaded Detox Pathways)

When the body’s detoxification pathways—especially the liver, lymph, and skin—become overwhelmed, toxins circulate longer and can trigger inflammation, eczema flares, and delayed healing. The Cleanbody Method focuses on identifying and reducing these burdens while supporting the body’s natural detox capacity.

1. Evaluate

We begin by evaluating your child’s toxin exposures, digestion, liver function, and elimination pathways.This may include:

Reviewing environmental exposures (mold, heavy metals, plastics, pesticides)
Assessing constipation or sluggish digestion
Identifying poor bile flow or liver overload
Functional testing, such as Total Tox Burden or Organic Acids Testing, when indicated

This gives us a clear picture of how efficiently your child’s body is processing and eliminating toxins.

2. Optimize

We then use the Cleanbody Pillars of Health to reduce the load and strengthen detox pathways:

CleanFOOD: Emphasize organic, antioxidant-rich foods that support liver enzymes (cruciferous veggies, garlic, greens).
CleanROUTINE: Establish hydration, regular bowel movements, and healthy sleep for consistent detox flow.
CleanENVIRO: Remove environmental toxins—switch to clean household and personal care products, filter water, and test for mold if needed.
CleanFIT: Encourage movement and sweating to stimulate lymphatic drainage.
CleanMIND: Reduce stress, which slows detox and drives inflammation.

3. Support

Finally, we support detoxification gently and safely using naturopathic therapies, including:

Liver-supportive herbs like milk thistle, dandelion, or burdock
Bile flow support with nutrients such as phosphatidylcholine and bitters
Binders or gentle detox supplements when appropriate
Infrared or red-light therapy, epsom salt baths, and lymphatic massage to enhance toxin elimination

By lightening the toxic load, inflammation decreases, the skin clears faster, and your child’s entire body functions more efficiently.

3️⃣ Leaky Skin: When the skin is leaky, it triggers the itch.

When your child’s skin barrier is weakened or “leaky,” moisture escapes and irritants, allergens, and microbes sneak in—triggering inflammation, itch, and recurring eczema flares.

Common Causes of Skin Barrier Weakness

Low omega-3 fatty acids
Zinc or vitamin D deficiencies
Harsh soaps or detergents
Overuse of steroid creams
Leakiness in Infancy
Genetics (e.g., filaggrin mutations)

Leakiness in Infancy

Babies are born with naturally leakier skin because their barrier and natural moisturizing factors (NMFs) are still developing. Over the first few years—typically by ages 2 to 4—the skin becomes stronger and less permeable. But if the barrier is disrupted early on (by genetics, nutrient deficiencies, harsh soaps, or steroid overuse), it may stay compromised and prone to eczema.

Genetics and Leaky Skin

Some children inherit mutations in the filaggrin gene, which plays a key role in forming the skin barrier and producing NMFs. When filaggrin is low or absent, the skin can’t hold moisture as well, making it more susceptible to dryness, cracking, and eczema flares.

The Cleanbody Method for Leaky Skin (Weakened Skin Barrier)

When the skin barrier becomes “leaky,” moisture escapes while irritants, allergens, and microbes sneak in—triggering inflammation and itch. The Cleanbody Method helps restore the barrier by healing from both the inside and the outside.

1. Evaluate

We start by assessing your child’s skin history, topical product use, diet, and environment to uncover what’s weakening the barrier.Through in-depth evaluation, we look for:

Nutrient deficiencies (zinc, vitamin D, essential fatty acids)
Overuse of steroid or antibiotic creams
Signs of staph or yeast imbalance on the skin
Environmental triggers like harsh soaps, detergents, or allergens

We also consider genetics—such as filaggrin mutations—that naturally make the skin more permeable in some children.

2. Optimize

Next, we use the Cleanbody Pillars of Health to rebuild the skin barrier from within:

CleanFOOD: Add omega-3-rich foods and skin-healing nutrients like zinc and vitamin C.
CleanROUTINE: Keep bath time short, use lukewarm water, and moisturize immediately after bathing.
CleanENVIRO: Swap out harsh soaps, fragrances, and detergents for clean, non-toxic alternatives.
CleanFIT: Gentle movement to boost circulation and skin repair.
CleanMIND: Reduce stress, which directly worsens itching and inflammation.

These steps support stronger, more hydrated skin that’s naturally resilient to flare triggers.

3. Support

We then support the healing process with naturopathic treatments that restore and protect the skin barrier:

Topical support using clean, steroid-free products like hypochlorous acid sprays, barrier balms, and probiotic mists
Targeted supplements (omega-3s, zinc, vitamin D) to strengthen the barrier internally
Natural antimicrobials to rebalance the skin microbiome and reduce staph or yeast overgrowth
Moisture-locking routines to prevent further barrier breakdown

As the barrier heals, the itch decreases, the redness fades, and the skin regains its natural glow and protection.

Your Next Step: Go Beyond Temporary Relief

You’ve done everything right — but your child deserves more than another cream or prescription.

If you’re ready to uncover what’s really driving your child’s eczema and start healing from the inside out, take your next step today:

👉 Download The Eczema Doc’s Kids’ Eczema Guide

Inside, you’ll discover:

✨ A breakdown of top 3 root causes of kids' eczema and what you can do about it

✨ Dr. Fong's Top Tips to Addressing the Root Causes of Kids' Eczema

✨ Dr. Fong's Resources and Tips to Start Healing Eczema from the Inside, Out

And when you’re ready for real answers, not just symptom relief, book your child’s Eczema Evaluation with Cleanbody.

In just 25 minutes, the Cleanbody team will review your story, symptoms, nutrition and skin photos, and discuss potential root cause for your child’s eczema. If you're interested in exploring personalized strategies to reclaim healthy skin, we're here to help. Learn more about working with us! Use the code BLOG10 to get 10% off your Eczema Evaluation.

Because your child’s skin isn’t just reacting -it’s communicating. Once you understand what it’s saying, you can finally help it to heal.

Ready to start your child’s eczema healing journey?

📘 [Download the Free Guide]

🩺 [Book Your Eczema Evaluation]

We're Going Live!

We are going live to discuss this topic on Thursday, November 6 at 12:15 pm PST! Watch the live or check out the replay here:

About the Authors:

Tori Taggart, MS, CNS, LDN is a Cleanbody Practitioner specializing in meeting people in their health journeys by digging into the root causes of various chronic diseases and conditions. Through the use of healthy food along with aspects of the natural world around us (sunshine, nature, clean water, stress management, relationships, etc), she helps to empower her clients to take charge of their own health and trust their bodies to thrive and heal.

Dr. Diane Angela Fong, ND, is the CEO and founder of Cleanbody, a wellness company dedicated to treating and preventing chronic disease. She is the creator of the Cleanbody Method, which follows a three-step process: Evaluate (digging into the root causes of chronic disease using lab testing and other evaluation tools), Optimize (enhancing health foundations by addressing nutrition, lifestyle, and toxic exposures), and Support (optimizing organ functions through healing protocols).

References

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Juhász, M. L. W., Curley, R. A., Rasmussen, A., Malakouti, M., Silverberg, N. P., & Jacob, S. E. (2018). Evaluation of hypothalamic‑pituitary‑adrenal axis suppression following cutaneous use of topical corticosteroids in children: A meta‑analysis. Hormone Research in Paediatrics, (Part of 2018 issue). https://doi.org/10.1159/000489125
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Zhu, Z., Zhong, H., Gan, T., et al. (2025). Association between fine particulate matter (PM₂.₅) and atopic dermatitis — a systematic review. Discover Public Health. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12982-025-00502-z
(2023, June 07). Study finds children who live close to highly trafficked roads have higher risk of developing atopic dermatitis. National Jewish Health press release. https://www.nationaljewish.org/about-us/news/press-releases/2023-news/study-finds-children-who-live-close-to-highly-trafficked-roads-have-higher-risk-of-developing-atopic‑dermatitis
(2020, November). Synbiotics for prevention and treatment of atopic dermatitis: A meta‑analysis of randomized clinical trials. JAMA Pediatrics. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2481808

Medical Disclaimer: The information provided in this blog post is for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or treatment and before undertaking a new health care regimen. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website.