When it comes to food, everyone is different and there isn’t one “diet” for eczema. However, histamine-rich foods may be a problem for people with eczema because they can trigger an immune response. “Histamines are released in the body when you have an allergic reaction — so if you have eczema, foods rich in histamines may make you feel more itchy,” Davis says. These foods include tomatoes, chocolate, alcohol, shellfish, fermented and pickled foods, aged cheeses, smoked meats, etc. But this doesn’t necessarily mean you’re allergic — you’d still need an allergy test to confirm any food allergies.
That being said, the link between eczema and food is still complicated and not well-understood. “If you’re already allergic to a food and you ingest it, then yes this could make eczema worse because it puts your body under medical stress, which is a known trigger — but allergic reactions can also cause a skin reaction that isn’t eczema,” Davis says. The issue is similar with gluten. “If you’re truly gluten intolerant, this can cause an itchy rash called dermatitis herpetiformis, but it’s actually a completely separate skin disease, not eczema,” Davis says. In any case, you’d need tests to confirm what’s causing your rash.
