Rashes can manifest in a variety of ways, and the causes of eczema vary, so we need to look for further causes after diagnosing eczema. Infants and toddlers often have a recurring facial rash and flaking, are these rashes eczema? Why are babies prone to eczema? Atopic dermatitis is the most common form of dermatitis and eczema in infants and toddlers. When infants and toddlers have recurrent facial rashes, mothers visit their pediatrician or dermatologist and are often diagnosed with “infantile eczema”. In fact, the name “infantile eczema” does not exist in textbooks, and this diagnosis may cover a variety of dermatitis and eczema disorders in infancy and early childhood. What are the common dermatitis and eczema skin conditions of infancy and childhood? The most common is atopic dermatitis (also called atopic eczema), followed by seborrheic dermatitis, diaper dermatitis, contact dermatitis, and coin-shaped eczema, as well as some perioral dermatitis, chronic simple moss (also called neurodermatitis), nodular itchy rash, autosensitivity dermatitis, papular urticaria, and thread-like dermatitis, which also belong to the dermatitis eczema category. Since atopic dermatitis is the most common type of dermatitis and eczema in infants and children, and the term “atopic dermatitis” is more specialized and abstract and not easily understood, the term “infantile eczema” seems to be more popular, so many doctors prefer to use the term Many doctors prefer to use the term “infantile eczema” to communicate with the child’s family and explain the condition. But atopic dermatitis is not the same as other types of eczema. In addition to eczema manifestations such as skin rashes, oozing and flaking, it is often accompanied by dry skin, allergic rhinitis or asthma, and there are often patients with skin eczema, allergic rhinitis or asthma in the family, so it is a special type of eczema. Why are infants and children prone to dermatitis eczema type diseases? We talk about the diverse and complex causes of eczema, ranging from internal body factors (such as chronic metabolic diseases, vascular diseases, psychoneurological factors, etc.) to external environmental factors. For infants and young children, who have just been removed from the maternal intrauterine water environment, the skin is completely exposed to a whole new world and requires a gradual process of adaptation and transformation. During this process, the gradual maturation and improvement of the skin barrier function is very important. Studies have shown that the skin barrier function is not fully mature at birth, but needs to continue to develop and improve until 12 months after birth. We can observe the changes of skin barrier function in infants and young children by measuring some indicators (see the table below), and we can see that the skin barrier function is still in the process of continuous change in infants and young children, and it is also more vulnerable to various external environmental factors during this process. The outermost layer of the epidermis, the stratum corneum, is an important structure for maintaining the barrier function of the skin, and we often use the term “cement brick wall” to describe the structure of the stratum corneum, with the brick representing the keratinocytes of the stratum corneum and the cement representing the intercellular lipids. Compared with adults, the “cement” and “bricks” that form the skin barrier in infancy and early childhood are more fragile and more susceptible to various factors in the external environment, such as the temperature and humidity of the environment, the use of inappropriate products and incorrect methods in bathing, and the presence of allergens and irritants in the environment. Allergens and irritants, microorganisms, ultraviolet light and indoor and outdoor air pollution, etc., may irritate the skin or cause maladaptation of the skin, resulting in inflammatory reactions and various eczema manifestations. Can proper skin care prevent the development of eczema? Can proper skin care prevent the occurrence of eczema? The answer is yes! We have learned that the skin barrier function of infants and young children is not fully mature, so they are susceptible to various irritants and allergic factors in the external environment, which can trigger eczema. For children with atopic dermatitis, the most common form of eczema in infants and young children, the mutation of a protein (filoprotein) in the epidermal cells can cause incomplete structure of the stratum corneum and reduction of lipid components in part of the epidermis, resulting in a more prominent impairment of the skin barrier function, manifested by severe and widespread dry skin and itchy skin. Therefore, choosing appropriate cleansing products and emollients and mastering the correct washing and caring methods can reduce further damage to the fragile skin barrier of infants and children on the one hand, and some skin care products also add special ingredients to supplement physiological lipids, which are more conducive to the repair of damaged skin barrier. Some foreign studies have also confirmed that the use of moisturizing emollients from infancy can significantly reduce the occurrence of atopic dermatitis/eczema: the researchers selected infants with high genetic allergy risk (both or one parent with eczema or allergic rhinitis or asthma, the affected children have significantly dry skin) and randomly divided them into two groups, one group started using moisturizing cream regularly from 3 weeks after birth until 6-9 months, the other group did not use moisturizing cream. The results showed that the number of children with atopic dermatitis/eczema was significantly lower in the group with regular use of emollients compared to those without emollients. Therefore, by choosing the right lotion products, mastering the correct skin care regimen and adhering to long-term use after birth, mothers may be able to help their babies have healthy skin.