Never thought I’d make a cream like the one I’ll be discussing today.
It came about while looking for a way to heal my toddler’s skin after a prescription cream led to terrible eczema all over his body. Open bloody sores, itching and tears – from top to toe. There were bloody wounds everywhere, even behind his ears and going into his eyes. At times, he would stop dead in his tracks and begin to scream, holding out his tiny wrists, which looked like they’d been lacerated.
Bastian has had sensitive skin since he was born. When we realized he had eczema around 8 month of age, I was able to manage the red, rough patches with botanically infused creams like the Wyld wonder balm or bare naked body cream. But the eczema never fully went away, and of course it becomes worse during cold, dry winter months.
One day, my husband was with Bastian (then 16 months) when they bumped into a friend, who is a dermatologist. To make a long story short: the dermatologist friend caught sight of a red patch on Bastian’s tummy and asked about his skin. She did a quick examination and told my husband that he needed prescription creams. That whatever we were doing was obviously not working. She also said that some of his round patches were probably a bacterial infection that would continue spreading if we didn’t take care of it.
When I went to pick up the creams from the pharmacy, the pharmacist stared at the screen for a very long time. I could tell that she was scrolling, reading pages and pages of tiny print. After a while, she peered at me above her glasses.
“Are you sure about this?” she asked.
“Um, is there a reason I shouldn’t be?”
“Well your son is just 1 years old. These creams are not recommended for children, not even older children. And Bastian is still a baby.”
I was already messaging my husband, telling him to message his dermatologist friend. Why hadn’t she warned us of anything?
“So should I not take them then?” I asked the pharmacist.
“Do whatever you want,” she said, in a detached voice that I did not understand at the time. Now I think she was already trying to prepare for me the consequences if we chose to use them. I still just couldn’t grasp what she was trying to tell me.
She began ringing the creams up, coldly giving me instructions for use. “Whatever you do, just don’t use these for more than 1 week on your child. And you’ll need to gradually decrease the dosages, not just stop them cold turkey.”
My husband messaged me back, “She says that they’re totally safe, don’t let the pharmacist scare you. Just get them, we can decide later if we use them or not.”
After more discussion with the dermatologist, we decided to try them. She was sure that he needed something stronger. If his skin got worse, we could just stop them, right?
Everything was fine at first. In fact, everything got better! Within just 2 or 3 days, the rough, red patches around his belly were fading and softening. And the dark red circles, which the dermatologist believed were infectious, also began to shrink. Bastian seemed normal, no strange reactions of any sort.
However, when we reached that 1 week mark, they weren’t fully clear. We decreased his dosages, slowly weaning him off of the creams. Immediately, the “infectious places” and eczema patches came roaring back with new vigor. No longer just red patches, but full blown wounds now. And it was spreading everywhere. On top of his feet, behind his knees and ears, all over his checks and forehead, into his eyes. Around his belly, spots oozed and bled. He was constantly itching and whining. Rubbing his wrists together until the skin broke. Never before had he itched like this. He couldn’t settle, couldn’t sleep. Stopped playing. Just clung to me for dear life.
I was heartbroken and felt like the worst mother. Instead of protecting him, I had dismissed a warning, I had ignored that hesitation in my gut, and basically led him right into this living hell. And what could I do now? I couldn’t use the pharmaceutical creams again. And the natural creams that had always worked before were not working now. I needed a new solution to meet this bigger problem.
Tallow, hello old friend
A lot of research led me to the idea of using tallow. This was very new territory for me and definitely not vegan. But it is very old traditional medicine. Tallow – which is basically gentle rendered fat from healthy, grass-fed animals – is one of our original skincare products that has been replaced by man-made products since the 20th century.
Tallow contains abundant natural fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K) and fat-soluble activators, which are found only in animal fats and which all promote skin health. Tallow also contains fats like conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), which has anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties, and palmitoleic acid, which has natural antimicrobial properties. No plant-based skincare ingredient or product can remotely compare to tallow in its power to nourish and heal the skin. This fact is not surprising since we are animals and not plants.
from Vintage Tradition
I was able to find this tallow made from the fat of grass-fed cows. But tallow can me made from the fat of any animal, actually. The important thing is the quality and life of the animal. You never want to use tallow from industrial factory farm animals because those animals are not eating a native diet, and therefore their fat is not as saturated (not healthy). Also modern factory farmed animals experience a lot of stress, and so their fat likely contains high levels of toxins as a result of their poor physical, emotional and mental health. Whereas the fat from animals that have native diets, low stress levels and healthy environments is filled with all of the saturated fats and nutrients that can nourish us, both inside and out.
Tamanu oil, that green gold
Another ingredient that I already had on hand and that shows great healing potential for eczema is tamanu oil, or “green gold” as it’s called by the native South Pacific people who have been using tamanu oil for centuries. You can read in Our Ingredients why I chose tamanu oil for the Wyld cleansing face oil and seaberry skin repairing elixir.
Tamanu oil’s unique chemical makeup of fatty acids, coumarins and xanthones are able to penetrate deep into the skin where they have been proven to reduce swelling and chronic irritation. Antibiotic compounds, such as lactone, inhibit the growth of harmful bacteria while anti-inflammatory and skin-regenerating compounds heal the skin. It is also known to be pain-relieving.
When French colonists first discovered this oil in the early 20th century, they were amazed by its potential, even using it to heal severe skin issues like gangrene. But in the western skincare industry, tamanu oil went ignored for a very long time, probably due to its thick texture and green herbaceous scent. These traits were seen as negatives in an industry that lauded lightweight, odorless and colorless oils (characteristics of their poster women too, hm? 🙂 )
For me, the anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial potential, combined with the pain-relieving properties, is why I chose to include it in the Tallow Tamanu Cream.
Just want to quickly note that it’s important to get a true, unfiltered, unrefined tamanu oil – not the refined tamanu oil that is so common these days. During the chemical process of refining tamanu oil, the strong scent and texture are removed, but so are many of its healing components. The tamanu oil you want is one that’s been processed in a traditional way, the nuts gathered by hand and sun-dried, the oil cold-pressed and unrefined.
Raw Honey, why not
Raw organic honey is one of those cure-alls we, as people, have been using since the beginning of time, thanks to its wide spectrum of anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and antioxidant compounds.
I read a lot of studies that suggested its ability to heal inflammatory skin conditions like eczema and dermatitis, but I also decided to include it in this cream for its wound healing properties. We had a lot of wounds to heal. Plus, raw honey has humectant powers, which help retain moisture and prevent dry patches on the skin. And if I needed any other reason to add it, well there were more. It can ease itchiness – yes please, said Bastian. It could also support his overall immune system, which had been compromised during the use of steroid creams. Ultimately, I decided, why the hell not add honey?
Unfortunately I didn’t have any of the prized manuka honey, but I did have a local, natural, organic and raw honey at home. A little goes a long way in the cream.
Jojoba oil, or even olive oil
The fourth and final ingredient in the cream is organic jojoba oil. After adding the tamanu oil, I needed a bit more oil to create the right consistency. As explained in Our Ingredients, I love both jojoba and olive oils for healthy skin. Both contain lots of good fatty acids and other nutrients, both have emollient properties and have been used in wound healing and skin hydrating for centuries. I went with jojoba oil for this batch, but you can definitely substitute good organic olive oil if you prefer.
In the future, maybe I will even try an infused jojoba or olive oil. I’m thinking chamomile or calendula infused oils for starters. Maybe marshmallow root and comfrey too. All things that are infused into the wonder balm and bare naked body cream, which were managing Bastian’s eczema quite okay before the prescription steroid creams.
I took these 4 ingredients into my studio and kept formulating until I had a cream that I was satisfied with.
And it is working. Slowly but surely, this cream is healing Bastian’s skin. He even asks for it now when he starts to feel itchy. Comes to me and holds out his wrists, or points to the back of his knees. And if we see him start to scratch anywhere on his body, we slather more cream onto the area. 9 times out of 10 this stops him from scratching immediately, so it must be helping.
The open sores are now closing up. The rough, red patches are smoothing out. Of course we have our better days and worser days, but overall, I feel like it’s what we needed.
Bonus – as stated in my one month skincare update – I am loving this cream on my face!
We’re also using it on my 4.5 year old’s hands, as his hands can get very red and painful after playing outside in the winter cold, snow and ice. With his hands, it’s an immediate clearing of redness. His skin issues don’t even compare to Bastian’s, so if you’re having mild skin issues like extreme dryness, I feel sure that this cream can be helpful.
Want to make it yourself too?
Tallow Tamanu Body and Face Cream
You need
- 200 grams tallow from sustainably farmed, grass fed cows
- 2 tablespoons organic tamanu oil
- 2 tablespoon organic jojoba oil
- 1 teaspoon local raw organic honey
To make
In a bain marie, or water bath, gently melt the tallow in a glass bowl until it is liquid form. Stir in the oils until well combined. Stir in the honey next. Pop into the fridge for a bit, until the mixture begins to solidify around the edges of the bowl. Whip it up with an electrical whisk until you have a nice creamy texture. This may take some time. If it’s not whipping into a cream, then let it sit for a few minutes and try whisking it again. If it’s still too liquidy, pop it back in the fridge for a bit longer to let it cool down some more. Then whip with your electrical whisk again until you have a really soft luxurious cream. Store in smaller glass jars with lids.
To use
Use it just like any other face or body cream. It is a very fatty cream but it’s not super heavy. Experiment to find the right amount for you. When I use this on my face, I use very little and simply rub it into the dry areas of my face and neck using gentle upward circular motions. When applying to my son’s eczema patches, I use a thicker layer, but not more than his skin can absorb. I find it’s better to apply more often throughout the day and even the night, rather than slathering too heavily in one go.
Other tips, anyone?
I’m totally open to other ideas if any of you out there have been through this eczema craziness before, particularly if you’ve been through it with your little ones.
We’re already limiting his baths (so hard for him, as he loves bath time) and have paid very close attention to his diet, though we haven’t been able to find anything in his diet that causes flare-ups yet.
Neither my husband nor I have any eczema issues personally or in our families, so we’re a little confused as to what might have caused it in the first place. I did have very bad asthma as a child, and still do have asthma to some extent, though it doesn’t require any sort of medication anymore. And my 4.5 year old has asthma that only flares up when he gets a viral infection of some sort. I’ve read there could be a connection between genetic factors for asthma and eczema, or no?
