DANIEL NEUSPIEL, MD: I've found in my practice,
David, that there are many parents who feel that the more they bathe their
children, the better. But in fact, there are many children who have
sensitive skin and who may react badly to being bathed too often, by having
irritated skin, something we call atopic dermatitis. It's probably
better not to bathe kids, certainly, more than once a day, and many kids
may only tolerate being bathed once or twice a week.
DAVID R. MARKS, MD: Tell me what atopic dermatitis
is.
HERSCHEL LESSIN, MD: Atopic dermatitis is commonly
known as eczema. It's sort of like hyper-irritable skin. It's
skin that itches where normal skin wouldn't itch. And the kids scratch
it, and then it gets more irritated, and then it itches more. It
can be quite a problem. And it's very often aggravated by too frequent
washing.
DAVID R. MARKS, MD: Are there any other conditions
where it can be detrimental to the kid to try to wash them up too much?
