The inner area of my ear fold (the part on top) is super dry (flaky) on both ears.
I’ve had this problem my whole life, though usually only during the winter. This year it hasn’t gone away (and is even worse).
I’ve tried various creams, including Gold Bond medicated and I still have the dry skin. Anyone have any suggestions that may work?
I get dry, itchy skin in the winter. I’ve had good luck with Eucerin CalmingCreme - you can get it at any drugstore and most grocery stores. You could go with straight-up petroleum jelly (Vaseline). Another option is to dab vitamin E oil on the affected areas.
Try “organic” babyoil (non mineral), works for me.
Lifelong eczema and dry skin sufferer here.
After showering, towel off, and apply 1% hydrocortisone (cream, not ointment) while the skin is still moist. Then apply something heavier to keep the moisture in; I use Aquaphor, which is a petroleum jelly-based moisturizer made by the Eucerin people, but it’s probably a bit oily for most peoples’ tastes.
It sounds like you have eczema.
I have mild ichthyosis vulgaris, a genetic disorder which causes dry, scaly, flaking skin. I also am prone to eczema, keratosis pilaris, and other skin rashes/reactions. What’s helped me:
*a diet high in a natural fats and low in inflammatory foods (sugars, in particular fructose, alcohol, refined vegetable oils, white flour)
*regular manual and chemical exfoliation - I mostly use a ‘Japanese exfoliating cloth’. You can’t get moisture where it is needed if there are thick layers of dead skin.
*frequent moisturizing of all problem areas. Vaseline is good stuff especially for rashes, but I usually use an unscented ‘all-natural’ lotion and apply multiple times daily.
I have nice, smooth, soft, unflaky, rash-free skin if I stay on top of the above. No one would ever guess I have a genetic skin disorder. Before I learned how to care for my skin, though, it was a mess. I wore long sleeves and pants year-round.
What are “natural fats”? I keep hearing that fish oil is good, but apart from that I’ve gotten no guidance whatsoever on diet, even from immunologists.
You might also want to try switching to a sulfate-free shampoo, like Burt’s Bees or Organix brands (both available at your local grocery store, Target, etc.), because sulfates can exacerbate eczema.
Could be a chronic yeast infection. Have you spent less time in the pool this summer than usual? Or in the sun? Chlorine and UV light can both knock out yeast, only to have it return seasonally as the exposure lessens.
If that rings true, try a ketaconazole shampoo or cream (Nizoral).
I had that sort of thing- the skin doc said it is dandruff when it only affects the scalp a little, and when it hits the nose, eyebrows, ears, etc, it becomes ‘seborrheic dermatitis’ - he gave me a little cream ‘mometasone .1%’
It clears it up within 24hours and keeps it clear for about 2 weeks. The only other thing that worked was dandruff shampoo (and that didn’t work for long) and an antifungal - also only short term- doc says that your body gets used to those.
If you can get your doc to prescribe that, I bet you are good within a day! Cheap, too.