jennifer/cameragirl21 - question

Jamison'smama wrote: I decided to put this in the public forum since others might benefit.

I have 2 kids with eczema, Jack is much worse than Jama is now, she has grown out of a lot of it and since we removed egg from her diet, her severe eczema is gone. Jack has sandpaper-like skin.

So, my question is about Evening Primrose Oil, I bought the capsules (that's all they had) the capsules contain the oil so I assume I can use it the same way. How many drops is a normal dose for a child/adult? I assume I can just drop it in juice once a day? What is your suggestion?

MyBrownEyedBoy replied: I give Logan about 1/2 a capsule. He has never noticed and it has truly made a difference. We live in a very dry climate and Logan used to have sandpaper skin even after lotion. Now he's smooth as a baby's you know what.

cameragirl21 replied: puncture the capsule with a sterlized needle and squeeze about about a drop per every three to five pounds or so of their body weight. so if you have a child that is twenty pounds, give him 4-6 drops. put it right into his juice, shake it and just make sure he drinks it all. in a drink it doesn't have much taste, if any.
you can't really overdose on it so don't be afraid to give him more, in the beginning, you may give him more for the first week or so just to get the condition under control.
the ONLY real issue with EP oil is that it may lower blood pressure but it's not enough to have any true effect unless your child has a bp problem.
i've looked into it quite a bit and have NEVER heard of any child having a bad reaction to EP oil.
once you have the condition under control, just a handful of drops daily will do the trick. keep using it and you'll never have another skin condition.
ideally, you should refrigerate the capsules for higher potency, this is always the case with the oil itself. when you buy it in capsules it is strong enough to survive at room temp but i prefer to refrigerate because i know the oil prefers to be refrigerated.
good luck, i'm sure you'll love it, i swear by the stuff.

coasterqueen replied: Hmmm, I'd have to check my info at home. I take 2 HUGE capsules daily, but I can't remember what the dosage is. The last brand I took I had to take 3 medium size capsules. I've never given it to the girls, though. I use it for PMS/AF. I'll check tonight when I get home.

ETA : Definitely refrigerate them.

cameragirl21 replied: Karen, if you buy the actual oil, you'll only need about half as much, it's far more potent than the capsules and you won't have to swallow two huge capsules.
it's more expensive to buy the oil but like i said, it's stronger.
if anyone out there buys the oil, keep it in the fridge or it won't do you any good.

Jamison'smama replied: Thanks all! I will start today and let you know how it works.

C&K*s Mommie replied: Does EP oil have other benefits for someone that does not have eczema?

cameragirl21 replied:
it's for dry skin or skin allergies, like rashes, etc.
if you have no skin conditions, there's not much point in taking it. it can give you softer skin but unless you have dry skin i don't know how much of a difference you'll notice.
in principle, it's designed to give you baby soft skin.

Maddie&EthansMom replied: I've been taking it for over a week and it's starting to work.

C&K*s Mommie replied:
ty Jennifer. I was asking mainly since Karen mentioned she takes it for af/pms.

Maddie&EthansMom replied: Nicole I originally started taking it for PMS, but I plan on taking it all month. I think it's supposed to help with PMS symptoms.

coasterqueen replied:
does it taste bad, though? I have that food phobia crap so if it has a weird taste at all it won't work for me. I hate swallowing those huge capsules, though.

Also I don't see it helping my face at ALL. I've been getting massive breakouts too and it's not helping mine

cameragirl21 replied: all of my herb books say it also helps with pms. since i've never had probs with pms, i never mention that when i speak of ep oil since i cannot speak from firsthand experience BUT the herb books DO say that it's good for pms.
oh, and i did recommend it to one of my doctors who said her teenage daughter had major probs with pms so i guess i have rec'd it for pms before.
and Karen, no it doesn't taste bad, it has a taste but it doesn't taste like much of anything, tastes like oil, mostly.
it's not meant for breakouts, as in acne, i mean it can help but it's meant for dry skin, eczema, psoriasis, dandruff, etc.
how long have you been taking it? if you give it enough time it may help with your breakouts but that's not what it's known for, really.
eta--you can add it to your drink if you're worried about the taste, i sometimes add it to smoothies. don't mix it into hot coffee though or it may break down the oil particles and be useless.

C&K*s Mommie replied: Thanks Aimee! I think Chris would be dancing on the ceiling with joy if I could have a little help with PMS/mood swings. I'll give it a try.

coasterqueen replied:
I've been taking it since nursing Kylie and now Megan. It really does help w/PMS. I just have a bad habit of forgetting to take them. Last month I took them every day and my PMS was next to nil. You can increase your dosage a bit too to get better results.

Crap! THat reminds me I was supposed to look at my bottle dosage for Brenda....sorry Brenda. I'll try to remember tonight.

C&K*s Mommie replied: next to nil PMS? I could go for that.

Kaitlin'smom replied: I know this is good for dry skin issues and PMS does it have any negitive effects if taken by men?

amynicole21 replied: My DH has had a severe breakout of eczema - he never had it before. The thing is, he has low blood pressure already. Not bad enough that it has ever caused problems, but it is lower than the norm. I wonder if it would be bad for him to take this? He's currently on major steroids to get the problem under control.

cameragirl21 replied:
Amy, tell DH to drop the steroids and take the EP oil, it won't lower BP that much and you'd have to take a lot for it to have that effect...hasn't lowered my BP a bit and i've been taking it daily for years.
steroids will do him more harm than EP oil ever could.
and yes, Di, men can take it, it won't harm them.