10 Tips for Bleach Baths From the NEA Community

We asked our community about their experience with bleach baths to manage eczema and here’s what they had to say:

1. I am a junior in college and have been dealing with severe eczema all of my life, and I am a big fan of bleach baths. I have learned that the key is rinsing off afterwards and coating down with medicine/heavy non-fragrance cream to lock in the moisture. The temperature of the water also does make a huge difference. I found that if it is too hot then I am almost worse off after than when I started. Hope this helps!
2. We have been using bleach baths as a way to keep staph infections under control for my son. At first, I was upset about putting my 5-month-old in all of those chemicals, but it really is no different than going swimming in a chlorinated pool. This treatment has saved us from having him on more antibiotics. We use it about once a week and do it in conjunction with a nighttime wet wrap (wet pj’s under dry ones).
3. I have hand eczema, and it helps when I use a bit of bleach in the water while hand washing dishes or cleaning the kitchen. Remember to moisturize well immediately after!
4. We used them 2 to 3 times a week. Saw a huge difference in reducing infection and eczema. We do also use a bleach bath after days in public germ-filled places just to be safe.
5. We use them 1 to 2 times daily. They don’t make the eczema better, but they keep the infection away. I know when we miss it, because my son will end up with a staph infection. Protopic and Vaseline after the bath locks in a barrier of moisture.
6. We use bleach to cut down on the staph infections my daughter was getting. At her peak we did bleach baths three times a week.
7. We use them when my daughter gets a flare-up that won’t go away with our normal routine. It works really well.
8. When my daughter is really flared, we do bleach baths twice a week. If she is maintaining and looking “okay” (it’s never clear), we do them once a week. They WORK. For any skeptics out there, if you soak for 20 minutes in a bath with ¼ cup of bleach, you will see a difference when you get out of the tub and moisturize.
9. I’m 30. I only heard about bleach baths a few years ago. They seem to help the staph infection that is carried on the skin. Sometimes I use a salt bath. Either works for me. I use half a cup of bleach to a big bath. It’s no worse than putting your child in a chlorine pool.
10. So diluted, same as a pool but less chemicals and cleaner. My son has discoid eczema and we bleach bath 3 times a week.