Your Stories - Water Softener

Our water softener has helped the scratching - Jessica, Southampton, UK

If anyone is wondering whether or not to get a water softener, I can say that it has been worth it for us. We have found that it makes a big difference to our 10 month old baby's skin. After installing one, there was an immediate improvement - and specifically a reduction in scratching, which was a huge relief to all of us. Recently her skin began to deteriorate again, and I wondered whether we had wasted our money getting the water softener, until I found that I had forgotten to replenish the salt! Once I'd done that, there was an immediate improvement again with the newly softened water. Having the softener has not cured her eczema, but has made it a lot better. Life is easier without the frantic scratching that she used to do. We live in an area with very hard water, so I don't know whether others elsewhere would get the same benefit. (September 2005) Contact Jessica

I would recommend a water softener - John, London, UK

My son of 3, has had eczema since around 6 months. It was mainly confined to his wrists, inside the elbows, behind the knees and on his hands. We tried every lotion & potion on the market, including products sourced from the USA and France. Most worked for a week, then my son seemed to react to them and his condition would worsen. Eventually we gave in and applied steroids. This worked wonders but we were concerned about the frequency with which we needed to apply them. In addition, the remainder of his body seemed rough to the touch. We couldn't use any soaps or washing agents at all. My mother lives in Yorkshire. We visit twice a year. Last year, when we returned home from a 2 week visit, we suddenly noticed that my son's skin and eczema had greatly improved. We didn't need to apply steroids for another 2 weeks. While browsing this web I noticed an article on water softeners. When talking to my mum, she confirmed that she lived in a soft water area. I live in London where the water is the hardest in the UK. So, we purchased a water softener and got a substantial discount by mentioning this web page. Within two weeks my son's condition had improved slightly. After 1 month we had cut the steroid use by half. After 3 months we had limited its use to maybe once a week. By 6 months, we hardly ever use it. Maybe we use steroids once every 6-8 weeks now and even then, only slightly. His over all skin condition is now great and flare-ups are getting rarer all the time. It was not cheap, but worth every penny! Another benefit is that a bar of soap now lasts me ages as it lathers so quickly in the softened water. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. (Jan 04)

Our water softener has made a difference in 6 weeks - Shane, UK

Our Canterbury Water softener has been in use for six weeks now and apart from a few installation problems caused by a self install every thing is working well. Thanks to Canterbury Water for their support. The whole family has noticed an immediate improvement to the water and showers and baths are a real treat. We have also reduced our washing powder and softener use. This coupled with the very low salt usage by the dishwasher more than compensates for the minimal salt usage of the KITE softener. My 15 year old son who has suffered from a very mild case of eczema (mainly at the backs of his legs) has shown a marked improvement. So much so that he appears to be clear. On a different note, cleaning our bathrooms and keeping them sparkling is so much easier. (Oct 2003)

How a water softener changed our lives - Mrs Howes, Kent, UK

My son Gregory (now 7) has severe eczema. His hands were like elephant hide regularly cracking and bleeding, he would pick up an infection several times a year and often lose his fingernails. He suffered terribly at school other children not wanting to play or hold his hand.

I had a water softener fitted 2 years ago and can say that this has helped enormously.

Before the softener was installed Gregory's hands would regularly crack and bleed leading to infections. Now the skin is much softer and far less prone to cracking and also requires far less medication, while also being far more receptive to the cream.

Gregory no longer loses several finger nails to infection each year, needs far less viscose-bandages (medicated bandages), which he particularly objected to, to the point where I cannot remember when I last had to apply one!

I now use less than half a cup of washing powder and no fabric conditioner at all, compared with a full cup plus conditioner before the softener was fitted, which also helps with Gregory's condition, as it does too for the whole family who all have suffered to some degree in the past. Gregory is now far more comfortable during hot weather where before he would have had to avoid direct sun light on his skin.

I do not think that Gregory's condition will ever completely disappear, because it is allergy based, the fitting of the water softener has changed his life and that of the rest of the family and I would strongly recommend that any one suffering from eczema should definitely consider having a water softener installed. (July 03)

Dermatologist recommend a water softener - Torri, California, USA

I truly appreciated reading the comments from "Your Stories" regarding installing water softeners to relieve the symptoms of eczema. My five-year old daughter's Dermatologist also recommended a water softener. What good news! Thank you so much. (June 03)

A water softener has helped us - Kate, Bourne, UK

My 6 year old daughter has suffered from eczema since she was 7 weeks old. We have tried numerous treatments including various steroids, antibiotics and homeopathic medicine. At its worse it effects the whole of her body and regularly becomes infected. Seven weeks ago we decided to have a water softener fitted and it has been like a miracle cure for us. It has not completely cleared up but her skin has become much softer and she is getting a good nights sleep without being woken 2 or 3 times in the night because of the itching. I have since found out that there has been a study on the effect of hard water on children with eczema and it has now been proved that hard water can be a major irritant for children with eczema. I recommend any one with skin problems give it a try. They are quite expensive to have installed but once in relatively cheap to run. We find we save more on washing powder then we spend on the salt.

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Page updated: 26 September 2005