The Best Baking Flours (and recipes) for Eczema

|Reception Support

Flour, it’s a stable ingredient that's essential for some of my favourite foods, including banana bread, healthy muffins, crumbed fish, carob brownies (I could go on...). In my younger naive days, I thought white flour was the be-all and end-all when it came to baking. Little did I know white flour was also making me itch like crazy and was doing serious damage to my gut. 

White flour can be highly acidic, nutrient deficient and cause digestion issues, so it’s smart to stay away from it. Luckily there are plenty of eczema friendly flour alternatives for your fabulous baked goods.

Choosing the right flour for different types of baking is important. Here are our top light, medium, and heavy eczema friendly flours. 

Light flours (starches)

This type of flour is a starch and is essential for gluten-free baking. It replaces gluten by providing binding and structure. 

  • Arrowroot powder
  • Tapioca starch 

Medium flours

More nutritious than starches, medium flours can provide protein and essential amino acids and are great in baked goods. 

  • Oat Flour- (may not be tolerated for all those gluten-free or celiac)
  • Quinoa flour
  • Sorghum flour
  • Millet flour
  • Besan flour
  • Spelt flour

Heavy Flour

Heavy flours are very dense and nutritious and should be used in combination with medium or light flours. 

  • Buckwheat flour
  • Brown rice flour 
  • Amaranth flour 
  • Chickpea flour

Try and stay clear from almond and coconut flour as these are high in itch promoting salicylates which can cause a worsening of eczema symptoms. 

Here are some of our favourite eczema friendly recipes that include flour: 

Happy Cooking! 

xx Bonnie and Grace 

Article by nutritionists Bonnie and Grace, who work with Karen Fischer at Skin Friend and Eczema Life. 

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At Eczema Life, we recommend following a low food chemical program based on nutritionist Karen Fischer's 'The Eczema Detox' book. Along with our additive-free supplements for skin health and wellbeing. Click here for more eczema friendly recipes. 

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The Eczema Toolkit

the holistic way to clear skin

The Eczema Detox is Karen Fischer's latest best-selling eczema manual designed to help you find relief. Through her work she found some patients needed a special program to identify personal triggers, so the FID Program was created. The Eczema Clear Skin Toolkit combines gut health and nutrition with soothing, barrier repair skincare and supplements to calm the itch and support skin repair, the immune system and more. If you’ve tried everything and nothing has worked, this is the skin calming toolkit you've been praying for.

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Eczema Friend

the itch buster  |  rash cream

The low pH eczema cream that helps to relieve itchy skin, red skin rash and mild eczema and dermatitis. Suitable for all types of rashes. It's the cream you'll wish you had tried first.

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Frequently asked questions

Does food allergy trigger eczema?

Food allergy and eczema are closely linked, and allergies can absolutely make eczema worse, but they're often not what starts it in the first place. In fact, research suggests the reverse may be more accurate: eczema itself may come first and increase the risk of developing food allergies, rather than the other way around (Tsakok et al. 2016). One study found that babies with eczema were up to six times more likely to become
sensitised to foods compared to those without eczema. In children with established eczema, up to 66% showed food sensitisation, with confirmed food allergy in up to 81% of cases (Tsakok et al. 2016).

If you or your child has a diagnosed food allergy, those foods should be avoided for now. For additional guidance, the Food Intolerance Diagnosis (FID) Program in The Eczema Detox book can help identify food intolerances that do not show up in allergy tests (see next FAQ).
Do food allergy tests help eczema?

Skin prick tests and other food allergy tests including blood tests and patch tests can be unreliable on their own, so an oral food
challenge (supervised by an allergy specialist if you are prone to anaphylaxis), is the most accurate way to confirm whether you or your child is reacting to a particular food. For additional guidance, the FID Program in The Eczema Detox book can help you to identify your personal triggers.
About the authors

Ren Karen Fischer is a nutritionist, mother of two, and award-winning author of seven books, including the bestsellers The Eczema Diet and The Eczema Detox. Fischer is also a peer-reviewed published researcher, and is currently undertaking eczema research as part of a Master's by Research at Bond University. Combining clinical research with real-world experience, she is dedicated to advancing evidence-based care for eczema.

Nutritionist Bonnie Taylor holds a Bachelor of Health Science degree and helps people with eczema identify their individual triggers through the FID Program. Taylor has worked alongside Fischer for many years and offers nutrition consultations by appointment.