The food challenge involves eating the food you think you are reacting to 2 or 3 times a week for 2 weeks. If your eczema doesn’t flare up, then it’s OK to keep eating the food. If your eczema flares up, then stop the food and try the food challenge again in 2 or 3 weeks once the eczema has gone.

You should only do this food challenge when your eczema is under control. This is so you can see exactly what is happening when you eat the food. You should not do the food challenge for possible allergy where your body reacts straight away.

If you have a flare-up of eczema 1 to 2 days every time after eating the food, then this may mean that this food is making your eczema worse.

Cutting out certain foods can make it more difficult to follow a well-balanced diet. So it is important to talk to your doctor or nurse if you are going to cut out certain foods for more than 2 weeks.

Never cut out more than one food at a time. This makes it even harder to keep a well-balanced diet. It also makes it difficult to tell which food is making your eczema worse.

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