Emollients in daily practice* Emollients have antioxidant , anti protease, anti inflammatory activity and aid in restoring natural balance of lipids in atopic eczema.*choice of emollient is largely patient centered, but generally water based creams or lotions are helpful for acutely hot , inflamed eczema coz of cooling effect from evaporation n greasy ointment for very dry skin. In fissuring of skin, emollients can be used under occlusion.*emollients are best applied when skin is moist , it can and must be applied at other times as well* emollients should be applied frequently ie 3-4 times a day and also use it liberally* complete emollient therapy i,e combination of creams and ointments, bath oils and alkaline free soaps like syndet bar or pH balanced cleansers can be used together * daily baths should be with Luke warm water for 5-10min, followed by patting not rubbing the body to dry* quantities in general eczema ~ 250g/wk for child and in adult 500g/wk* emollients to steroid use should be ~10:1* addition of local anaesthetics to emollients can provide anti pruritic activity to help break scratch- itch cycle* anti biotic and steroid creams can be combined with emollients rather than using them alone.Harmful effects of emollients one should be aware off in practice* excipients such as preservatives can cause stinging and unacceptable, change when patient complaints instead of reassurance * absorption of urea and lactic acid can lead to dangerous toxicity if used over larger BSA especially in neonates and preterms hence its better avoided...this can also be exaggerated in atopic eczema coz of impaired barrier function * in preterms better to use emollients that are paraffin based and preservative free* ointments are usually preservative free n chances of irritation is less but watch out for folliculitis.* ointments can easily contaminated by microbes from repeated finger application , this is one of the unaware cause for bacterial infection in eczema. Patients are advised to use clean implement to remove sufficient quantity for need and warned not to return any unused preparation to container.* lotions and creams contain preservatives hence patch testing may be done prior to usage in large BSA* history of any food allergy has to be obtained before using oatmeal based emollients ,Check for Archis oil in emollients before giving it to patients with peanut allergy or even family history of it.* olive oil can also cause both contact and irritant contact dermatitis* one of the studies showed "sodium lauryl sulphate known to reduces stratum corneum thickness and increases TEWL , it's also known to reduce corneocyte size and increased desquamation.