The common skin disease, eczema, can take a major emotional toll on those affected, a new study has found.

It also appears to have a major impact on physical health, with affected adults more likely to be obese, have high blood pressure, have high cholesterol and have diabetes compared to those without the condition.

Eczema is a group of skin complaints that can affect all age groups and can occur anywhere on the body.

The most common type is atopic eczema (atopic dermatitis). This is a chronic and often painful inflammation of the skin. It results in an itchy, scaly, weepy red rash and is very widespread in the Irish population, particularly among children. In fact, around 20% of Irish children develop the condition, with two in three developing it before the age of six months.

US researchers analysed data on over 61,000 adults aged between 18 and 85, who took part in health surveys in 2010 and 2012. They found that those with eczema had a 54% increased risk of being morbidly obese, a 48% increased risk of having high blood pressure and a 42% increased risk of having diabetes.

They also had a 36% increased risk of having high cholesterol. All of these are major risk factors for heart disease.

The study also found that those with eczema were less likely to exercise than those without it, however this was often because sweat and heat aggravate the itching associated with the condition.

"They will avoid anything that triggers the itch. Patients report their eczema flares during a workout," commented lead researcher, Dr Jonathan Silverberg, of Northwestern University.

He emphasised that eczema ‘takes a huge emotional toll in its sufferers, like chronic pain'.

"Because eczema often starts in early childhood, people are affected all through their developmental years and adolescence. It hurts their self-esteem and identity. That's part of why we see all these negative behaviors," he commented.

He added that this research should open the eyes of dermatologists, ‘that we're not just treating chronic inflammation of the skin but the behavioral, lifestyle side of things'.

He said that dermatologists should ask their patients about their lifestyle habits and offer interventions. In the meantime, he and his colleagues are working on a new study aimed at trying to figure out how affected patients can exercise without suffering a flare-up.

Details of these findings are published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

For more information on eczema, see our Eczema Clinic here