Basic Skin Care Tips

Basic Skin Care Tips for Healthy, Clear and Beautiful Skin

Skin is our body’s first contact with the environment. Hence, our surroundings have profound effect on the skin and its appendages hair and nails. The texture, colour and smoothness of the skin reflect a person’s health and beauty. People notice a person first (mostly the lasting impression!) from the appearance of the skin and contour of the face. Hence maintaining a healthy, clear and beautiful skin is not only important from aesthetic reasons, but also from point of view of maintaining high self esteem, positive mental attitude and self confidence.
Maintaining a healthy skin does not depend upon regular usage of costly OTC cosmetic preparations, as many advertisements would have you believe!

NO!

There is no need for strict, obsessive-compulsive skin care routines either. In fact, you may harm the skin due to over-enthusiastic cleansing and grooming!
Attaining a flawless healthy skin is a natural outcome of healthy living style!
Let us examine the factors that contribute to the health of the skin, hair and nails. These will provide us with a strong base while we consider the Skin Care in general later on.

A. Internal Skin Care

1. Balanced Nutrition: A balanced diet of cereals, pulses, vegetables, meat, chicken, eggs and fish laced with plenty of fresh salad and fruits will ensure healthy glowing skin. Most dermatology text books shy away from blaming food habits and fads viz a viz skin health and diseases. But from my experience of treating skin disease for the last 25 years, I can definitely say that food does affect the skin in more ways than we would care to admit! For example, it is well known that regular intake of oily, fried or spicy foods invariably results in flare up of pimples on acne prone skin. Some of these problem foods that may cause pimples or breakouts include chocolates ,cakes, fried food, fast foods and fizzy drinks.

2. Adequate Hydration: Drinking adequate amount of water and fresh fruit juices will ensure the suppleness and elasticity of the skin. For normal, indoor persons, daily intake of 8-10 glasses of water or fruit juices will suffice. For those who go out, the intake should be double or triple depending upon the sun exposure and humidity.

3. Regular Exercise: Regular exercise - walking, running, bicycling, engaging in sports - will have a great impact on one’s skin complexion. Increased blood flow will bring in that extra warmth and glow to otherwise dull skin complexion.
Exercise will not only help you maintain optimum skin tone and texture, but it will also make you full of energy and freshness and a general feeling of well being. Exercise is also a great stress reliever.

4. Stress Management: Stress and prolonged, uncontrolled tension, anger, anxiety all are the nemesis of good health in general and healthy skin in particular. If you are stressed out, it will reflect on your skin first! Continuous perspiration will make the skin itchy and irritable; many stress induced diseases like psoriasis, pruritus, urticaria manifests themselves to damage the structure and integrity of the skin. Hence it is imperative that you set up a regular stress management program for yourself and your family without much delay.

5. Adequate Sleep: 7-8 hours of restful sleep is essential for good healthy skin.

6. Avoidance of Alcohol and Drugs: Alcohol in excess may harm the skin by interfering with nutrient absorption from the gut as well as by interfering with normal sleep and rest.

B. External Skin Care

1. Regular Cleansing: There are 4 stages in the daily cleansing routine: Cleansing, scrub with an exfoliating agent, using a toner and finally, application of moisturizer…this daily routine should make and maintain the healthy complexion of your skin. Select a gentle skin cleansing solution that works for your specific type of skin - dry, oily, normal. Using your selected product, cleanse face in a circular motion and rinse with lukewarm water, as hot water can cause drying up...
Follow the cleansing stage with an exfoliant. A granular product is often especially effective in smoothing rough areas and releasing dead skin cells, allowing the face to be better moisturized. But do not scrub too vigorously!
After the exfoliation process is over, use a toner or an astringent to tighten the skin and remove any makeup or cleanser residue. A nice alternative to a toner or astringent would be doing putting up a facial masque, which tackles clogged pores while firming the skin and leaving it soft and silky.
Finally, pat skin dry with a soft towel while keeping a little moisture. Apply a moisturizer to help protect skin from dryness. Those who have oily skin do not have to moisturize as often as those who have dry, normal or combination skin.

2. Use of moisturizers: Moisturizers can be either water based or oil based. People with oily skin should use water based moisturizers and vice versa. These should be applied immediately after washing the skin to retain the moisture on the surface. In winter, the application of moisturizers should be done at least twice daily without fail.

3. Use of Sun Screens: By using a moderate strength sunscreen, you will be protecting your skin from sun damage, skin cancer, aging and premature wrinkles. Too much sun can blister one’s lips, leaving them red, sore and charred. Sunburned skin will eventually peel most times, leaving skin areas blotchy and sensitive. The best approach to preventing sunburn and other sun-caused skin problems is to monitor how much time one spends in the sun and to avoid sun exposure by using sunscreen with SPF 15 or greater.

4. Treatment of Blemishes: Any skin blemishes should be treated immediately by a dermatology consultation to avoid bigger, deeper scars later on!

5. Treatment of Hormonal and other Systemic Diseases that may affect the health of the skin: If the skin is persistently rough, dry and unhealthy despite normal care, the possibility of hormonal imbalance, especially those of thyroid hormones should be investigated.

Structure and Function Of Skin

The skin is our body’s largest organ, with a range of functions that range from excretion of sweat to control of body temperature. In addition to the protective function, of course. (The importance of skin can be envisaged just by thinking about the effects of burns in the body, where the protective function of the skin is compromised.)

A view through the microscope reveals the layered structure of the skin, and the many smaller elements within these layers that help the skin to perform its functions

The skin is made up of three distinct layers.
The top layer is called the epidermis. Below is the dermis, which contains the blood vessels, nerves, collagen etc. Dermis comes from the Greek word for skin, derma.

Dermatologist means a doctor who specialises in the study of Skin and the disorders affecting the skin and the appendages of skin, namely hair and nail. The lower layer below the dermis is the subcutaneous fatty layer.

The epidermis
The outer most layer of the skin is the epidermis, which contains several layers as follows, from inside out, the basal cell layer, the spinous layer, the granular cell layer, and the stratum corneum.

The outer surface of the skin is the epidermis, which itself contains several layers — the basal cell layer, the spinous layer, the granular cell layer, and the stratum corneum.

The deepest layer of the epidermis is the basal cell layer. Here cells are continually dividing to produce plump new skin cells (millions daily). These cells move towards the skin surface, pushed upward by the dividing cells below them.

Blood vessels in the dermis — which is below the basal cell layer — supply nutrients to support this active growth of new skin cells. As the basal cells move upwards and away from their blood supply, their cell content and shape change, as follows.

Cells above the basal cell layer become more irregular in shape and form the spinous layer. Above this, cells move into the granular layer. Being distant from the blood supply in the dermis, the cells begin to die and accumulate a substance called keratin. Keratin is a protein that is also found in hair and nails.

The stratum corneum (‘horny layer’) is the top layer of the epidermis — it is the layer of the skin that we see from the outside. Cells here are flat and scale-like (‘squamous’) in shape. These cells are dead, contain a lot of keratin and are arranged in overlapping layers that impart a tough and waterproof character to the skin’s surface.

Dead skin cells are continually shed from the skin’s surface. This is balanced by the dividing cells in the basal cell layer to produce a state of constant renewal. Also in the basal cell layer are cells that produce melanin. Melanin is a pigment that is absorbed into the dividing skin cells to help protect them against damage from sunlight (ultraviolet light). The amount of melanin in our skin is determined by our genes and by how much exposure to sunlight we have. The more melanin pigment present, the darker the colour of our skin.

The dermis
Below the epidermis is the layer called the dermis. The top layer of the dermis — the one directly below the epidermis — has many ridges called papillae. On the fingertips, the skin’s surface follows this pattern of ridges to create our individual fingerprints. So the ridges are not on the outermost layer of skin, as it might appear.

The dermis contains a variable amount of fat, and also collagen and elastin fibres which provide strength and flexibility to the skin. In an older person the elastin fibres fragment and much of the skin’s elastic quality is lost. This, along with the loss of subcutaneous fat, results in wrinkles.

When the skin is exposed to sunlight, modified cholesterol in the dermis produces vitamin D, which helps the body to absorb calcium for healthy bones. Here are some of the other structures within the dermis that enhance the skin’s function.

Blood vessels supply nutrients to the dividing cells in the basal layer and remove any waste products. They also help maintain body temperature by dilating and carrying more blood when the body needs to lose heat from its surface; they narrow and carry less blood when the body needs to limit the amount of heat lost at its surface.

Specialised nerves in the dermis detect heat, cold, pain, pressure and touch and relay this information to the brain. In this way the body senses changes in the environment that may potentially harm the body.

Hair follicles are embedded in the dermis and occur all over the body, except on the soles, palms and lips. Each hair follicle has a layer of cells at its base that continually divides, pushing overlying cells upwards inside the follicle. These cells become keratinised and die, like the cells in the epidermis, but here form the hair shaft that is visible above the skin. The colour of the hair is determined by the amount and type of melanin in the outer layer of the hair shaft.

A sebaceous (‘oil’) gland opens into each hair follicle and produces sebum, a lubricant for the hair and skin that helps repel water, damaging chemicals and microorganisms (‘germs’).

Attached to each hair follicle are small erector pili muscle fibres. These muscle fibres contract in cold weather and sometimes in fright — this pulls the hair up which pulls on the skin with the result being ‘goosebumps’.

Sweat glands occur on all skin areas — each person has more than 2 million. When the body needs to lose heat these glands produce sweat (a mix of water, salts and some waste material such as urea). Sweat moves to the skin’s surface via the sweat duct, and evaporation of this water from the skin has a cooling effect on the body.

The skin varies in thickness, and the number of hair follicles, sebaceous glands and sweat glands in different areas of the body. The thickest skin is on the soles of the feet and the palms of the hands. A large number of hair follicles are on the top of the head.

Subcutaneous fat
The innermost layer of the skin is the layer of subcutaneous fat, and its thickness varies in different regions of the body. The fat stored in this layer represents an energy source for the body and helps to insulate the body against changes in the outside temperature.

Functions of the skin
Our skin is more or less waterproof. It is self healing and self replacing. Skin is capable of becoming thicker if exposed to wear and tear e.g. skin on the soles of our feet. Our skin becomes darker in colour to protect against excessive sunlight. Even after burning our skin in the sun, the burnt skin peels off and is replaced by a new layer of skin. Skin is vitally important in the production of vitamin D. The skin plays a vital role in the regulation of our body temperature, as;

• It is a protective covering.
• It excretes waste products.
• It regulates temperature.
• It contains ergosterol which, under the influence of ultra-violet light, forms vitamin D.
• It is an important sensory organ.
• It is important for the maintenance of body shape.
• It protects against the entry of harmful organisms.
• Immediately underneath the skin lies the superficial fascia. Underneath the superficial fascia lies the deep fascia. These tissues are closely related to the skin and play an important role in the mobility of the skin over the underlying structures.

Welcome!

A Warm Welcome To My New Blog, SKIN CARE TIPS FROM DERMATOLOGIST!
I had been designing my own web sites since 1997, the most important ones being
www.hanishbabu.com and
www.lesstress.net

Through my gateway web page, I had been answering queries related to SKIN CARE and SKIN DISEASES for the last decade. I have received queries from all over the world.
This is my first attempt at Blogging, and, of course, I had to start with my favourite subject, Dermatology. I intend to develop this into a full fledged Expert Skin Care Tips Blog (From the Dermatologist, of-course!).
Later, I will come out with a Blog on another topic close to my heart, Stress Management.In fact, I have already brought out an e-Book on the subject. You can also join my e-Zine, which will provide you with valuable Stress Management Tips on a regular base.(Click on the image to visit and subscribe)

Regards and Best Wishes,
Dr.Hanish Babu