Shielding Lotions May Be Key to Diabetes-induced Dry Skin

By: Gloria MacTaggart
Submitted: 2007-01-17 16:18:24
Print this article | Tell a friend | For publisher | Social Bookmarking
Rating:
 

With the onset of winter, some 18 million sufferers of Diabetes — 6.3 percent of the U.S. population — will need to take extra care to prevent dry skin and foot disorders associated with the chronic illness.

Shielding lotions may be the key to helping Diabetics stay on top of their dry skin conditions and spend more time enjoying life.

According to The National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse (NDIC), Diabetes affects skin and feet in several ways:

1. If your blood glucose is high, your body loses fluid, hastening the dry skin process. Dry skin can become itchy and can crack, causing you to scratch. Breaks in the skin allow germs to enter and cause infection. If your blood glucose is elevated, it feeds germs and makes infections worse.

2. Nerve damage can decrease the amount you sweat. Decreased sweating can lead to dry skin. Additionally, Diabetics with nerve damage in the legs and feet, have difficulty feeling pain, heat, or cold in the extremities, a condition called diabetic neuropathy, that can lead to a large sore or infection.

3. Poor blood flow, another very serious condition of Diabetics also known as peripheral vascular disease, happens when not enough blood flows to your legs and feet, slowing the healing process to sores or infections. Smoking when you have diabetes makes blood flow problems much worse.

When these harsh diabetic conditions can create such havoc in the skin and feet, it may not be enough to use oil-based lotions, that attempt to replace the natural oils lost on the skin’s surface with artificial ones. These only offer temporary relief that does little to heal the skin, and regular use of lotions can actually cause the skin to produce less natural oils.

Using a quality shielding lotion will bond with the skin’s outer layer of skin, protecting it from losing moisture in the first place, and attracts moisture from the air to the skin through the use of special high-quality humectant moisturizers. Additionally, shielding lotions help to keep irritants away from the deeper layers of skin, and won’t wash off with soap or exposure to chemicals, allowing the skin to heal itself.

The following tips can help you stay on top of your skin care during the harsher winter months of managing diabetes:

· Keep your diabetes well managed. People with high glucose levels tend to have dry skin and less ability to fend off harmful bacteria. Both conditions increase the risk of infection.

· Keep skin clean and dry. Use talcum powder in areas where skin touches skin, such as armpits and groin.

· Avoid very hot baths and showers. If your skin is dry, don't use bubble baths. Moisturizing soaps may help. Afterward, use a shielding lotion to help your skin retain moisture. But don't put lotions between toes. The extra moisture there can encourage fungus to grow.

· Prevent dry skin. Scratching dry or itchy skin can open it up and allow infection to set in. Moisturize your skin with a shielding lotion to prevent chapping, especially in cold or windy weather.

· Treat cuts right away. Wash minor cuts with soap and water. Do not use Mercurochrome antiseptic, alcohol, or iodine to clean skin because they are too harsh. Only use an antibiotic cream or ointment if your doctor says it's okay. Cover minor cuts with sterile gauze. See a doctor right away if you get a major cut, burn, or infection.

· During cold, dry months keep your home more humid. Bathe less during this weather, if possible.

· Use mild shampoos. Do not use feminine hygiene sprays.

· See a dermatologist (skin doctor) about skin problems if you are not able to solve them yourself.

· Take good care of your feet. Check them every day for sores and cuts. Wear broad, flat shoes that fit well. Check your shoes for foreign objects before putting them on.

Author, Gloria MacTaggert, is a freelance writer who contributes articles on skin care for the National Skin Care Institute. For more information, visit http://www.skincarenet.org

Article source: Expert Articles

Most Recent Articles in Diabetes category

  • Diabetes - By: Karl Loren
    The prevalence of diabetes in adults once thought to be primarily a disease of middle age or older, jumped nearly 70% among people in their 30s in the last decade, a report says. Overall, diabetes increased 33% from 1990 to 1998, U.S. health officials say.
  • The Symptoms of Diabetes - By: Y. avicenna
    Diagnosing diabetes symptoms can be difficult in identifying at first, as manifestation of the disease is gradual and seems so harmless. Sometimes, because the symptoms of diabetes can also be common to other illnesses, the real illness may be overlooked. Diabetes symptoms may vary, the list may go on and on but not everybody (diabetes patients) has them. There are even some cases that no symptoms may show on some patients.
  • When you ignore diabetes: feet and legs - By: Tom YC
    The danger of diabetes is that without proper treatment and control, there is a high probability of severe damage to the body that may result in the amputation of a limb. This article looks at diabetes effect on the legs and feet.
  • Diabetes: what you should know (will save you) - By: Tom YC
    Quite often those who have diabetes do not know it until they have a medical check-up. It is a silent disease as diabetes symptoms are quite difficult to detect in its early stage. It is important to be educated about the dangers of diabetes as this disease is now amongst the top ten killers in the world.
  • Diabetes Diet Suggestions - By: Gregg Camp
    A problem that faces many diabetics is having a rich and varied diet without causing huge fluctuations is their glucose levels. You can find plenty of advice on the internet and from the doctors that you see close to your Capitola real estate. Sometimes it can all be very confusing. Read the article to find some easy to understand advice and diet tips.
  • How to Naturally Have Healthy Blood Sugar Levels - By: Gerhard van Staden
    How to naturally stabilize your blood glucose concentration to healthy levels and keep it there. Learn how to have a healthy lifestyle and not carry the burden of coping with Diabetes.
  • An Introduction To The Two Most Common Forms Of Diabetes - By: Donald Saunders
    Diabetes affects many millions of individuals today and yet it is not always fully understood. In this brief article therefore we look at the facts behind two of the commonest types of this condition.
  • How I Reversed My Type Two Diabetes - By: Thomas Nelson
    Conditions common to all diabetics cause and promote serious damage due to diabetes. They are treatable without pharmaceuticals. All diabetics need to know what they are and how to reverse them. www.how-to-take-charge-of-your-diabetes.com is an extensive compilation of research that every diabetic should know about his/her disease.
  • How Steaming Camel Dung Contributed to Reversing Diabetes - By: Thomas Nelson
    Conditions common to all diabetics cause and promote serious damage due to diabetes. They are treatable without pharmaceuticals. All diabetics need to know what they are and how to reverse them. www.how-to-take-charge-of-your-diabetes.com is an extensive compilation of research that every diabetic should know about his/her disease.
  • What Diabetics Need to Know About Their Doctor - By: Thomas Nelson
    Conditions common to all diabetics cause and promote serious damage due to diabetes. They are treatable without pharmaceuticals. All diabetics need to know what they are and how to reverse them. www.how-to-take-charge-of-your-diabetes.com is an extensive compilation of research that every diabetic should know about his/her disease.