This is a continuation of of an article we started in part one on causes and prevention of dry skin. Follow that link to get the first part of the article. The next cause of dry skin is:
2. Bathing with harsh soaps
Not all bath soaps are the same. Some are harsh and shouldn’t be used at all for bathing. Outside of harsh bath soaps, I once came in contact with a girl who uses soda or just any other clothes washing soap to bath. This is totally wrong. These soaps are made to clean out tough stains and so, they are very harsh on our skin. Here, I will say that the fear of harsh soaps for bathing is the beginning of a healthy skin.
Solution:
Use a gentle cleaning soap with moisturizer for your bathe.
2. Scrubbing the skin
It is the habit of some people to make use of hard sponge when bathing and then they scrub so hard, as if they are trying to get a permanent stain out of a wooden table. You forget that it is your skin you are handling and not some wooden or iron table. Truth is hard friction strips the skin of moisturizer and encourages dry skin.
Solution:
If you must use a sponge, make sure you use it gently or better still, get a soft wash cloth; it will do a nice cleaning job without disturbing or striping the moisture off your skin.
Instant toweling after bathing:
I didn’t really know this until recently and so I was once guilty of this. Our fore fathers must have practiced this a lot because there was nothing like towel during their time. These days it’s a fast world out there, you get up in the morning, take your bathe and quickly towel up so that you can start getting dressed for work. On a normal day, it is advisable to wait a little longer so as to let the skin thoroughly absorb the water on your body first before dressing up. Water happens to be a good and natural form of moisturizer. Denying your skin the right to absorb enough moisture can result in dry skin. Please note that this is different from having long showers. When showering, you are constantly washing off the skin’s moisturizer because you are bathing, so, it is a completely different case.
4. Psoriasis:
This is a condition that occurs when skin cells that are already rough, dry and dead gather together to form scales. These scales are usually thick and silver in color. Such silver color brings embarrassment to the one suffering the condition, especially black folks.
5. Thyroid disorder:
This is also known as Hypothyroidism. It is a condition that occurs if the thyroid in your body does not produce enough hormones. The result of this is that it reduces the activity of your sweat and oil gland which in turn leads to dry skin.
Solution:
There are different types of Thyroid disorders and so the treatment varies, depending on the one you are experiencing.
- Hypothyroidism:The treatment to this type of thyroid is simply by replacing the missing hormone.
-
Hyperthyroidism / Graves:
For this type of thyroid, three main treatment options are:
- Radioactive Iodine (RAI)
- Surgery and
- Anti thyroid drugs.
For the sake of keeping this article in focus, details will not be given here for these three treatment methods but, you can carry out an online research on it later.
There are other types of thyroid disorders but these two relate more with our topic of discussion.
Outside of the above mentioned, other ways of treating the ailment or disorder include, Natural or herbal treatment, taking of supplements and nutrition.
One can never underestimate the importance of eating healthily. If you are so much in a hurry because your work keeps you on the fast lane, feel free to get food supplements to balance up your body’s nutrition.
Minerals and vitamins are particularly good when it comes to reviving dry and worn out skins.
Some good supplements which are very helpful to our skin’s health include:
Vitamin A:
Having the right amount of vitamin A in the body helps to tackle dry skin. Although we have much of it in our everyday food but if you are the type that eats more of junk or take quick orders and hit the road, it is necessary for you to have them handy so that you can take them at your convenience.
Vitamin E:
This is a supplement used to reduce the effects of sun damage. Before taking this supplement, it is advisable to talk with your doctor and let him / her advice you on the quantity to take daily as well as how to take it. This is necessary especially if you are on medication.
Vitamin C:
Vitamin C is also particularly good when it comes to reducing the effect of sun damage to our skin. The good thing is that you can find lots of it in fruits and foods e.g. Oranges, Lemon, Sweet potatoes, tomatoes etc.
Good luck in your quest for a healthy skin.
