Acne is caused when the ducts of the sebaceous (oil) glands become blocked with dirt, bacteria and dead skin cells. The sebaceous glands produce an oily substance called sebum, they are connected to a hair-containing canal called the follicle. Sebum is to the surface of the skin through the opening of the follicle. The oil seems to stimulate the lining of the wall of the follicle causing cells to shed more rapidly and stick together, plugging the opening to the skin's surface. This causes whiteheads and blackheads.
The mixture of oil and cells also helps bacteria, which is normally present on the skin, to grow in the follicle. The bacteria produce chemicals which can cause the wall of the follicle to break. When this wall is broken the sebum, bacteria and shed skin cells escape, forming skin cysts.
Teenagers are more at risk as the increase of hormone levels during puberty can lead to the sebaceous glands enlarging and producing more sebum.
Factors which can lead to acne include stress, diet, taking hormones or corticosteroids. For women the onset of mestrual periods, pregnancy, and oral contraceptive pills can also effect the skin.
Self Help
1. Acne is not caused by dirt
The blackness of a blackhead is not dirt, it is due mainly to dried oil and shed skin cells in the openings of the follicles. For normal care of the skin you should wash twice a day with mild soap. This will help remove surface oil, dirt and dead skin which can block your pores. Always wash in the evening to remove the dirt from the day. You may wish to use an antibacterial soap product (such as Clearasil). Do not wash too often as excess washing may actually aggravate acne.
2. Greasy hair adds to skin surface oil and can contribute to clogging pores
Ensure that hair is always clean and tied back from face to avoid irritation. Do not attempt to hide spots under a fringe as this will irritate them further.
3. Do not pick,squeeze or scratch the spots
More redness, swelling, inflammation and scarring may result.
4. Avoid oil based cosmetics
Used water based make-up sparingly and ensure it is removed properly in the evening. Lipstick and eye make up should not cause problems. Look out for cosmetics which are labelled "non-comedogenic" as these should not result in the formation of whiteheads or blackheads.
5. Exposure to sun
Some people have found that exposure to the sun can reduce acne.
6. Shaving
Men with acne who shave should try both electric shavers and razors to see which is more comfortable. If you use a razor then soften the beard first with soap and warm water and shave lightly to avoid catching the spots. Shave only when necessary and always use a sharp blade.
7. Foods
There is no evidence that specific foods, such as fried foods or chocolate, can cause acne. However it could help to avoid fatty or sweet foods. Your skin will always benefit from a healthy diet which includes drinking plenty of water. Some people find that their acne seems to become worse when they eat certain foods. If that is the case then clearly those particular foods should be avoided.
Medical Help
Contact your doctor if you are worried about your skin. It is not a good idea to wait and see if you 'outgrow' acne as early treatment can help prevent any scarring. Your doctor will be able to prescribe various treatments depending on the severity and type of acne. You must continue proper skin care until the tendency to have acne has passed. There is no instant or permanent cure but it is controllable and proper treatment may prevent scars.
Treatment could take the form of oral or topical antibiotics. Cystic acne (acne vulgaris) may need specialist treatment by a dermatologist. (Isotretinoin is used to treat this condition) Other topical applications include benozyl peroxide.
Macular Stains
Faint, mild red marks are known as macular stains. They are the most common type of vascular birthmark. Some are located on the forehead or eyelids, these usually disappear by the age of two. Others appear on the back of the neck and can last into adulthood. Macular stains can also be found on other parts of the body but these are the most common. These birthmarks are harmless and do not require any treatment.
Fair skinned people are more likely to have freckles. They usually occur on the face but can appear on the arms and shoulders or other parts of the body. Freckles are completely harmless. To minimise freckles, apply a good sun screen before going out in the sun. There is no certain way to get rid of freckles but if you don't like them, make up can be used to cover them. They may respond to laser treatment.
If you notice any change in a freckle, for example a change in size (that is not sun related), colour or texture then contact your doctor.
Moles are usually brown in colour. This colour is caused by cells in the skin which contain the pigment melanin (the same pigment that causes sun tan to appear). They can appear anywhere on the body, alone or in groups. There are many different types of mole, flat, lumpy, thin and raised. They can be different shapes and sizes.
Each individual mole has a life cycle of about 50 years. During this time it will alter slightly, it may enlarge, grow hairs or slowly fade in colour. A mole can also grow darker, for example during the teen years, during pregnancy, as a result of certain drugs and with exposure to the sun.
It is usual for moles to change slightly and slowly over time, but a sudden or drastic change in a mole could be a sign of skin cancer. Go to the doctor if you are worried about a mole.
Hair which can grow from some moles can be unattractive. It can be removed by snipping the hair close to the surface, or it can be permanently removed by a doctor.
Moles can be removed in a fairly simple surgical procedure such as cutting it out. This can be done if the mole is thought to be cancerous or for purely cosmetic reasons.
Medical studies have shown that irritation such as shaving will not cause a mole to become cancerous, so it is safe to shave over them. However you may want to have moles removed from the beard area for convenience.
Non-melanoma
This can include cancers such as squamous cell carcinoma (irregular fleshy growth usually found on the face) and basal cell carcinoma (slow growing flat tumors which may bleed or crust over. Usually found on the head, neck and hands).
Non-melanoma skin cancer is more common than melanoma and is less dangerous. The cancer is almost always curable. From about 36,000 new cases a year, over 98% are successfully treated. Men and women are effected equally by this cancer.
Non-melanomas are thought to be related to overall exposure to the sun throughout a lifetime and so are more common in elderly people.
Self Help
Self examination is very important. If the cancer is caught quickly there is more chance that it will be treated successfully. It is therefore essential that you know every mole, freckle and beauty mark on your skin and will notice if any changes occur or new marks appear. Use a full length mirror and a hand mirror in a well lit room to see every part of you body.
- Examine body front and back in mirror, then right and left sides, with your arms raised.
- Bend yor elbows to look carefully at your arms and hands.
- Look at the back of your legs and yor feet, including betwwen your toes and the soles of your feet.
- Check your neck and scalp with the hand mirror.
- Use the hand mirror to study the back of your body.
What to look out for:
1. Change in size
2. Change in shape
A cancerous mole is likely to be asymmetrical with irregular outlines.
3. Colour
Moles which do not have unifom pigmentation, instead they are a mottled eefect of different browns with some red or blue.
4. Change in texture
5. Also if a mole becomes itchy, inflamed or begins to weep or bleed.
6. Any moles that appear suddenly after the age of twenty.
If there are any sudden changes in the appearance of a mole or freckle then consult your doctor immediately.
Nearly all skin cancers are caused by the sun so be sure to tan safely and avoid excessive exposure to the sun (see below).
Medical Help
There are a number of ways of treating skin cancer, depending on the type of cancer and on the patient.
When UV rays enter the skin they cause visible and invisible types of damage. Sunburn is a visible type of damage which appears just a few hours after exposure to the sun. Invisible damage is caused to skin cells. This damage adds up year after year, eventually building up as age spots, wrinkles and skin cancer. The sun also speeds up the aging process by breaking down the elastin and collagen in the skin, leaving fine lines and less elasticity and softness in the skin.
When the skin is exposed to sunlight, the UV rays penetrate the skin's layers to the melanocytes (skin cells which produce pigments called melanin). The melanocytes produce more melanin which moves toward the skin's outer layers and becomes visible as a tan. Melanin production usually occurs 48 hours after the initial sun exposure and peaks about two hours later. Occasional exposure to the sun is not too harmful, but if the skin is forced to produce massive doses of pigments it will go through a lot of stress which can lead to cell damage and cancer.
A sun screen is essential to prevent sun burn and skin damage. Sun blocks work by trapping the ultraviolet rays and preventing them from entering the skin. Gradual expose to the sun with a proper sun screen will permit the optimal production of melanin which turns your skin brown. This melanin provides some protection against sunburn. Gradual exposure will also thicken the outer layer of the skin helping to protect the skin from UV rays.
Sun screen products use a sun protection factor (SPF) system to show how much protection they offer. Which SPF you need to use depends on how easily you normally burn. An average, fairly sensitive skin will begin to burn after about 20 minutes in the sun (if there is no protection used). The SPF tells you how many times longer than normal you can spend in the sun. For example if you would normally tan after 20 minutes, an SPF15 will allow you to spend 20 x 15 = 300 minutes (5 hours) in the sun without burning. If you have very fair and sensitive skin this time will be reduced, if your skin is not sensitive you can stay in the sun a little longer.
Hints and Tips
1. Always use a SPF of 15 or more.
2. Stay out of the sun wherever possible between 11am and 2pm as this is when the sun is at its brightest and can cause the most damage to your skin.
3. Avoid long periods in direct sunlight, try and sit and play in the shade.
4. Apply sun tan lotion 20 minutes before facing the sun and continue to reapply throughout the day.
5. Water filters out only 30% of the sun's UV rays so you can still burn even underwater. Apply sun screen after swimming, even if the product claims to be waterproof.
6. Up to 80% of the sun's rays can break through cloud, so still apply cream even on an overcast day.
7. The sun is particularly intense at high altitudes and in the mountains because there is less atmosphere to block out the rays.
8. Sun reflects off shiny surfaces, water and snow. Extra protection should be taken to allow for this.
9. Pay particular attention to areas of your body that are not often exposed such as the soles of your feet. Women should be very careful if they are going to sunbathe topless - use a high SPF cream.
10. Special care should be taken with children as they have more delicate skin. Visible opaque white or coloured sun block creams prevent all light from entering the skin. They are useful for high risk areas like the nose, lips and shoulders. They are also very useful to protect children and babies. Avoid allowing babies outside when the sun is hot.
11. Cover up. A wide brimmed hat, sunglasses and a light cotton shirt over the shoulders will provide the most effective protection.
Some products contain a tanning accelerator. These products start working before the exposure by preparing the skin to react promptly to sun rays. This can help you to build up a tan in less time and so you do not need so much exposure to the harmful rays.
Sun Beds
Sun beds emit UVA and some UVB radiation so excessive use can damage your skin and lead to skin cancer. Do not assume that sun beds are a way to develop a safe tan.
If You Do Burn
If you do feel as though your skin is burning you should take a bath (not a shower, your skin is already stressed) with no soap or oils. This will help to lower the temperature of the skin which will still be retaining heat (and damaging cells) even if you left the sun an hour ago. Dry yourself gently and apply a cooling moisturiser or after sun product. Peeling cannot be stopped if your skin has burnt. However an unscented moisturiser should stop things from getting too bad and save some discomfort.
Warts are contagious and may spread from one part of the body to another or from person to person. There can be a gap of several months from the time contact is made until the wart has grown large enough to be seen. Some people are naturally more susceptible to warts than others. No one is quite sure why. It seems that just as some people catch colds very easily, others catch the wart virus easily.
Types of Wart
Hand warts
Usually found on the fingers, around the nails and on the back of the hand. These warts are more common in areas where the skin has been broken (eg. nails are bitten).
Foot warts
These are called plantar warts and they tend grow in groups on the soles of the feet. Most plantar warts do not stick up above the surface as much as hand warts. This is due to the pressure placed on the bottom of the feet when walking or standing. They are pushed back into the skin and can be quite painful. Often black dots can be seen, these are the blood vessels which feed the warts. Plantar warts are thought to be more common in people who sweat heavily and do a lot of exercise or walking.
Flat Warts
Much smaller and smoother than hand or foot warts. They grow in groups of 20-100 at any one time. In children they are most common on the face. In adults they are often found in the beard area in men and on the legs in women. Skin irritation from shaving may account for this.
Genital warts
Small, smooth flat bumps or thin and tall. Most common in young adults they are generally sexually transmitted and can occur on the anus, rectum, male genitalia and in women within the vagina and on the cervix.
Although they are harmless, warts can be a nuisance and they are unattractive. If they are injured they will bleed. In children, warts almost always disappear without treatment over a period of several months. However since they are contagious and can spread or infect other children it is usually best to treat the warts as soon as possible. Warts in adults do not disappear as easily and as quickly as they do in children.
Common warts are not known to be cancerous, but there has been some link between genital warts and cervical cancer. These must be treated as soon as possible and care should be taken not to infect your partner.
Self Help
1. There are some wart remedies available without prescription but generally it is better to see the doctor before taking any treatment. This is to ensure that your skin growth is a wart and not something more serious which would need different treatment.
2. If you often get hand warts, try not to bite your nails or the skin around your nails as warts grow more often on broken skin.
Medical Help
There is no perfect cure for warts as there is no way to kill the virus which causes them. Treatment consists of destroying the outer layer of skin where the wart grows. This can be done by surgery, laser, electrocautery (destroying with a weak electric current), cyrotherapy (freezing with liquid nitrogen) or with chemicals like salicylic acid. Hypnosis and alternative medicines have been used to treat warts. The treatment depends on the location, size and type of wart being treated.
Whatever treatment is used on warts they occasionally reappear, sometimes weeks or months after they seem to have gone. This could happen because of re-infection from an infected person. More often warts reappear because the old wart had already shed the virus into the surrounding skin before it was treated. This can be prevented if new warts are treated as soon as they appear so they have little time to spread the virus into nearby skin.
Cyrotherapy
Liquid nitrogen treatment is a common method for the treatment of warts. The wart and surrounding skin are treated with liquid nitrogen. This is so cold that when applied to the skin it usually results in blistering, similar to a burn.The wart is lifted and will fall off when the blister dries. You may experience some pain which should be easily controlled with painkillers. Repeat treatments every one to three weeks may be necessary.
Salicylic acid
This can be painted on to the warts. It is most useful for children and in the treatment of flat warts. The acid peels off the top layer of the skin. There is very little discomfort but it can take many weeks before the results are seen.