Skin Care
Fish in children’s diet cuts eczema risk: study
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Feeding babies as little as one portion of fish before they are nine months old may cut their risk of developing eczema, Swedish researchers said on Thursday.
Introducing fish of any type into the diet curbed the risk of contracting the skin condition by 25 percent compared with children who never ate it, Bernt Alm, a pediatrician at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, and colleagues reported in the British Medical Journal.
“The main finding was that early introduction of fish was beneficial,” Alm said in a telephone interview. “There was no link with the amount of fish or type of fish. We think it is more the timing of the introduction.”
Why Some Treatments Rescue Aging Skin
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Fine wrinkles, deeper creases, saggy areas around the mouth and neck – the sights in the mirror that make baby boomers wince – are not inevitable. They result from a structural breakdown inside the skin that some existing treatments effectively counteract by stimulating the growth of new, youthful collagen, University of Michigan scientists say.
The researchers report an emerging picture of collagen collapse and possible renewal, based on more than a decade of studies, in the May issue of Archives of Dermatology.
The article draws on dozens of studies since the early 1990s, conducted primarily by U-M dermatologists, to explain why three types of available skin treatments are effective: topical retinoic acid, carbon dioxide laser resurfacing and injections of cross-linked hyaluronic acid.
These treatments all improve the skin’s appearance – and its ability to resist bruises and tears – by stimulating new collagen. Collagen is a key supporting substance, plentiful in young skin, that’s produced in the sub-surface layer of skin known as the dermis. The U-M findings show that the breakdown of the dermis’ firm, youthful structure is a very important factor in skin aging – a much more straightforward thing to fix than genetic factors that others theorize may be involved.
Milk of magnesia helps skin
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My son has acne. He is 16 and has been under a dermatologist’s care for many years, to no avail. He has recently tried a home remedy: applying milk of magnesia to his face at night before bed. He looks the best he has in four years.
Milk of magnesia is a solution of magnesium hydroxide and is best known for its laxative effect. We don’t know why it might combat acne, but we have heard that it can help clear up seborrheic dermatitis, in which yeast on skin causes redness and flakes, rather like dandruff, but on the forehead, chin, scalp and eyebrows. One reader says, “I have been using milk of magnesia on my face for the past two months, and my face flakes are gone! I pour it in my hand and massage it on my face (forehead, eyebrows, around the eyes, nose, cheeks and chin) while showering, and rinse it off at the end of the shower. End of problem.”
We are what we drink
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University of Utah scientists developed a new crime-fighting tool by showing that human hair reveals the general location where a person drank water, helping police track past movements of criminal suspects or unidentified murder victims.
“You are what you eat and drink – and that is recorded in your hair,” says geochemist Thure (pronounced Tur-ee) Cerling, who led the research effort with ecologist Jim Ehleringer.
Their findings are being published online Feb. 25 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The new hair analysis method also may prove useful to anthropologists, archaeologists and medical doctors in addition to police.
Morgellons Disease
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Its know as ‘Morgellons Disease’ - have you ever heard of it?
The condition was not even described as a disease until 2002. Mary Leitao’s 2 year old son developed sores under his lip in 2001. He began to complain of ‘bugs’. Lietao examined the sores and discovered ‘bundles of fibers’ in red, blue, black and white. She took her son to multiple doctors who could not find any disease, allergy or other explanation for his symptoms. Her son developed more sores. Fibers continued to poke out of them. Leitao, a trained biologist, named the condition Morgellons disease, from a description advanced by Sir Thomas Browne in a 1690 monograph. There is no suggestion that the two conditions are linked.
Tips for Dry Winter Skin
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By itself, dry skin isn’t a medical worry, but serious cases can result in cracks and fissures that invite infection and inflammation. This is one problem that hasn’t suffered from lack of attention in the marketplace, though: there are dozens of creams and lotions for dry skin. But what ingredients should you look for in a moisturizer? Well-controlled studies are few and far between. The fact is that despite the long lists of obscure ingredients and the pseudoscientific hokum, all moisturizers help with dry skin for a pretty simple reason: they supply a little bit of water to the skin and contain a greasy substance that holds it in, reports the February 2008 issue of the Harvard Health Letter.
One reason for the proliferation of moisturizers is the continuing search for a mix of ingredients that holds in water like petrolatum—a greasy substance known to many people as Vaseline—but feels nicer on the skin. The good news is that despite all the unknowns, you really can’t go wrong. Almost all the moisturizers on the market will help with dry skin, and in most cases, the choice comes down to simply whether you like the feel and smell.
Skin care: new research into scar-free healing
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New research from the University of Bristol shows that by suppressing one of the genes that normally switches on in wound cells, wounds can heal faster and reduce scarring. This has major implications not just for wound victims but also for people who suffer organ tissue damage through illness or abdominal surgery.
When skin is damaged a blood clot forms and cells underneath the wound start to repair the damage, leading to scarring. Scarring is a natural part of tissue repair and is most obvious where skin has healed after a cut or burn. It ranges from trivial (a grazed knee) to chronic (diabetic leg ulcers) and is not limited to the skin. All tissues scar as they repair; for example, alcohol-induced liver damage leads to fibrosis and liver failure, and after most abdominal surgeries scars can often lead to major complications.
Severe psoriasis associated with increased risk of death
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Patients with severe psoriasis appear to have an increased risk of death compared with patients without the skin condition, according to a report in the December issue of Archives of Dermatology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Psoriasis is a common inflammatory disorder that affects the skin and joints, according to background information in the article. The condition has been associated with various other factors, including smoking, alcohol use and diseases such as obesity, cardiovascular disease and some cancers.
Psoriasis drug shown highly effective in trial
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Johnson & Johnson’s experimental treatment for psoriasis proved safe and highly effective in a late-stage trial, positioning it as a potential strong rival to current medicines, the company said on Wednesday.
More than two-thirds of patients with moderate to severe forms of the inflammatory skin condition achieved at least a 75 percent reduction in symptoms after 12 weeks of treatment with the injectable medicine CNTO 1275 (ustekinumab), J&J said.
Dermatologists Identify North Texas Leishmaniasis Outbreak
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A team of dermatologists and dermatopathologists at UT Southwestern Medical Center has identified nine North Texas cases of an infectious skin disease common in South America, Mexico and in the Middle East, where it is sometimes referred to as a “Baghdad boil.”
Numerous cases of the disease, called leishmaniasis, have been reported in troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. But for the first time, cases of this dangerous infection are appearing in North Texas in patients who have not traveled to endemic areas.
Being overweight may raise women’s psoriasis risk
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Women who are overweight or obese may face a higher risk of developing the psoriasis, a common skin condition, a large study suggests.
Psoriasis is a chronic, inflammatory skin disease that, in most cases, causes patches of skin to become red, itchy and covered in silvery scales. It’s caused by an abnormal immune system reaction that accelerates the growth of new skin cells.
Skin-care industry skipping out on science?
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The multi-billion-dollar global cosmetics and skin-care-product industry sometimes is beset by a me-too mindset in which research and development focuses on matching the competition rather than applying sound science to improve products, a scientist told the 234th national meeting of the American Chemical Society.
As a result, it could be missing a golden opportunity to provide consumers with more effective products, according to a Stig E. Friberg, Ph.D. a chemist who studies cosmetic ingredients.
Dietary Supplement Can Turn the Skin Permanently Blue
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Colloidal silver is peddled as a cold medicine, decongestant, all-around germ fighter, and a kind of cure-all. Is there any legitimate reason for taking the dietary supplement? The short answer is no, and there may be some serious and strange side effects, reports the August 2007 issue of the Harvard Health Letter.
Silver has several uses in conventional medicine. Silver sulfadiazine is used to treat serious burns. Fabric impregnated with silver is sometimes used as a dressing for wounds or skin infections. And silver nitrate is occasionally used to treat warts and corns.
Sperm abnormalities seen in male lupus patients
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The prognosis for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), an autoimmune disease that mainly affects women in their reproductive years, has improved recently, prompting a shift toward improving quality of life. For men with SLE, concerns have been raised about their future fertility. However, no studies have been conducted to date on testes function and its relevance to sperm abnormalities in male SLE patients. A new study published in the July 2007 issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism examined gonad function in male SLE patients and found that they have a high frequency of sperm abnormalities associated with reduced testicular volume.
In addition, the study identified intravenous treatment with the immunosuppressant cyclophosphamide (IV CYC) as the major factor in permanent damage to the testes.
Patients with Psoriasis Prone to Diabetes and Serious Cardiovascular Condition
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Psoriasis is a chronic skin condition characterized by thick, red, scaly plaques that itch and sometimes bleed, causing considerable discomfort and emotional stress for patients. In addition to the daily chore of dealing with the physical symptoms of this condition, new research suggests an association between psoriasis and two potentially serious medical conditions – diabetes and atherosclerosis, also known as hardening of the arteries.
For the 2 percent to 4 percent of the worldwide population affected by psoriasis, these findings could have a significant impact on their overall health, including the estimated 5.8 to 7.5 million Americans affected by the condition.
