Optimizing Health: The Interconnected World of Skin and Hair

At almost two square meters, the skin is our largest organ. It has many tasks: It protects us from heat and cold, is a sensory organ and separates our body from the environment. It also significantly impacts each individual’s appearance – which is why skin diseases are so uncomfortable for those affected.

Skin: structure and function

The skin is our largest sensory organ, consisting of several layers (upper skin, leather skin and sub-skin). It protects us from pathogens, from the outside temperature and separates us from the environment. It can store water and nutrients, absorb medicines or toxins, and influence our body temperature through sweating.

Birthmarks give the skin an individual appearance – freckles, beauty, or liver spots. The appendages of the skin – hair and nails – are remnants of evolution and no longer have any actual function. But they are all the more critical for people’s overall aesthetic appearance.

 

Skin: discomfort

If the skin does not feel well, it can express it differently. Too much or wrong care can lead to dry skin or, in extreme cases, to itchy, red skin (eczema), pimples or acne can also develop. Excessive sweating is annoying and indicates a dysfunction of the sweat glands.

While wrinkles and pigment spots tend to be signs of ageing, skin blisters can appear at any age – as a mundane skin blister when the shoe pinches, as a fever or herpes blister or as painful shingles. Warts are particularly annoying, and they often stubbornly refuse any treatment.

Coming to the area of ​​wounds and injuries, flea bites and lice are usually visible to the naked eye, and a burn or scald is often so painful that immediate help is needed. Sunburn also falls into this category because it represents a skin injury that could easily be avoided with adequate sun protection. Frostbite, on the other hand, is fortunately much less common. Nail fungus and athlete’s foot are also unpleasant because getting rid of these symptoms usually takes a while.

Hair is a particular topic: whether it is too much, as in the case of hirsutism, or too little, as in the case of hair loss or dandruff – hair is often a cause for complaint and seems to grow faster and faster with age.

investigation method

Anamnesis  (ask about medical history): All complaints can be further narrowed down by asking specific questions. In the case of a mole that looks suspicious, the history of itching, bleeding or changes to the surface indicates whether it is benign or malignant.

Inspection  (viewing) and palpation  (scanning): Skin changes can be seen better with a magnifying glass or a special microscope (reflected light microscope) than with the naked eye.

Swab, biopsy and hair analysis: If a skin infection is suspected, a smear of the skin area is made, and a tissue sample is taken if the tumour is unclear. Hair analysis plays a more significant role in alternative medicine than conventional medicine.

Allergy and skin function tests: The rash can react to an allergenic substance – detergents or cosmetics, in particular, are frequent triggers for itchy, dry skin. For example, various skin function tests can be used to check for abnormal sweating or an exaggerated tendency to react, as with hives.

X-ray, ultrasound, computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI):  These examinations are only used if it is suspected that internal organs are also affected. In a neurodermatitis patient, for example, the lung function will also be checked, and a possible asthma component will be sought.

 

diseases of the skin

Allergies can occur at any age – so you can also be allergic to the sun and plants or after a tattoo to the tattoo ingredients. More than 2 million people in Germany have psoriasis. This chronic disease is highly debilitating for those affected.

Although the disease porphyria is rare, it can lead to massive skin changes without consistent therapy and avoidance of direct sunlight – it is believed that Count Dracula suffered from porphyria! Many diseases are accompanied by more or less pronounced scarring, which requires treatment.

Diseases of the skin in children

Alongside cradle cap, diaper rash is often the first skin rash a newcomer to the world gets – unfortunately, cradle cap is often the first sign of neurodermatitis. Measles, rubella and scarlet fever are typical childhood diseases with a rash, and adults can also be affected. In addition to these well-known childhood diseases, there are rarer diseases, such as Kawasaki syndrome, in which skin changes similar to scarlet fever occur.

Skin diseases in adults

The most crucial skin disease, because it is the most dangerous, is skin cancer in all its forms. A preliminary stage that is only moderately known is actinic keratosis, a scaly, reddened skin change that usually occurs in areas of the body exposed to light. Less common are the chronic diseases rosacea and white spot disease (vitiligo). However, both are psychologically very stressful for those affected – with rosacea; the face is red and swollen; with vitiligo, normally pigmented and “white” skin areas alternate.

The skin changes with age: it becomes thinner and more sensitive, and its care more demanding. Eczema, open spots or even pressure points (decubitus ulcers) occur much more frequently. Chronic, often disfiguring skin diseases mean a lot of changes in the lives of those affected. Since 2002, the Team of Patient Advice for Skin Diseases (PBEH) has been a unique contact point for people with skin diseases. Skin diseases may affect the condition of those affected so much that they become the trigger for mental problems.

Of course, there is a particular procedure for medication or surgery for every illness – you will find this in the respective illness. For example, swimming and bathing relieve psoriasis; if the scalp is affected, a special comb directs UV light to the psoriasis focus, and new substances such as fumarins represent an alternative to the well-known therapy methods.

 

preventive measures

When choosing your care products, you must have wondered what “dermatologically tested” means. Even after the holiday, proper skin care and a healthy diet help the skin fulfil its functions. Special tips for athletes against environmental pollution, peelings, etc., can be found under Fitness and Wellness. In addition, you should remember that touch is vital for the skin as a sensory organ and as an acupressure treatment; touch even helps against wrinkles!

Many chronic skin diseases, such as neurodermatitis, progress in phases. Affected people often know exactly how to behave so that the disease does not break out or worsen. Since life-threatening skin diseases such as cancer often take years to develop, preventive measures such as adequate sun protection are essential. In addition to determining the skin type, it is also vital that children have susceptible skin and that sunburn as children is a significant contributor to the development of skin cancer.

Sun protection also includes the correct use of self-tanners and solariums. Because tanned skin from a tube does not increase the skin’s natural sun protection, arguments for going to the solarium should be carefully considered. When choosing the sun protection factor, the influence of the ozone layer thickness should be considered.