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Photosensitivity Caused By Drugs and Chemicals

September 18, 2010 By Leave a Comment

ACQUIRED  HYPERSENSITIVITY TO THE SUN-

People suffering from lupus erythematosis are particularly sensitive to the sun.  Their skins develop rashes spread in a ring or butterfly pattern covering the cheeks and the bridge of the nose.  In come cases there is involvement of the blood vessels, the kidneys and the joints.  Since exposure to the sun worsens the rashes, lupus patients must avoid any such exposure.

Polymorphous light eruption (PLE) is a common skin reaction to the sun.  Despite its long name it is not dangerous.  The patient’s first exposure to the sun in any given year produces an itching rash.  As the summer continues and the skin becomes slightly tan, the rash disappears.  It might be considered an allergy to the sun, and there are those who estimate that more than 10% of the population suffers from it.

HYPERSENSITIVITY TO THE SUN AS A RESULT
OF SUBSTANCES WHICH COME IN CONTACT
WITH THE SKIN-

Many women aged 50 and older have brown patches of skin on the sides of their necks.  Very few people are aware that these patches are caused by the use of perfumes which, when exposed to the sun, lead to sensitivity which develops into colored patches where the perfume was applied.  This occurs because solar radiation, especially UVA, can change chemical compounds.  These changes in the substance which was sprayed or dabbed on the skin can cause reactions resembling burns or allergic rashes.

These rashes are characterized by the fact that they appear only in exposed areas which came in contact with the irritating substance, usually the face, neck, forearms and upper chest.  An example of such a substance is perfume containing chemicals derived from oranges that grow in the Bergamot region of France.

These perfumes can cause sun-induced marks on the skin of people who expose the areas where the perfume was applied to the sun.  Other substances can cause similar reactions, such as the juices of figs and green lemons, and tar fumes.  It is interesting to note that even sunscreens, which are supposed to protect the skin, can in rare instances cause hypersensitivity to the sun.  Any person who uses a sunscreen and feels that his or her skin is red and sensitive after sunning should consult a dermatologist.  Hypersensitivity to the sun caused by a substance applied to the skin can be determined by hospital tests.

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Filed Under: ALLERGIES, ITCHY SKIN, SUN DAMAGE Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Itching Skin In Aging Skin- Most Common Causes

September 11, 2010 By 3 Comments
numulareczema

DRY SKIN AND CHRONIC ITCH

The more skin ages the drier it becomes, a change felt as roughness, as the feeling that the skin is covered with fine scales and as an itch which appears mainly in cold, dry  weather.  The skin becomes dry because aging skin holds less water than young skin.

Dry skin is the most common cause of itching in older people, but there are other reasons: sensitivity to dyes in clothing, to wool, to household cleaners and to cosmetics.  Various skin diseases such as scabies or internal diseases such as hyperthyroidism, diabetes, renal insufficiency or insufficiency of the liver can all cause generalized itching.  A small percentage of people over 70 suffer from generalized itching not linked to any specific cause.

TREATMENT:

In mild cases of dry skin, it is sufficient to apply a moisturizer on the entire body surface after bathing.  It is important to do this while the skin is still damp.  Using bath oil or an superfatted liquid soap will also prevent the loss of moisture from the skin and make it look younger and healthier.  In cold weather it is enough to soap only those areas which perspire (the armpits, the groin and between the toes); on the rest of the body a soap substitute, which does is less irritating and does not dry the skin, can be used.

Most heaters, especially air-conditioners which are also heating units, dry the air and the skin, and the use of a humidifier should be considered.  A bowl of water may also be placed near the heat source; this too will increase the humidity in the air.  If the skin still remains dry, a dermatologist should be consulted to rule out the possibility of a skin disease or of an internal disease which can sometimes cause dry, itching skin.

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Congenital Sun Hypersensitivity

September 11, 2010 By 7 Comments

CONGENITAL SENSITIVITY-

The clearest example of congenital sensitivity is albinism.  People born with this syndrome suffer from a hereditary defect in the production of melanin in their skins and they are more liable to contract cases of sunburn, their skins age more quickly than those of other people and they are at greater risk of developing skin cancer.  There are other, rare congenital diseases in which a person is born with normal skin color, but because of a defect in the repair of damage done to the DNA which was caused by exposure to ultraviolet radiation, he or she is sensitive to sun-induced damage and develops skin cancer.  An example of such a disease is xeroderma pigmentosum.  People suffering from this disease run a risk 1,000 times greater than non-suffers of developing skin cancer.

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Can I Sun Protect My Kids ?

September 11, 2010 By Leave a Comment

A severe sunburn is dangerous for a small child in both the immediate and the distant future.  It has been unequivocally proved that severe sunburns in childhood increases the risk of developing melanoma in later life.  Studies show that most of the cumulative ultraviolet radiation absorbed by a person during his or her lifetime is absorbed during the first 18 years.  The amount of radiation to which children and teenagers are exposed is one of the primary causes of sun-induce damage to the skin and of the later risk of developing skin cancer.

HOW TO PROTECT THE SKIN OF INFANTS

Until the infant is six months old, he or she should not be exposed to the sun between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., and a child under the age of one year should not be taken to the beach or swimming pool during the late morning and early afternoon hours.  Whenever the infant leaves the house, the amount of time spent in the sun, including going from one shady spot to the next, should be kept to an absolute minimum, and the baby carriage should be covered with a sun shade.  The most effective means of protection is clothing which covers the body: a shirt with long sleeves, pants, socks, and if the child is old enough, a wide-brimmed hat.  A sunscreen should not be applied to the skin of an infant younger than six months because of the risk of an allergic reaction.

A sunscreen with a sun protection factor of 15 should be applied to exposed areas of the skin of infants older than six months of age. The best sunscreen for a child of this age is a non-chemical one, containing titanium oxide, and not a sunscreen containing chemical substances which might cause an allergic reaction or tearing eyes.

HOW TO PROTECT THE SKIN OF CHILDREN

It is important that children wear suitable clothing, that they not remove their shirts out of doors, that they wear wide-brimmed hats and wear sunglasses that screen ultraviolet radiation.  Before leaving the house in the morning, a sunscreen should be applied to all exposed areas of the body.  A parent should make sure that the rules for protecting the skin are followed when the child is away from home: at the day-care center, in the kindergarten, at school, at camp, etc.  Kindergarten and other teachers should be requested to plan outdoor activities and gym lessons before 10 a.m.

A study recently done showed that hats which do not have wide brims are not effective in protecting the face from the sun.  A British researcher named Duffy examined the amount of protection afforded by 28 different types of hats.  He found that all of them protected the forehead but that none of them protected the chin.  The study showed that a hat with a visor protects the nose but leaves the rest of the face exposed to radiation.  On the other hand, a hat with a brim 5-7 centimeters (2-3 inches) wide gives the face the same protection as a sunscreen with an SPF of 3.  Since that is a relatively low factor, in addition to wearing a hat, a sunscreen should be applied.

HOW TO PROTECT THE SKIN OF TEENAGERS

Teen-aged children have to be very courageous and secure to protect themselves from the sun.  Unfortunately, young people are under a great deal of social pressure to meet their friends at the beach on the weekends, to broil together during the hottest hours and to return home lobster-red but happy.  The skin peels a few days later and gives them the mistaken impression that the damage has been repaired and that they can continue broiling themselves the following week.  In research done on several hundred teenagers it was found that despite their awareness of the damages of solar radiation, they continued exposing themselves to the sun, especially at the beach and swimming pool during the hottest hours of the day.  Only 80% of the girls and 40% of the boys used a sunscreen, and those who did use them applied them in ways which did not provide adequate protection.

SEVEN RULES FOR PROTECTING CHILDREN FROM THE SUN

Keep infants and children out of the sun during the heat of the day.

Dress children in suitable clothing.

Keep an eye on the clock.

Use a sunscreen.

Beware of reflected light.

Check you own skin and that of your children frequently.

Give your children a personal example.

IMPORTANT!

In a study done in northern Europe, it was found that people who work in offices and spend their two weeks of vacation on the beach in a hot country are exposed to the same amount of UVB that they receive during the rest of the year.

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What Is My Skin Type ?

September 11, 2010 By 1 Comment

During the 1970s, Dr. Thomas Fitzpatrick, a dermatologist from the Harvard University School of Medicine, suggested classifying the skin into 6 types according to its ability to tan and its risk of possible sunburn.  A person who knows his or her skin type can take the correct precautions to protect it.

Skin Type I : includes fair-skinned people who always burn and never tan.  The people in this group are usually fair-haired as well, having either red or blond hair and light eyes, and there is very little difference in color between the exposed and unexposed areas of their skin.  Their faces turn red after only a few minutes in the sun, and after half an hour or more they may be so badly burned that their skin blisters.

Skin Type II: includes people who burn easily and tan with difficulty.  Most, but not all of them, have light hair and eyes.  10 to 20 minutes of sunshine at noon will cause them to develop red, burned skin.  Characteristic of this type of skin is the tendency to develop freckles.

Skin Type III :includes people whose skin burns after about an hour in the sun, but who later tan.  As opposed to Types I and II, who produce practically no melanin, tanning occurs in Type III skins only after severe damage has been done by the sun.  After tanning they produce but a small quantity of melanin, only partially effective in protecting the skin from continued exposure to the sun.

Skin Type IV: includes the dark-skinned people whose ancestors came from North Africa, Asia and the Mediterranean basin.  They have dark hair and most of them have brown or black eyes.  Even the unexposed areas of their skin contains melanin.  People with Type IV skins tan after exposure to the skin and rarely burn.  Nevertheless, ultraviolet rays penetrate and damage the deeper layers of even Type IV skins, although the damage is not as serious as that done to the skins of Types I-III.

Skin Type V : includes dark-skinned people who come from India, the Yemen and Native American Indians.  They are better protected from sun damage than the other skin types.

Skin Type VI : includes the Blacks.  Their skin is dark even in places which are normally never exposed to the sun.  They do not burn in normal exposure to sunlight and their skin color darkens quickly.  Although sun-induced skin growths are rare for people of Types V and VI, they should also avoid overexposure to the sun to keep their skin color uniform.

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Sun Damage – Best Three Defense Lines

September 11, 2010 By 3 Comments

Is the  sun  bad  for  us ?

1)Some sun-induced damage can be corrected simply by protecting the skin.  More than any other organ of the body, the skin preserves its ability for renewal and self-repair.  The upper layer, the epidermis, replaces most of itself every month. In addition, the skin contains enzymes which repair damage to the DNA of the cells and to the collagen caused by ultraviolet radiation.  In America a study was done by a researcher named Barbara Gilchrest, in which she compared the decrease in number of wrinkles in a large group of women who had used a preparation containing an anti-wrinkle substance (retinoic acid) to a group of women who avoided the sun and used a simple moisturizing cream.  According to the results, the skins of the women who avoided sun exposure but used no other means than a moisturizer also showed a reduction in the signs of sun damage including a reduction in the numbers of fine wrinkling.

2)The development of sun-induced skin cancer has two stages.  During the first stage, ultraviolet radiation injures the cell’s nucleus and causes a primary mutation in the genetic material.  The second stage occurs after ten or twenty years, and involves an additional change which causes a reaction in the impaired genetic material which in turn leads to the cell’s uncontrolled growth and the development of cancer.  Today it is known that improved sun protection will guard the body’s entire immune system.  The conclusion to be drawn from these data is that cancer develops in two stages and both related to the sun.  This first stage can be prevented by protecting a child’s skin from the sun, and the second stage can be prevented, at least partially, by continued protection in later years, in fact, throughout a person’s life.

IS THERE A RIGHT WAY TO SUNTAN ?

Practicing dermatologists like myself do not want to frighten you into having nightmares or to deprive you of the pleasures of life.  It is helpful if you view prevention of sun damage as a battle having certain lines of defense, and to form new habits incorporating these lines.  The first line of defense is to plan outdoor activities during the hours when the sun’s rays are weakest; the second is to choose naturally shady areas and to wear a hat and suitable clothing; the third is regular use of a sunscreen.

The First Line of Defense: Planning the Hours for Exposure to the Sun

It is wisest to plan outdoor activities during the hours when the sun’s rays are weakest; tennis lessons, gardening and trips to the beach or swimming pool should be scheduled for the early morning hours or the evening when it is cool and pleasant outside.  Sun damage is cumulative, and over a period of years the exposure you get just by walking in the sunshine for 10 minutes from one building to another during your lunch break and by working in the garden under a burning summer sun for half an hour causes irreparable damage to the skin.  If you live in a sunny area you should avoid exposure to the sun between the hours of 10 in the morning and 4 in the afternoon in so far as possible, since these are the hours when the sun’s rays are strongest and most direct.

Trips to the beach should be planned for the hours before 10 and after 4, and that includes summer camps and vacations.  Those who understand the dangers spend the hot humid hours in the shade or where there is air-conditioning and go to the beach only when the sun begins to set.

Tanning parlors should be avoided.  Today we know that artificial suntanning can cause skin damage as severe as and more severe than skin damage caused by the rays of the sun.  Fair skinned people who seek darker tanned skin should keep in mind that individuals who can’t tan in natural sunlight won’t be able to tan under a sun lamp!

The Second Line of Defense: Staying in the Shade and Wearing Proper Clothing

Anyone staying outdoors should seek the protection of a sunshade, either artificial, such as a sun umbrella, or natural, such as a tree or a high building.   Remember that a significant amount of the sun’s rays is reflected back by the air, the sand and the water of the sea or the swimming pool, and by bright surfaces such as concrete or snow.  It is recommended that you wear a wide-brimmed hat which will protect your face, neck and throat from the sun’s rays.  Front windshields of cars are now manufactured of special glass which blocks 90% to 95% of the sun’s ultraviolet rays.  The side windows are made of thinner glass and block only about 70%.  Since their protection is not complete, you should be sure to use a sunscreen when planning a long trip by car, even if the car is air conditioned.  People who are especially sensitive can buy special plastic UV filters  which can be attached to the windshields for extra protection.

You should wear sunglasses which block the sun’s ultraviolet rays in order to protect your eyelids and the sensitive skin around your eyes.  The correct use of sunglasses is also important in protecting the eyes themselves against ultraviolet radiation.  Ophthalmologists have long since shown that when the eyes are directly exposed to the sun’s rays, especially at a young age, there is an increased risk of cataracts in later life.

HOW MUCH PROTECTION DO WE GET FROM OUR CLOTHING?

The data in this table show the great differences in the amount of protection afforded by various kinds of clothing.  A child wearing a thin white T-shirt absorbs 16% of the radiation he or she would absorb by being completely naked.  When the shirt is dry, its protection is three times greater.  Therefore it is advisable to wear clothing even in the shade.  During summer it is worthwhile to wear a dark-colored shirt of closely-woven material. Fair skinned people or individual with photosensitivty may use specially dasigned sun protective clothes made from special fabrics.

The Third Line of Defense: Sunscreens

It is definitely recommended that every fair-skinned person apply a sunscreen in the morning and afternoon, all year long.  Every person should apply a sunscreen to the exposed areas of the body, using one with a sun protection factor (SPF) of between 15 and 30.  The day is not far off when the use of sunscreens will become a personal hygiene habit as common and as regular as brushing teeth.

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Sun Prevention Seven Common Myths

September 11, 2010 By 2 Comments

MYTH NUMBER ONE

Children need long exposure to the sun to produce sufficient quantities of vitamin D.

The truth  Only a small amount of exposure to the sun is necessary to produce vitamin D on the skin, no more than 3-4 minutes a day.  In addition, it appears that giving children vitamin D drops or adding vitamin D to food (mainly in milk products) is equally effective.

MYTH NUMBER TWO

Skin cancer is a natural part of aging and cannot be prevented.

The truth  The older a person gets the greater his or her chance of developing skin cancer.  Nevertheless, there is clear proof that exposure to the sun from a young age has a decisive influence on the development of skin cancer in older people.  In addition, there has been an increase in reported cases of skin cancer in young people in their 20s and 30s and sometimes even younger.

MYTH NUMBER THREE

Only someone who suffers from sunburn is liable to develop skin cancer.

The truth  People who have a tendency towards sunburn are more likely to develop skin cancer than people who don’t have the tendency.  Nevertheless it has been proved that prolonged exposure to the sun without sunburn damages the skin and is liable to lead to the development of skin cancer.

MYTH NUMBER FOUR

Letting the skin rest between suntans allows the skin to recover and repair sun-induced damages.

The truth  The skin can repair only a fraction of the superficial damage caused by exposure to the sun.  As a result, sunburn lasts only a few days.  The damage done to the deeper regions of the skin remains and accumulates, and the direct results of this damage are only apparent after 20 or 30 years.

MYTH NUMBER FIVE

A child without a suntan is an unhealthy child.

The truth  Most people like the way a suntan looks, but this “healthy” look is misleading, since a tan is in reality a sign that the skin has been injured: in an attempt to protect itself from additional damage, the cells produce a pigment called melanin which causes the skin to darken.  While tanning occurs the skin is being damaged, and that damage will become apparent later when wrinkles and brown patches appear, the skin sags and possibly develops cancer.  Therefore, the expression “a healthy tan” is actually a contradiction in terms.

MYTH NUMBER SIX

If a sunscreen is used, there is no limit to the amount of time a person can stay in the sun.

The truth  Sunscreens afford the skin only partial protection.  Different factors, such as the amount of sun screen used, the rate at which perspiration dissolves the active ingredient, how long the sunscreen has been on the skin and the sun protection factor all influence the real degree of protection afforded.  The only way to completely prevent sun-induced damage is not to expose oneself to the sun at all.  Since it is obvious that that is not a practical solution, the skin should be protected by wearing appropriate clothing (closely-woven fabrics, hats) and by sitting in the shade.

MYTH NUMBER SEVEN

The suntan acquired in a tanning salon does not cause damage.

The truth  In the 1960s a suntan became fashionable, and that trend led to the flowering of chains of tanning salons and to the proliferation of sunlamps in people’s homes.  Initially people used lamps which emitted UVB, but when it was proved that UVB caused skin cancer they replaced them with UVA lamps.  In 1988 in America alone there were 20,000 tanning salons and about 200,000 sunlamps in private use.  In research done in 1986 it became apparent that most of the sunlamps were being used by teenage girls.  UVA will only cause tanning if absorbed at a level five times higher than what is found in nature.  Despite the fact that UVA does not cause sunburn, it causes real long-term damage to the skin which is sometimes worse than UVB-caused damage.  Since UVA penetrates deep into the skin, exposure to large quantities of UVA causes all the signs of skin aging, including faster wrinkling and increased risk of skin cancer.  An additional danger unique to tanning salons relates to people who are on medication.  As previously described, certain drugs are liable to cause hypersensitivity to sun exposure, usually linked to UVA.  A person taking such medication who is exposed to large quantities of UVA at a tanning salon runs a greater risk of developing rashes linked to his or her particular drug.

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