Let’s celebrate national healthy skin month this November with some ideas to keep your skin looking and feeling its best. Most of them center around avoiding the sun, which is responsible for 90 percent of visible signs of aging, like wrinkles. We’ll also talk about tips and tricks to help you maximize your moisture during these dry months. Plus, we’ll talk about some delicious foods you can eat to improve your skin health.

Protect Your Skin Outdoors

Your skin needs protection from the sun this month as much as it did last month and the month before. Sunscreen is a year-long necessity, no matter how cloudy the day. That’s because the sun can still damage your skin with harmful rays even when it’s overcast outside. And in the Fall, the sun is lower in the sky, so it hits you with plenty of direct sunlight, especially later in the day.

Say Yes to Healthy Skin

Skin cancer affects one in five adults. It’s the most common form of cancer. And the lips are the most common place on the face for skin cancer to develop. Do your best to protect your skin this Fall whether you’re outside, or indoors.  

Protect Your Skin Indoors

Your skin needs protection indoors because the Fall sun can come in through windows at a sharp angle and cause skin damage. Also, you need sunscreen indoors because your skin needs protection from the blue light your computer and phone emit.

Spray Tan Instead

Our sunless spray tanning system is perfect for those of you who want to avoid the sun’s ultraviolet radiation but still get a tanned look. We use the same spray tanning system used by many red-carpet celebrities, the Infinity Sun Spray tanning system. It mixes treatment lotions into a fine mist sprayed onto your skin for an instant tan look. The process only takes 20 minutes. Your spray tan can last up to several weeks if you avoid exfoliation and frequently moisturize with oil-free lotion.

Take Your Moisture Up a Notch

November is the perfect month to switch from a light summer moisturizer to something creamier and more hydrating for the dry winter days ahead. Remember that your lips need moisture, too and can benefit from chapstick or lip balm, preferably with SPF. Running a humidifier by your desk during the day or while you sleep at night can also help add back some much needed moisture into the air.

Protect Against Free-Radicals

A free radical is a molecule with an unpaired electron. It scavenges around looking to bind with an electron. The damage comes when it pairs with an electron and oxidizes. This causes skin damage like wrinkles and age spots.

What’s an Antioxidant?

An antioxidant can (amazingly) bind with a free radical’s unpaired electron to neutralize it. It’s vital to have plenty of antioxidants in our body to neutralize free radicals.

Eat Skin-Healthy Foods

Healthy foods are filled with antioxidants that can protect our skin. These foods include fruits and vegetables. The following foods are especially high in antioxidants:

• Avocados
• Grapes
• Sweet potatoes
• Cinnamon
• Almonds
• Dark Chocolate

Schedule a Skin Check Up

Our skin still sustains sun damage even when we are careful to eat healthy foods. Plus,  there is only so much sunscreen can do to protect us and sometimes we’re caught in the burning sun, despite our best efforts to find shade. This is why it’s vital to schedule an annual skin check this Fall. Your dermatologist will assess the damage summer caused and make a plan to reverse it—either through products, lasers, lights, or chemical peels. These can all do wonders to erase fine lines, brighten your skin tone and get rid of dark spots.

Today’s news is on healthy eating and how it can help with Psoriasis. Although you might not see a connection, psoriasis and healthy are more connected than you think. There are certain diets that may help your Psoriasis.

There are different treatments plan when it comes to treating psoriasis and no one treatment plan works for everyone. Dermatologist recommend following a healthy, well-balanced diet. Healthy eating can lead to less psoriasis on your skin, decrease the severity of your psoriasis and make psoriasis medication more effective. If you have seen any of the following below on your body, please be sure to contact our office.

Psoriasis causes patches of thick red skin and silvery scales. Patches are typically found on the elbows, knees, scalp, lower back, face, palms, and soles of feet, but can affect other places (fingernails, toenails, and mouth). The most common type of psoriasis is called plaque psoriasis.

Always talk to your provider before changing your diet. If you have questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to give our office a call or schedule an appointment today. Our providers are trained and skilled in treating all skin type conditions and we would be happy to treat you.

At Skin and Cancer Institute, our board-certified dermatologists frequently see patients in all ages and stages of life struggling with various types of skin rashes that can range in severity and duration. For example, a prominent type of skin rash is known as atopic dermatitis. Atopic Dermatitis is a prevalent form of eczema and a pestering skin condition that causes its victims to itch and deal with ongoing redness, dryness and irritation. Eczema or atopic dermatitis can have multiple causes although it is difficult to diagnose a single cause. It is known to result from infections, heat, allergens, and a weak or compromised immune system. Such skin rashes can be seen in newborn babies, toddlers and even adults both young and elderly.

Risks of Not Being Examined by a Dermatologist

It is not uncommon for a baby’s pediatrician, for example, to misdiagnose a rash on a baby. The proper avenue for a correct diagnosis is to be seen by a skin care expert, a licensed and trained dermatologist. For example, a pediatrician may notice a red itchy rash and proclaim a diagnosis of seborrhea based on the presence of dry skin elsewhere including on the scalp which is commonly referred to as “cradle cap.” This diagnosis although well intentioned may lead a first-time mom to question where she should continue breastfeeding as seborrhea can be caused by hormones while eczema is an auto immune response. Rather than going down a rabbit hole of guessing, to administer timely and effective treatment but also to protect the patient, a dermatologist would be able to identify and diagnose the skin rash or condition. The similarities in appearance, texture, scaliness and dryness of the various rashes can coincide making self-diagnosis and self-treatment futile. Be sure to be examined by a board-certified dermatologist for a skin rash that does not go away.

The varying scale of damage and the duration of rashes are ultimately linked to the diagnosis and cause. This is why a verified diagnosis by a board-certified dermatologist is critical to proper treatments. As always, it is better to know for certain exactly what category the rash falls into. There are numerous categories of rashes which require different treatments including but not limited to the following:

• Heat rash
• Intertrigo
• Rosacea
• Psoriasis
• Shingles
• Ringworm
• Swimmer’s itch
• Roseola

Contact our practice today to schedule your consultation to see a licensed and experienced dermatologist to help identify and treat your skin condition if you are struggling with a skin rash.

The exact cause of skin tags remains unknown. It appears that skin tag develop due to friction around the skin, as tags usually develop in skin folds. Skin tags are the compilation of blood vessels surrounded by an outer layer of skin. While skin tags are not dangerous, they can be removed for cosmetic reasons.

The result of various studies indicate a strong presumption that the human papillomavirus (HPV) may be a factor and cause of skin tag development. Also, insulin resistance has been found to play a role because because with such resistance don’t absorb glucose efficiently. While skin tags may also result from pregnancy and hormonal changes in a woman’s body, the condition is not contagious.

It is best to have a board-certified dermatologist evaluate your skin tags. Sometimes skin tags may resemble warts or moles. A visual examination will help assess the concern and if removal is necessary, a biopsy will be performed.

How are Skin Tags Removed by a Licensed Dermatologist

Only a trained board-certified dermatologist in dealing with this delicate skin should attempt to remove skin tags. Never attempt to remove skin tags on your own. At Skin and Cancer Institute, the following treatments are available in removing skin tags:

• Electrodessication
• Cryotherapy
• Scalpel Removal
• Laser Treatment

Contact our practice today to schedule your consultation with a dermatologist for evaluation and an assessment.