SKIN AFFLICTIONS

Lumps and Bumps – The Skins imperfections

Any kind of spot on the face spoils the appearance of a woman. Every beauty – conscious woman wants to avoid such beauty-deterrents. Spots are of various kinds like blackspots beneath the eyes, white patches, small pox spots ( pock marks), burns and scalds, discoloration of the skin, sunburn, birthmarks, freckles, cracked skin, prickly heat, red veins on the cheeks, boils and pustules, blotchiness, bruises and wounds, chilbrow, whitlow, guinea worm, pigmentation and cold sores. 

Lines around the Eyes 

These are among fine, upward slanting laughter lines are attractive and give character to a face. The downward sloping angular lines caused by tension, worry and anxiety are less pleasing. The skin around the eyes is very fine and delicate and it tends to dry out very quickly, which is why lines are easily formed. To counteract this dryness, always use a moisturizer on the area around the eyes. After you have crossed 25 years of age, the application of a little eye cream or special eye oil occasionally will work wonders. Slowly massage with fingers the area around the eyes with oil or cream. Remove surplus cream or oil after about 30 minutes, otherwise your eyes will become puffy. 

Pouches under the Eyes

The skin around the eyes is perhaps the most sensitive of all, because the hypo-dermis which exists everywhere else, is absent here. You can never take too much care of your eyes which work all day without much respite. Don’t ill treat them. When you are applying cream on them, massage lightly without exerting pressure. Work from the base of the nose to the temples. Never rub your eyes. Instead of rubbing them, blink your eyelids for the most natural massage. Shut your eyes as tightly as you can, then open them as wide as you can. Repeat this exercise 4 to 5 times, keeping your eyebrows well lifted. Only the eyelids must move. Keep your forehead and face muscles still. This is an excellent exercise for the muscles. 
Another exercise is to blink quickly ten times. Shut your eyes, keep them closed for a moment, open them and blink. Rest, blink and rest. Repeat this ten times. This is an excellent exercise for lubricating the eyeballs and toning up the muscles of the eyelids. 

Let the eyes have plenty of rest. Giving them rest at night is not enough. During the day, now and again, put the palms of your hands over your eyes and relax. To keep your eyes sparkling, give them plenty of exercise. Roll your eyes around 20 times to the left and 20 times to the right, taking care to close the eyelids when changing directions. Or look at yourself in a mirror, staring straight at the pupils of yours eyes, five minutes at each eye. This is a splendid exercise. 

Bathe your eyes. To decongest them, there is nothing like an eye lotion, which is readily available in a chemist shop. Bathe your eyes and do not be afraid to keep your eyes wide open. The lotion moistens the mucus, which is temporality dried up by the constant action of clearing the eyes of thousands of dust particles and other impurities. Don’t be afraid to blink while bathing your eyes. Witch-hazel or comomile flower compresses are also excellent for decongesting the eyes. Do not rub the area around the eyes, because rubbing may result in shrinking of the skin. Use the middle finger of the left hand and tap lightly. The skin around the eyes remains healthy by the application of a rose water and cucumber juice mixture. You may use anti-wrinkle cream or hormone cream in case of wrinkles or dark spots around your eyes. Try these home-made remedies : 

• Boil tea leaves and strain. Ferment the area below the eyes with this warm decoction. 

• Al\ light massage by applying almond oil on the skin at night is beneficial. A massage should always be done with outward strokes towards the temples. 

• Wrap oat flour and sandalwood dust in a napkin. Soak it in unheated milk or rose water and rub on the face. 

Pock Marks

A pick-marked face is a curse. Make-up can hide these marks but cannot remove them. There are two ways to remove them permanently:

I. Sand –paper surgery : This is generally done in foreign countries. It is not prevalent in India due to its exorbitant cost. The drawback is that the patient has to suffer a lot of pain due to numerous small operations on the skin, so these operations should be done by a specialist. 

II. Skin Peeling : For skin peeling, many kinds of pastes are applied on the patient’s face. A layer of the skin gets peeled off after application of every paste and the skin gets spotless after repeating the process many times. 

Small pox spots get reduced with the advancement of age from childhood to adolescene with the growth of the body. Women should look after their skin, specially their face. At night, before sleeping, use deep-cleansing milk and apply a nourishing cream. Facials also reduce these spots. Lanolin cream, which is available in the market, also helps in eliminating them. Soyabean paste fills the deep spots. Apply soyabean paste on the face, let it dry for fifteen to twenty minutes, then wash off with lukewarm water. This process must be repeated thrice a week.

Burns , Scalds and Sunburn

Skin damaged by burning or severe inflammation always leaves scars. Surface injuries often heal with temporary discoloration if the burns are not very severe. The face heals quickly and scars are often unnoticeable. Plastic surgery, if done carefully along the expression lines, makes invisible scars. The backs of the hands heal well, the arms less well and the legs slowly with bad scarring. Bums on the chest and the upper back may produce unpleasant scars which take weeks to heal and also gape open and widen. Minor blemishes or birthmarks should never be removed from these areas for cosmetic reasons as the scar will be worse than the blemish.

Whereas sunrays are very important for keeping the skin healthy, sunburn is extremely harmful to the skin. As you already know, the sun is a big ball of fire from which many kinds of rays emanate. We can see the rays of light but we cannot see infrared and ultraviolet rays, which are also present. Infrared rays are hot and bring warmth to the body while ultraviolet rays provide Vitamin D to the body which is essential for our health. However the skin gets burnt due to an excess of ultraviolet rays. Melanins, underneath the skin, prevent the skin from getting burnt and that is why blondes or dark-complexioned people get less sunburns than the fair-complexioned people. This is because the darker the skin is, the more the quantity of melanins in the body. The ill-effects of sunrays are maximum on children between six and eight years of age, on women between 25 and 30 years of age and men between 30 and 35 years of age. Ultraviolet rays destroy the melanins of the body and the skin gets darkened. This happens because the minute rays cut the skin and crack it, which results in drying of the skin. The skin then swells and rashes appear on it, after which fresh melanin comes out and the skin gets blackened.
Sunburn reacts on the body in the same way as burning by steam or very hot oil. It results in the drying of skin in swollen blood vessels and damaged cells. Ordinary sunburn can be cured within three or four days but a strong sunburn creates rashes, causing the skin to peel off in layers. Obviously, new cells are born and a new skin does appear again but it is much more drier and thicker than the original one. New skin is often brownish with cracks and it wrinkles easily. These wrinkles are hard to cure. You may benefit from a cold water bath if you are suffering from sunburn, but do not use soap. Remember to protect the skin from the sun until the sunburn gets cured. If rashes appear, consult the specialist. The degree of tolerance of the sun depends upon the nature of the skin. Direct hot sunrays may be more harmful in the month of June when the sun gets nearest to the earth. Sunrays are dangerously hot between 12 noon and 2 O’clock in the afternoon. Drink as much lemon water during this period of the day for a cooling effect.

Sunburn sometimes causes heating of the skin, which is a called a burn. Burns are classified as : 

a) First Degree Burns

These mild superficial burns cause redness of the skin and later, peeling. For this, not treatment is necessary but calamine lotion is soothing. The burns heal without scarring but there may be temporary darkening or lightening of the skin. Plunging the burnt area in cool water will not lessen the amount of damage but may control the pain to some extent. There are traditional remedies such as applying butter on the affected skin, but these cannot reduce the burn. 

b) Second Degree Burns

These are more severe, with blistering, swelling and redness of the skin. The blister may be burst with a sterilized needle. The burn should be kept clean and dry, and covered with sterile dressing if necessary. There may be a change in colour for some months, but no permanent scarring. 

c) Third and Fourth Degree Burns

These cause very serious problems as the whole skin and underlying fat, muscle and tendons are burnt – sometimes down to the bone. The burn is black and charred, but painless, as the nerves are destroyed. Such burns require immediate medical attention because of shock and infection. The complete destruction of the affected skin results in severe scarring when the burn heals. 
Sitting too near open fires may cause a mesh of redness and discoloration on the legs which does not fade when away from the heat. This is a chronic low-grade burn and it can also appear on the stomach by hot-water bottles. 

Discoloration of Skin

This is often mistaken for scarring. Initially, all scars are red, pink or purple but the colour fades over a year. The blood vessels in a scarred area may be very noticeable but all colour changes can be camouflaged with make-up or a special covering cream. Many scars become temporarily lumps during healing but later flatten. The skin may darken because of pigments in the skin, the two main pigments deposited in the skin being iron and melanin. 

Colour cells ( melanocytes) are studded in their millions throughout the skin. They produce a brown pigment called melanin. All races have the same number of colour cells in the skin but they produce different amounts of pigment. In all races the colour production increases by sunshine. The colour of the skin also depends on the blood supply to the skin. 

An extensive network of blood vessels runs underneath the epidermis and it reacts to heat and cold. The skin reacts to heat and cold in many ways. Most of the reactions are to the body’s advantage, but some are troublesome and a few even dangerous. The body needs a constant internal temperature for all its processes to function properly. The skin regulates body temperature by reducing loss of heat when the weather is cold or prevents extra heat when the body is too hot. We assist the skin in doing this by altering our clothing. Hot weather, warm clothes or a fever causes the body temperature to rise, and sets off the heat-losing mechanisms of the skin, such as reddening of the skin due to enlarging of the blood vessels, swelling of the skin and sweating. The body cools itself by evaporating sweat from the skin. This is the most important way of losing heat. Many skin diseases, especially eczema, provoke the colour cells of the skin to over-produce pigment which drops down into the dermis of the skin and leaves brown marks when the skin trouble disappears. This is called post-inflammatory hyper – pigmentation. Fortunately, the body can slowly remove this pigment and most darkening fades over 1 to 2 years. The darkening is worst in black skin and may occur even after acne. Once this type of colour change has developed, there is little that can remove it except time. The early treatment of the disease will help prevent the colour change. 

Increased hormone level in the body during pregnancy stimulates the colour cells of the face and the brown patches appearing specially around the eyes, on the cheeks and on the upper lip. The contraceptive pill can cause similar brown patches. Naturally-occurring hormones cause the problem commonly in women, especially those of Mediterranean origin, who are not on the pill or pregnant, but rarely in men. The brown patches last for many months but usually slowly fade. It is most important to avoid sunshine which will darken the existing patches. Use sun blocking cream ( after consulting your doctor) over the brown patches, together with a sunshade or sun-hat. 

Allergies to perfume may produce dark patches on the face and neck. These perfumes may occur in after-shaves, cosmetics and creams in addition to perfume sprays. It is important to wash off all perfumes before sunbathing. Workers exposed to mercury and silver in poor working conditions may get grayish skin on the face and hands. Drugs may cause changes in skin colour which tend to be all over the body and so do some diseases such as liver and glandular diseases and many more. So if you grow brown all over with dark creases of the hand, see your doctor. Very dark patches may develop in later life in the groins and armpits. They can be a sign of illness, so get them checked by a doctor. 

Birthmarks

Birthmarks are fairly small moles. However, some birthmarks are very large and brown and more disfiguring. They are often hairy. The only way to deal with this colour change is by surgical removal but this may be very difficult if the birthmark is large, spreads over creases of the body or is of a bizarre shape. Birthmarks are of various types as described below :
Moles ( Pigmented nevi)

These are extremely common and harmless lumps in the skin. They are not visible at birth but appear during childhood and early adult life, varying in size and colour from dark brown patches to fleshy bumps. In the early stages, moles may be inflamed and red, but they eventually settle down and become less obvious. If new moles develop after the age of 35, these should be got checked by a doctor. They may become darker and more noticeable during pregnancy, and with the use of contraceptive pills. It is advisable to get a mole removed if:

• There is an increase in the blackness of the scar.

• The colour is uneven.

• There is an increase in the size of the mole – an uneven or red edge. 

• There are tiny black dots around the mole. 

• There is bleeding or ulcers on the surface of the mole. 

• There are itchy moles. 

Port Wine Stains

These are flat red marks usually found on the face an scalp. They cannot be removed by cutting them out. These should be treated by laser as infrared treatment. 

Strawberry Marks

They can be camouflaged. This kind of mark is developed soon after a baby is born and grows very rapidly from a bluish small mark to a bluish-red fleshy lump of blood vessels which can bleed. The mark increases in size very fast but eventually shrinks. By the age of ten, only a white scar remains. Avoid surgical treatment as it will cause a worse scar in the end.

Stork’s Bill Mark

Some babies have a ed birthmark on the nape of the neck which is usually covered by hair. 

Dark Patches

Very large areas of brown hairy thickening may develop on the arms ad trunk n the teens. It is not possible to remove them, as large scars are left and these reappear after a short time.

Mangolisan Spots

These occur in babies. They may have bluish birthmarks over he lower back. They are harmless and fade after 18 to 24 months. 

Skin Tags

Small tags of skin are very common on the neck and in the armpits and groin. They can be removed by tying fine thread around the stalk. They can also be snipped off with scissors or burnt. 

Seborrhocic Warts

Sometimes, by the age of 60, lots of greasy warts appear on the face, neck and trunk. Very often, people worry about hem being evidence of skin cancer. They may become itchy and sore. These can be removed by scraping or freezing.

Skin Cancers

Most skin cancers develop in the very elderly. Too much exposure of fair skins to the sun, past X-ray treatment or exposure to toxic chemicals are some causes. The commonest skin cancer is the Rodent Ulcer. These ulcers usually appear on the face and the skin of the area exposed to the sun. they do not spread elsewhere but grow until removed. “Keratoses” is another form of skin cancer in old age when numerous scaly patches appear on the scalp ad other areas, such as the face, ear ad backs of the hands. Fleshy rapidly growing lumps or bumps in the skin may spread to the other parts of the body and should be dealt with immediately. Skin cancer rarely spreads to the rest of the body but needs to be removed by an experienced surgeon by 

• Radiotherapy 

• Surgery or

• Cryotherapy (liquid nitrogen can be used to kill cancer cells by freezing).

Try to get skin cancer diagnosed at the earliest as it is easier to treat in the early stages. Get it treated by an experienced doctor.

There are several types of skin lightening creams or bleaching creams available in the market which contain a chemical Hydroquinone which interferes with the production of melanin. These creams cannot lighten the post-inflammatory pigmentation which is the common cause of brown patches thought they can lighten the normal skin, birthmarks and freckles. It is generally very irritating to the skin and produces inflammation with more darkening of the skin, or blotchy discoloration. In case of itching and redness, stop using bleaching creams immediately. Use of hydroquinone, especially in high concentration ( 5% and above) preparations, sometimes damages the underlying tissues, leaving black lumps and cysts. It is better to use 2 per cent hydroquinone, cream unless advised otherwise by a dermatologist. Monobenzyl ether of hydroquinone may contaminate bleaching creams and can cause permanent colour loss which is more disfiguring than the original problem. 

Freckles

These are brownish spots on the skin due to precipitation of pigments or exposure to sun. When the skin is sensitive in ultraviolet rays, freckles appear on it. Freckles come in the category of skin disorders but not a skin disease. The following home remedies are useful for this disorder :

• Grind yellow mustard in milk ad apply to the face during the night. Wash your face in the next morning. 

• Mix equal quantities of turmeric and sesame seeds. Grind in water and apply to the face.

• Take a watermelon, make a hole in its rind an put some grains of rice in it. Take out the rice after a week, grind into a paste and apply on the face. 

Boils and Pustules

Boils, the most infective skin condition, are the result of deep bacterial infection of hair follicles. They occur in areas covered with coarse hair which are subjected to repeated mild friction such as the neck, buttocks, knees and elbows. A boil starts as a small, red, painful nodule, increasing in size for a few days, and then becoming soft at its top where the skin gives way to discharge pus. Healing occurs, leaving a tiny scar. A boil usually takes its own course of a week or so in healing and no treatment may be required. But when there are multiple boils, or when a boil becomes large, or when it is on the central portion of the face , systemic antibiotics required ( after consultation with a doctor). If not treated infection can spread to the brain. When the boils tend to occur too frequently, the patient should be investigated for any underlying cause like diabetes etc., 

If the boil is on the nose or the upper lip, the inside of the nose might get inflamed. Boils may sometimes be accompanied by fever. People suffering from boils ad pustules should follow the following remedies :

• Grind neem tree bark in water and apply as a paste.

• Grind the bark of the castor tree ad the root of biskhapra (triathema monogyna) together and apply as a paste.

• Keep your bowels clear and avoid sour or fatty foods.

• Eating melons helps the bowels and also cleanses the blood. 

• Take a leaf of the peepal tree, smear it with ghee ad apply as a lukewarm bandage on the boil. It will burst in the preliminary stage and the growth will subside.

Prickly Heat

This is a very common condition during hot days and occurs during the hot summer and rainy season when there is profuse sweating and the body is not exposed to the air. Red pustules of the size of mustard grains appear on the body, especially on the chest, back and the abdomen. There is intense itching and if the affected skin are is scratched, it gives temporary relief, though there are chances of the skin getting septic. Persons subjected to prickly heat should avoid heavy garments and try to expose the affected area to air. Cold water baths twice every day will helps as will the following remedies too:

• Dissolve Fuller’s earth (Multani Mitti) in water to make a thin paste. It should be smeared over the affected parts. When the paste has dried, wash it with cold water. 

• Apply green henna, ground in water, on the affected skin. 

• Grind leaves of neem in water and apply on the affected skin. 

• The most effective remedy for treating prickly heat is to take a small piece of sandalwood and rub it on a stone with rose water. Mix pinch of powdered alum and apply to the affected skin twice or thrice a week, depending upon the condition of prickly heat. 

• Another way to treat prickly heat is to dissolve a tablespoon of sada bicarbonate in half a cup of water and mix in one tablespoon of rose water. Apply it to the affected skin with cotton wool. 

Red Nose

Diet plays an important part in this condition. A red nose is very common with hearty eaters and heavy drinker but the trouble may arise from a delicate skin too. If so, avoid sudden changes of temperature. Here is an excellent and effective home remedy :

Take rose water lotion or put a little tannin in some glycerine, and massage your nose up and down, taking care to use only two finger. Hold your nose between two fingers. 

Whitlow :The Chronic Paronychia

Whitlow is a term applied to all acute inflammations of the deep-seated tissues in the finger, whether the structure is affected by the root of the nail, the pulp of the fingertips, the skin of fingers or the bone in this condition, a small painful abscess forms at the base of nail or the pulp of the finger. Sometimes, eh patient feels intense pain as the bursting of an abscess takes a long time. Frequently occurring in housewives, chronic paronychia is an infection of the nail fold with a yeast-like fungus called candida. The predisposing factor is the prolonged wetting of hands. The condition usually starts in one finger (generally, the idle finger of the right hand) as a glazed red swelling of the nail fold. Late other fingers may be affected. Secondary infection with bacteria causes pain and discharge of pus from the nail fold. Sometimes the nail is lost and the finger may be disfigured. It is essential to keep hands dry as far as possible to make healing possible quickly. Local application of 1 per cent Gention – violet paint of mycostatin suspension (P) – in the nail fold twice every day for a prolonged period would help cure the disease. Here is a home apply to the infected spot. The poultice – like mixture should be bandaged with clean cloth and water sprinkled over it. The bandage should be changed after every 3 to 4 hours. The inflammation will subside in 2 to 3 days. Once the pus has been ejected, cooked leaves of neem should be wrapped over the site of the whitlow. 

Chilblains and Cracked skin

Chilblains an abnormal reaction to cold which occurs in some individuals, develop with the onset of winter. Young people especially girls, are more often affected. That is the reason why, particularly during winter, the lips can get chapped and the skin of the hands crack because of defective functioning of the sebaceous glands. Chilblains consist of a bluish –red discoloration, swelling and sometimes blistering of toes an /or fingers. Very rarely, the nose, ears and cheeks may be involved. The affected person experiences severe itching or burning. The condition heals with the arrival of summer but may recur every winter. 

As a therapeutic and prophylactic measure, the patient should keep himself warm with the use of properly fitting gloves and socks. Peripheral vasodilators like Nicotinic Acid and Isoxuprin ( also known as Duvadilan) can give relief to symptoms in more than 50 percent of the cases. Ulcers produced from ruptured blisters should be properly dressed with antibiotic creams. There are several easy home remedies for cracked skin. The hands should be properly scrubbed, dried and then smeared with ghee or mustard il. The best application is the cream that forms over boiled milk when it has cooled down. It should be applied and massaged during night just before going to bed. Even chapped lips can be smeared with this cream at night. On waking up, you will find the lips tender and soft as they should be. 

Red Veins on Cheeks

These usually indicate a sensitive skin that has been neglected or ill-treated. The skin is very thin and the blood vessels are very near the surface. They are affected readily by poor circulation or by extremes of temperature and washing the face with very hot water or splashing it with icy cold water usually causes this condition and sometimes makes it much worse. If you suffer from broken veins, protect the skin from weather conditions by using a moisturizer. But special lotions and waxy creams should be used from one extreme of temperature to another ad always wait a few minutes in between in a place with intermediate temperature. Avoid rich, spicy foods, hot drinks and alcohol when you suffer from this condition. It is also possible to have treatment with an electric process which drains the blocked blood vessels and seals them. This process is not common in India. Moisturisers are very useful for this skin disorder. 

Moisturisers, band creams, body lotions, etc., all work on the same principle. The skin looks its best when it contains the maximum amount of water. Moisturizers do this either by applying a water holding substance (humectant) such as urea or polyethylene glycol or by using an oil or grease to prevent water from evaporating from the skin. The greasy water-in-oil emulsions are more satisfactory than lighter oil-in-water ones. These are best applied to skin with a high water content, after bathing, washing or steaming the face. The choice of moisturizers depends on one’s skin. For face, eyes, lips, neck, hands and body, a single moisturizer is enough but night creams are greasier than day crams. Most moisturizers also make the skin feel smoother by lubricating it with oil, and make it look smoother by sticking down the fine scales. Here’s an easy to make home-made moisturizing cream:

Collect the following ingredients:

2 tablespoons beeswax
1 tablespoon liquid wax
5 teaspoons almond oil
4 teaspoons water
a few drops of scented oil or scent

Process : Melt the beeswax and liquid wax in a chine bowl. Add almond oil to it. Heat water in another container and then mix it in the first mixture. Remember that both mixtures should be prepared at the same temperatures. Stir the thick mixture with a wooden spoon till it gets cold. During the cooling process, add scent to it. 

Hypersensitive Skin

These are very delicate skins and need a lot of care and attention. They may be the types which are allergic to various kinds of cosmetics such as creams, powders and perfumes. They may react violently when there is a change in temperature, becoming red, blotchy and broken-veined. The important things is to find out what your skin likes an dislikes. If any cosmetic causes swelling or irritation, switch to another make or try some special non-allergic cosmetics suitable for hypersensitive skins. These are available with leading chemists large stores. Never wash such skins with too hot or very cold water. Avoid the use of soap as far as possible. 

Blotchiness

Dry skin is more sensitive than a moist one. People who have skin liable to be blotchy must avoid exposing it to excessive heat or excessive cold, since rapid changes of temperature always have harmful effects on skins. Avoid the use of soap as it is harmful for blotchy skins. Instead, use cow’s unboiled milk or a cleansing milk with a lanolin base. Do not use a spirit tonic lotion. Here are few useful tips for blotchy skins.

a) Cover your skin when going out with a good cream, which can be either purchased from the market of which you may prepare yourself. Collect the following ingredients. 

2 teaspoons beeswax
2 teaspoons emulsifying wax
8 teaspoons almond oil 
4 teaspoons lanolin
4 teaspoons coconut oil
6 teaspoons orange flower water
3 drops tincture benzoin


Process : Melt the beeswax, emulsifying wax, almond oil, lanolin and coconut oil on medium heat and simultaneously stir it. Now add orange flower water gradually, but keep on stirring. When the mixture becomes thick, remove it from the heat. Cool and fill in a bottle. 

b) Use body lotion on the skin of your body an hour before you go for a bath. Here is home-made recipe for this:

Collect the following ingredients:

½ tablespoon lanolin
1 tablespoon petroleum jelly
4 tablespoons mineral oil
8 teaspoons clean water
1 tablespoon rose water
5 drops violet extract

Process : Melt lanolin, petroleum jelly and mineral oil on medium heat. Heat clean water and violet extract in another bowl and mix the contents of the two containers and stir till it cools down. 

Cold Sores

Cold sores occur most commonly on the lips, though they can develop on any part of the body. They are a result of virus. Herpes simplex. This virus sometimes also affects the genitalia of adults. This type of infection is spread by sexual intercourse and forms one of the many sexually-transmitted diseases. The virus of cold sores generally lies dormant in the body, but can be activated by colds, fevers, stressful conditions, emotional upheavals or any serious illness. It is best to avoid intimate contact with an individual who is having an attack of herpes. For an acute attack, here are a couple of remedies:

• Cold compresses or ice can relieve the pain .

• Ether compresses would hasten healing

• Acyclovir, a new treatment for herpes, can give considerable relief to persons getting recurrent attacks. 

(The above treatment should be given only after consultation with a doctor).

Face Lifting and Peeling

Lifting – the name of this operation – describes the procedure itself in that the very skin is lifted. Wrinkled skin can be cured by this method. The surgeon makes an incision at the level of the temples, lifts the skin from the cheeks and draws it upwards. The rejuvenating effect is amazing, but it is by no means a permanent cure. Lifting may last some years, after which is has to be done again.

If the skin is pitted with scars left by pimples, or has strawberry marks and minor scars, or has lost its radiance and continues to look muddy, in spite of the care you are giving it, consult a dermatologist for “ peeling treatment” . Peeling means the simple deep-cleansing accomplished by removing a very thin layer of skin. Of course, this operation must be very delicately performed by a skin specialist. If these marks cannot be removed by the peeling treatment, skin surgery can reduce them to such an extent that they will be almost unnoticeable. Minor scars can be dealt with by electric treatment, by rubbing carbon snow, by ultraviolet rays treatment and by cortisone injections; very disfiguring scars can be made less noticeable by grafting and lifting as discussed above. 

Relaxation, washing and beauty care which suit our type of skin are your best weapons against wrinkles. For some men and women, wrinkles represent the end of the struggle. For other it is an alarming signal to rush to the skin specialists. Here again you cannot expect miracles. Self-discipline and daily beauty care are the best preventives. It is fortunate that we have at our disposal efficient, simple and inexpensive remedies such as self-massage and masks. Here is an anti-wrinkle home preparation cream:

Collect a teaspoonful of honey, a few drops of lemon juice and a drop of sweet almond oil. Mix together and apply on your face, keeping your eyes shut. Let it dry for 20 minutes, then wash.

• Common Skin Diseases

• Lumps and Bumps – The Skins imperfections