Natural Beauty Breakthrough

Posted By Sofia Schonell on August 4, 2010

Skin can reveal far more than acne and wrinkles — it can actually signal serious health conditions like diabetes and cancer. “The skin reflects everything that is going on inside,” says Dr. Jeffrey Dover, associate clinical professor of dermatology at Yale School of Medicine and director of SkinCare Physicians, a dermatology practice in Chestnut Hill, MA. “It’s a mirror to the functioning of your internal organs.” We asked Dover to tell us what to look for — signs that our skin (the body’s largest organ) may be telling us something significant is happening with our health. If you notice any of these changes — or if you suddenly see a change you’re not sure about — see your doctor. 1. Thick, doughy looking skin If the skin on your face, hands (especially the backs of hands), and fingers turns puffy, thick, and spongy-looking, you may have sudden or early onset diabetes, says Dover. “When sugars in the body suddenly go out of whack, tissues begin to retain fluid,” he says. That extra water gives skin a doughy, thick appearance — much puffier than if you’ve been out too long on a hot day or just eaten a really salty meal. 2. Skin that itches all over When otherwise normal-looking skin — no bumps, rashes, eczema, or poison ivy — gets struck with horrible itching all over, it may be a sign of lymphoma, kidney disease, or liver disease, says Dover. “If somebody comes in and says, ‘I’ve been itching for months and it’s driving me nuts and I can’t sleep at night,’ you immediately check their liver, their kidneys, and make sure they don’t have underlying lymphoma.” 3. Dozens of new warts It’s normal for one or two new warts to surface at the same time, but if scores of them develop rapidly over a short period of time, it could be an indication of internal cancer (most likely breast, bowel, or lung), says Dover. These warts, known as Seborrheic keratoses, have a brown, stuck-on appearance and usually appear on the trunk of the body. The abrupt increase in size and number is sometimes referred to as the skin disorder Leser-Trélat. 4. Skin with a yellow or greenish hue Sallow-coloring or jaundice (when skin has a yellowish stain) frequently means liver disease, says Dover. “The bile duct, required for food digestion, backs up and the bile level increase in the blood — and you actually see it in the skin,” he says. “It’s first seen on the whites of your eye, and then in skin itself. When it’s really bad it’s a greenish tinge.” 5. Round clusters of small, dilated blood vessels A few broken capillaries and spider veins — especially while pregnant and as we age — are not uncommon, but when a large number of round, spider-web-shaped clusters of dilated blood vessels surface on the skin of your face, chest, or arms, you may have advanced or chronic liver disease, according to Dover. These “spider angiomas” tend to have a central red dot from which many small blood vessels radiate like a spider web and can come about suddenly. 6. Psoriasis People with psoriasis — reddish-silver flakey patches on the elbows, knees, and hands that are irritated and itchy — have a slightly increased risk of heart disease and diabetes, says Dover. 7. Red, butterfly-shaped rash on the face A flushed face doesn’t always mean you’re embarrassed. A red, butterfly-shaped rash, usually over the bridge of the nose and the cheeks is a strong indicator of the autoimmune disease Lupus. The rash comes and goes as the disease does, says Dover, and in cases of severe systemic Lupus, the rash is accompanied by feelings of weakness, fatigue, and achy joints. 8. Severe tightening of the skin on your hands The skin disease scleroderma — when skin on the hands gets bound down and loses its elasticity and the ability to move — is a clue kidney, lung, or esophageal disease may be going on inside the body, says Dover. “The hands get almost claw-shaped,” he says, “and the tip of the finger can get re-absorbed because of poor blood supply to the fingers causing the tissue to actually die over time.” 9. Red rash on face and hands If patches of red rashes abruptly appear on the face and backs of hands — especially on fingers and knuckles — and is accompanied by a sudden muscle weakness and overall poor feeling, it’s a classic sign of underlying cancer, says Dover. The rash eruptions are common with patients who have an inflammatory disease of the skin and muscles called dermatomyositis that is often associated with cancer. 10. Yeast infections, leg ulcerations, brown splotches on shins Diabetes is probably the most common of conditions that show up on the skin, says Dover. Distinctive signs of advanced diabetes include: yeast infections (itchy red rashes surrounded by tiny blisters and scales) under the breasts or between fingers and toes); leg ulcerations (breakdown of the skin because of poor circulation that looks like an open sore); or brown splotches on the shins that occur even after gently bumping into something (they look painful, but are not). 11. Acne Women who have acne “that’s just not getting under control,” may have polycystic ovary disease, says Dover. Other signs of this hormonal disorder include infrequent or prolonged menstrual periods, excess hair growth, and obesity. More on Beauty and Skincare: Dr. Oz’s Beauty Tips

Similar Posts:

• Five Ways to Lower Blood Sugar Naturally
• New compounds show promise against hepatitis C infection
• Scripps Helps Fans Track Health Scores to Gain Competitive Edge
• ‘Doctors told me I saved my life by going to A&E’
• Diabetes can be predicted 7 years before pregnancy with blood sugar and body weight

Category: Healthcare Reform
Tags: Skin, Skin Telling