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June 8, 1955
“Found Winston in his bath in his most unreasonable mood.”
“ ‘This tickle,” he grunted, “is quite intolerable. It kept me awake. Yes, a bloody night. The skin man has given me fourteen ointments or lotions in turn without any theory behind any of them. Just doling out some potion or unguent to keep me quiet. It’s a disgrace to the medical faculty.’
“As the tenure of office of Winston’s adviser seemed to be threatened, I had to explain to Winston that his skin had grown old with the rest of his tissues, and that none of us could put back the clock. He gave an impatient snort. He was not convinced. I explained to him that if he were willing to cut down the number of hot baths it might help the irritation of his skin very considerably. This he regarded as an outrageous suggestion.”
– Winston Churchill. Taken from the Diaries of Lord Moran. (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1966.)Thus wrote Lord Moran about Sir Winston Churchill’s intolerable and protracted dry skin itch.
ry skin is a loose, unscientific term used to describe rough, scaly, and flaky skin – most often on areas below the neck – that is dry to the touch and less flexible or elastic than normal skin. And lest you think otherwise, let me set the record straight: dry skin does not cause wrinkles.
Dryness of the skin usually develops as winter approaches. When the temperature drops and the relative humidity decreases, the upper layers of your skin lose a large amount of water. This leads to dry skin with its scaling and occasional itching. This lowered humidity is further aggravated by artificial heating, which, in addition to warming the air, dries it. The dry, heated air expands like a sponge, sucking up moisture from objects in the area, such as plants (which begin to wither), wood furniture (which dries up so much that it begins to crack; doors shrink and floors creak), and our skin. We usually notice the drop in relative humidity when we get those unexpected shocks from a build-up of static electricity.
Dry skin has a tendency to improve automatically during the summer months because perspiration keeps the skin moist as it reaches the skin surface. When there is high relative humidity, there’s less evaporation of moisture from our skin.
Dermatologists used to think that dry skin was caused entirely by a lack of oily film on the surface of the skin. We now know that it’s due to water loss from the skin’s outer layers and to the inability of moisture to move from the deeper layers to the surface. While the natural oils on the skin surface protect the water from evaporating from the lower layers, these oils really can’t prevent dry skin if there isn’t enough moisture in the cells to begin with.
Several factors influence dry skin. It is more common in the elderly where, despite adequate water content of the skin, there are diminished oily secretions. Using harsh, alkaline soaps and soaking too long and too often in very hot baths can do it. Overheated homes with low humidity, as well as air-conditioning (which also lowers the relative humidity), likewise contribute to dry skin. Other factors include too much sunbathing, overexposure to wind and cold, fuzzy and woolen clothing, towels and sheets that you may have laundered in harsh detergents but not rinsed well enough, and nutritional problems resulting from poor diet.
There are dozens of oral medications that can produce dry skin. Ask your physician or pharmacist, and look on the information sheets that come with almost all prescription drugs, to find out if any of your medications might be among the culprits.
Here are some general guidelines for avoiding dry skin:
If you suffer from dry skin, try switching to mild gentle cleansers and use soothing bath oils and water-attracting creams and lotions that keep in your skin’s natural moisture and leave it smooth, soft, and supple. The goal of dry skin therapy is to restore and maintain moisture in the skin, and the best way to treat dry skin is to prevent it in the first place.
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For more information on dry skin, contact: 1-888-462-DERM x22 |
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| TREATING DRY SKIN |
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Judging from the number of ads on TV and in magazines for products promising relief for dry skin, everyone in this country must suffer at some time from this condition. The products used to treat dry skin of the body include bath oils, emollient creams, lotions, and soaps.
Since skin dryness results from lack of water, an excellent way to replace this loss is by bathing in water that has a bath oil in it. These coat the body and seal in the needed moisture to plump up the skin cells and make the skin more soft and pliable. (CAUTION: All bath oils make the tub surface slippery. Be very careful getting in and out of the tub. They also make the tub hard to clean, so you'll have to give it a good scrubbing with cleanser when you're finished.)
I suggest you try any moisturizing bath oil such as Aveeno.
Directions for use are on the bottle.
The following emollient preparations help soften and lubricate the skin:
Cetaphil Cream or Lotion
Aveeno Moisturizing Lotion
Eucerin Lotion
Directions for use on each container.
The following moisturizing preparations contain special ingredients to treat excessive dryness of the body, relieve itching, and help make the skin more supple and springy:
Amlactin Cream or Lotion
Directions for use on each container.
Avoid harsh soaps which tend to strip the oils from the skin surface, and try any of the following:
Cetaphil
Dove (for sensitive skin)
Aveeno Bar
Purpose Soap
Note: I do not recommend any of the aforementioned products for use on the face. They will only plug up oil glands and cause whiteheads and blackheads.
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