Is It Eczema or Just Dry Skin? How to Tell the Two Apart

Winter is the season of snow, holiday cheer, and… dry skin. Indeed, the cold weather isn’t kind to the face and body, and for those who suffer from certain skin ailments, it’s also the time for annual flare-ups. This is the case with eczema, a skin condition that affects over 31 million people in the US.  

 

In fact, eczema can manifest itself through itchy and dry skin or scalp, as evident by the alternative name of the condition, which is “the itch that rashes.” This uncomfortable condition isn’t as easy to treat as regular dry skin, so knowing how to tell the difference between these two conditions is crucial.

Dry skin and eczema – how are they different? 

 

Eczema makes your skin itchy and flaky, so isn’t it the same as dry skin? This is a common question people have, especially in the winter when the dry and windy weather turns the skin red and itchy. While it’s certainly true that some forms of eczema (like contact- or seborrheic dermatitis) are more likely to appear in the winter, there’s a principal difference between the two.

Dry skin is a skin type, whereas eczema is a chronic inflammatory skin condition. Even when eczema is triggered by an environmental cause, such as wearing woolen socks or taking a walk in cold weather, it won’t go away when we change the environment back to the baseline. 

 

Unlike your itchy feet or dry hands that can be easily remedied by a layer of thick cream and a change of attire, an eczema flare-up will probably take longer to go away. The dry patches won’t always respond to moisturizing and may start developing thicker, darker, and itchier plaques. 

 

If this pattern sounds familiar, and you experience some of the other symptoms we’ll mention, your “dry skin” may actually be an eczema flareup. 

 

What is eczema?

Eczema is an inflammatory skin condition that causes one’s skin to become dry, bumpy, and extremely itchy. The name of the condition comes from the Greek word ekzein, meaning “to boil,” which alludes to the itching and burning sensations that often accompany the condition. 

 

Individuals with eczema have a weakened skin barrier, which means that their skin is less effective at retaining moisture and protecting itself from germs and other environmental stressors. 

 

In the past, it was thought that eczema was a condition that mainly affected children. Upon closer inspection, demographic studies reveal that anyone can develop eczema. In fact, the National Eczema Association reports that 10% of all people develop eczema in their lifetime.

In a percentage of the population, eczema only appears later in life. Though the causes are difficult to pin down, medical experts suggest that it may have something to do with post-menopausal changes in older women, as well as the general tendency of skin becoming drier in late adulthood. 

 

Eczema occurs in people of all skin tones, but it may look different depending on your skin tone. On pale skin, the rash usually appears in red patches. On medium or dark skin tones, it can take a darker brown hue or even look ashy or purplish.

General symptoms of eczema include 

 

Dryness 

Sensitive and inflamed skin 

Itchiness - eczema can be so itchy that people scratch the skin until it bleeds 

A rough, scaly, and raised rash 

Oozing or crusting bumps 

 Hyperpigmentation. 

 

Since eczema ranges from mild to severe, not every individual with eczema will experience all these symptoms. 

 

Types of eczema

The terms eczema and atopic dermatitis are often used interchangeably, but the latter is merely one of seven different forms of this condition. Each type appears differently and comes with slightly different symptoms and treatments. Here’s a brief rundown of them all: 

 

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is the most common form of eczema. It often begins in childhood and lessens or disappears by adulthood. AD manifests itself as a rash consisting of small itchy bumps filled with fluid. It often appears inside the elbows and behind the knees. Sometimes, AD turns into seborrheic or contact dermatitis in adulthood.

Neurodermatitis looks like AD. The patchy rash can appear anywhere on the body, scalp, and the back of the neck. Neurodermatitis is extremely itchy, to the point that people with this condition are known to scratch in their sleep until the skin starts bleeding and becomes infected.

Contact dermatitis occurs when the skin gets in contact with an irritant, like bleach, nickel earrings, or latex gloves. The irritant causes itchy hives or pus-filled blisters to appear on the skin. Over time, the blisters heal, but the skin may remain leathery or scaly for some time. 

 

Nummular eczema is easier to identify because it causes round, ring-shaped spots on the skin. It can be triggered by dry skin and insect bites, and it’s more common in people who already have another kind of eczema. 

 

Seborrheic dermatitis causes dandruff or a rash to form in an area of the body with a lot of oil glands, like the scalp, eyebrows, or nose. Oftentimes, seborrhea is triggered by stress or hormonal changes in the body.

Stasis dermatitis occurs on the lower legs and the tops of the feet. It happens in people with blood flow issues and varicose veins, especially after a whole day of walking. When fluids ooze through weakened blood vessels in the skin, they cause an itchy rash to appear on the legs or feet. This type of eczema is more common in older adults. 

 

Dyshidrotic eczema is also known as hand eczema, although it can also appear on the soles of the feet. In patients with this condition, itchy and painful blisters form on the hands and feet, including between the fingers. Professionals who often get their hands wet and are frequently exposed to chemicals, such as hairdressers, are more likely to have this condition.

 

What causes eczema? 

Eczema doesn’t have a single cause; it’s a complex condition that develops when several risk factors intersect.  First and foremost, the skin condition has a well-known link to allergies or asthma. Oftentimes, eczema flare-ups occur as an inflammatory immune reaction to a known allergen, such as dust, certain metals, fragrance, bleach, certain foods, etc. These allergic triggers are different for each person, so detecting your irritant does require a bit of detective work.

People who have asthma also have a significantly higher risk of eczema, which brings us to the second prominent factor in the development of eczema – genetics. To be brief, people who have family members with asthma, allergies, eczema, or dermatitis are more likely to suffer from eczema themselves. Scientists have also identified a specific genetic mutation that contributes to eczema. This mutation is linked to a protein known as filaggrin that weakens the skin’s ability to retain moisture. 

 

Last but not least, one’s environment is also a factor. We often think that our environment plays a minor role in our physical health, but this is not the case with eczema. People who live in extreme climates, those who work with irritating chemicals and pollutants, those who wear and try a wide variety of beauty products, as well as those under massive stress are all more likely to suffer from eczema. That’s why you often need to consider your life holistically when addressing a chronic condition like eczema.  

 

How is eczema treated? 

Diagnosing the condition is the first step to success, and that is best done by a dermatologist, who will be able to tell it apart from similar-looking skin conditions like psoriasis or fungal skin infections. 

 

Just like dry skin, most mild cases of eczema can be effectively treated at home. However, if you notice that the rash doesn’t go away on its own, you may need medicine to resolve the flare-up.

For home remedies for eczema kindly view my home remedies blog, thanks.

 

 

 This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.   

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How to Balance Your pH and Find Out If You’re Too Acidic

 

Have you recently heard people talking about being over-acidic, measuring their pH and eating alkalizing foods? Emphasizing the importance of body’s pH might seem like a new fashion, but the science and art of pH balancing has had a long tradition and, unlike some other trendy theories, it has successfully overcome the test of time.

What is PH?

In terms of chemical understanding, pH is a measurement of hydrogen ion (H⁺) concentration in a solution. Solutions with low hydrogen concentrations have high pH values, and solutions with high hydrogen concentrations have low pH values.

As you probably remember from school, the pH scale runs from 1 to 14, with 7 representing the pH of pure water – neutral. Above 7 is alkaline, below is acidic.

In optimal circumstances, your body should have a pH of between 7.0 and 7.4, so slightly alkaline. This refers to the pH of the body’s main fluids: blood, lymph and cerebrospinal fluid.

The pH of the digestive system however, is a bit less uniform: the mouth, pharynx and esophagus are all slightly acidic with a pH of 6.8; the pH of the healthy stomach is 1.3 – extremely acidic; the pH of the small intestine resembles that of healthy bodily fluids; and in the colon it ranges between 5.5 and 7.

Why Does pH Matter?

In 1931, Dr. Otto Warburg won the Nobel Prize in physiology. He was the first to describe the correlation between the acidic environment and cancer cell growth.

We know now that an acidic body is more susceptible to different diseases, including arthritis, cancer, and cardiovascular diseases.

What’s more, if your pH is out of balance, digestive problems can occur and your body can’t assimilate the goodness from food, which can make you feel constantly tired. Blood pressure, insulin levels and cholesterol, as well as body weight and immune system function, are all influenced by changes in pH levels.

As every one-point decrease on the pH scale means 10 times increased acidity, going from pH 7 to 5 makes your insides 100 times more acidic! This is not a good sign if you’re planning on living a long and healthy life.

The bottom line is that you want to keep your body’s pH as close as possible to what nature intended it to be. Also, if you are aiming to cure a disease, you might want to start by looking at the pH of your body. When doing that, most people discover that they’re too acidic.

What the Research Says About the Alkaline Diet

Research suggests that an alkaline diet can assist with chemotherapy treatments, making the treatments more effective. This is the case for example with cucumber, which contains lignans that are being studied for treating estrogen-related cancers within the body.

The Journal of Environmental Health suggests that “it would be prudent to consider an alkaline diet to reduce morbidity and mortality of chronic disease that are plaguing our aging population”.

Another medical study showed that “oral NaHCO(3) (or baking soda) selectively increased the pH of tumors and reduced the formation of spontaneous metastases in mouse models of metastatic breast cancer.”

While there are no studies that directly show an alkaline diet to prevent cancer, research is ongoing.

In general, the alkaline diet may assist cells and connective tissue in retaining water as it works to enhance systemic, brain, and bone health.

Additionally, alkaline foods such as cucumber may provide the support needed for enhanced enzymatic function, to prevent degradation of tissues and slow cell aging.

Presumably, an abundance of alkaline cellular reserves buffers the depletion that occurs when the body constantly readjusts to maintain proper pH and minimize cellular acidity.

What Causes pH Imbalances?

The main culprits of over-acidity are improper diet (fast food, high consumption of sugars, animal products and processed foods), stress and lifestyle choices, for example sedentary life style. Interestingly, over-exercising, especially too much cardio workout, can lead to a drop in your pH levels as well, as it contributes to stress.

At first, the body tries to compensate and bring the pH back to its optimum levels. For example, minerals such as potassium, sodium, magnesium and calcium are taken from our vital organs and bones to counteract the acid. But this cannot go on indefinitely, and sooner or later the acidic environment starts to attract all sorts of ailments.

Naturopath Ann Boroch is one of many who recommend switching to a more alkaline diet (see video at the end of my article). She points out that the five things we should all avoid (or reduce as much as possible) in order to keep our bodies within the optimal pH range (between 7.0 and 7.4) are:

• Excessive consumption of red meat
• Caffeine
• Sugar
• Alcohol
• Stress

She claims that all these turn your body acidic and make it inflamed. So you need to become more alkaline again. You can do this by eating foods that will bring you back to balance. The changes don’t need to be as complex as some might think. Boroch emphasizes that little can go a long way.

Warning Signs Your Body is too Acidic

According to experts, signs and symptoms that may be seen in acidosis include:

• Headaches
• Confusion
• Feeling tired
• Lack of appetite
• Sleepiness
• Fast breathing

The Link Between Candida and Cancer

Candida is very widespread due to the imbalanced lives we lead. Antibiotics and steroids are taken routinely, and everyone is overly stressed. All these factors contribute to candida overgrowth.

Many times, candida goes undetected for a long time and weakens the immune system. Compromised immune system leads to genetic mutations. One medical study found that candida infection can significantly increase overall and some individual cancer risks. Another medical study concluded that “Candida spp., particularly C. albicans, has been implicated in oral and esophageal cancer development, the pathogenic mechanisms and its carcinogenic capability is not clearly understood”

Doug Kaufmann has written and lectured about the ‘fungal theory of disease’, in which he explains the role fungi has in disease development. Fungi should not be ignored, as they might be the key to solving many health issues.

Ann Brooch herself believes that there is a strong connection between cancer and candida overgrowth. She claims that if you have candida, that is a clear signal your body is over-acidic.

How to Test your PH Level

It might be a good idea to test your pH and find out where you stand. You can do this at home. All you need is litmus paper, which can be bought at a pharmacy or a health food store, and a bit of discipline.

You need to dip the litmus paper in your first morning urine. Collect a sample in a clean container and measure the pH level. Or, you can use saliva, one hour before a meal or two hours after eating. Make sure you obtain a clean sample, so before spitting on the litmus paper, collect saliva in your mouth and swallow it.

You might find it useful to keep a diary over a period of time, so you can compare the values and get a medium value. The pH of your saliva should stay between 7 and 7.4 all day.

The pH of morning urine is slightly more acidic and fluctuates between 6 and 6.5. If you are also measuring the evening urine, the value should be between 6.5 and 7.
 

Tips for Alkalizing your Body

Some methods for alkalizing your body are straightforward and focus on dietary and lifestyle changes, while others will require specialist support and guidance, such as the use of alkaline minerals. Cesium chloride, germanium, rubidium and other alkalizing minerals can be used to alkalize the body.

Particularly cesium chloride and sodium bicarbonate therapies have received a lot of attention and have been reported to yield good results, the latter being somewhat easier to use.

The Cancer Alternative Foundation, which has a mission of researching and verifying various alternative approaches to healing cancer, has established that alkalizing therapy is one of the most efficient alternative techniques for treating cancer, even in the later stages of the disease.

Basic dietary changes you can make to get your body more alkaline and healthy

As for a diet that will help turn your body alkaline, it’s recommended to embrace a vegetarian, or even better a vegan diet (meat and dairy products have a very acidic effect on the body’s pH levels) and to eliminate refined sugars, alcohol and caffeine from your diet.

Eat more vegetables such as cucumbers. Your diet should consist of 60% vegetables. That doesn’t necessarily mean eating raw vegetables. Your food can be cooked. In fact, some people’s digestive tracts can’t handle just raw food. Dark leafy greens are particularly praised for their alkalizing potential. Juice, steam, sauté them – whatever works for you.

Fresh fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds are a preferred choice due to their alkalizing potential. A food’s natural pH level does not necessarily indicate the effect it will have on the body. For example, lemons and limes are known to have an alkaline effect on the body, despite their initial (citric) acidity, so squeeze some lemon in water and drink before a meal.

A very popular dietary supplement that also helps you alkalize your body is spirulina – an algae that can be consumed in powder form or in tablets. Some guidance may be required to establish which food and food combinations are optimal for you.

Get a dose of raw apple cider vinegar first thing in the morning. Mix a tablespoon with some water. Or, mix freshly squeezed lemon juice with some warm water, and drink that every morning.

Don’t eat junk food and processed foods.

Reduce your stress

The next thing you should look at is your stress. Don’t forget to assess your stress levels. Sound sleep, exercise and regular relaxation can do wonders for the body and mind. If you need to manage your stress levels, some simple breathing exercise can do the trick. You can also look at some other relaxation techniques, such as yoga, meditation, emotional freedom technique (EFT), to name a few.

This is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.   

https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations  
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes    
https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement