Skin Tags Can Mean Hormone Imbalance

The Endocrine society has just released the new guidelines on PCOS, or polycystic ovarian condition. Women are most likely to have this if they have abnormal menstrual cycles, ovaries with small cysts and male hormone abnormalities. In diagnosing and treating women with PCOS, the endocrine society also points out that there are skin consequences of PCOS. Patients with PCOS have abnormal  hair growth, acne, alopecia or hair loss, acanthosis nigricans which is a skin pigment disorders, and skin tags during physical examination, according to the new guidelines.In addition to abnormal menstrual periods, and infertility, struggles with weight, diabetes and blood pressure problems all plague women with PCOS. Appropriate evaluation for this condition can help you have the best overall health as well as the best skin. At Hada Cosmetic Medicine we ask Women's Health Practice to work up our patients for the hormone concerns.

Weight Loss And Psoriasis

Obesity complicates many skin conditions, and even in women who are just overweight, weight loss alone can help treating a number of skin conditions. The latest studies show that weight loss can help psoriasis treatments work better. Large amounts of weight loss aren't necessary, in some studies weight loss of even twenty pounds can be helpful. Other studies show that it is not just weight loss, but improvement in your whole metabolism: lower cholesterol, lower other blood fats, better sugar control and better metabolism all can help resolve skin and scalp conditions such as psoriasis. We think that the hormones of fat, which can be measured by blood studies, and the levels of inflammation that are calmed by weight loss will in turn decrease the production of the substances that cause psoriasis. Oddly some studies, sadly, completely contradict the information and have shown worsening of psoriasis. We use basic BMI categories of risk, those over 30, and waist circumferences of over 35, elevated blood pressures as well as the cholesterol issues to target women for weight loss aiming life style changes. And those changes can make their skin glisten and glow as well.

Pink Is The Most Poison of The Poisons

Lipsticks obtain color through additive chemicals. The titanium that make reds pink are the same used in sunscreen and a bit of titanium can suffice for protection against skin cancers. But other chemicals, as reported today in Poison Pen by Deborah Blum in the NY Times are contaminants. The pink lipsticks have the greatest numbers of chemicals in one study up to 8 different ones including cadmium and aluminum. And the intensity needed for the brightest of pinks requires the highest numbers of additives. Lead is in over 400 synthetic product lipsticks, and the top 20 that contain the lead were revealed in a Mother Jones article you can read on line. The other chemicals that are now being found in some of these products are also being investigated to reveal if they are safe as well. At Hada Cosmetic Medicine we recommend the natural based products we sell, which protect as well as enhance your lips, and do not harm.

New Teen Acne Guidelines Published In Pediatrics.

Just released by the American Academy of  Pediatrics is a consensus opinion on how teens can be best managed with their acne. These principals are endorsed by your providers at Hada Cosmetic Medicine. First you will get a consultation, by either your physician or Physician's Assistant, to make sure you are given a diagnosis. You may select to have some treatments by aestheticians, but it is important to periodically check in with your physician or advanced practice provider as they mange your acne. Available treatments include over-the-counter products; topical benzoyl peroxide (BP), retinoids, and antibiotics; and oral antibiotics, hormonal therapy, and isotretinoin. Other important considerations are how this affects you psychologically, how well you are able to comply with our treatments, and the role of diet, sleep and exercise in your acne. Sometimes it is important to also seek consultation with a dermatologist or endocrinologist.

• It has been shown that Benxoyl Peroxide (BP) is safe and effective, and an excellent first line therapy. It can be continued with other medications regardless of what type of acne or how severe your acne is.
• The next step may be antibiotics and they can be given as a topical treatment or as oral antibiotics,. It may be important to continue the BP, at this point to minimize development of antibiotic-resistant Propionibacterium acnes (the germ that actually causes most acne).
• For all types and severity of acne, and for youths and adolescents, topical retinoids may be used alone or in combination products and regimens.
• Because topical antibiotics are slower to work and fairly prone to antibiotic resistance, they recommend that topical BP should be added if topical antibiotics are needed for more than a few weeks.
• If oral antibiotics are given, we will select one that is effective, and we will discuss how often, most will need to be taken with food, and we will go into any special instructions, such as sun sensitivity to think about if you are outdoors a lot.
• Isotretinoin is recommended for severe, scarring, and/or refractory acne in adolescents and may be used in younger patients, but you must avoid pregnancy with this medication
• Hormonal therapy with combined oral contraceptives may be useful  as the next step for young women, but they usually will not be started until you have your period for a full year.

Glisten and Glow

To have the look of glowing and youthful skin any issues from the surface to the deep layers should be addressed. Ultherapy addresses structural issues of our face, jaw an neck without treating the surface of the skin. Ultherapy uses the sound wave energy ultrasound that is more known for imaging such as pregnancy ultrasound and for physical therapy. By using sound waves delivered as focused ultrasound pulses it treats the layers beneath the deep dermal tissues to treat:  Scowling, Furrowing of the brows, Wrinkling of forehead, Tired appearance of the eyes , Gaunt, hollow look of the cheeks , Frowning, Sagging jowls , or Neck laxity. The focused ultrasound Ultherapy treatment will produce a sensation of heat as the underlying tissues are treated. This sensation doesn’t occur when you get medical imaging tests as energy is not focused, and the image ultrasound machine delivers less energy. It causes heating at the time of the treatment, and you may be a bit sore after the treatment, but many of those treated report no side effects at all. The tissue layer that contains collagen will gradually reorganize and stricken and tighten which produces the lift to the area treated. Because our skin is an organ, the growth factors stimulated will help the skin texture and pigment as well as smooth fine wrinkles. So for those who have issues of the skin which involve the deepest layers, there is a non-invasive way to correct all the layers.

Melanoma Prevention

Melanoma is often a local disease which can be managed easily, but some cases are more agressive. Melanoma is currently the fifth and seventh most common cancer in American men and women, respectively, and it has become more frequent.  Sun exposure and genetic predisposition are the two most common causes. In simple terms it is due to a growth of the pigment producing cells of the skin called melanocytes. These melanocyte cells of the skin produce pigment in the form of melanin in response to stimuli such as ultraviolet (UV) light. Melanocytes also make the pigment that determines skin and hair color. Individuals with pigmented spots, moles or lesions are best served by having regular skin check ups, that only last a few minutes. An interesting study
Researchers report in a new study, published online in the journal Cancer, that included 59,806 women ages 50 to 79, regular aspirin use decreases cases of melanoma.  After controlling for sun exposure, sunscreen use, a history of skin cancer and many other factors, the researchers found that women who reported using aspirin had an average 21 percent lower risk of melanoma compared with nonusers, and the longer they used aspirin, the lower their risk. The senior author, Dr. Jean Y. Tang, an assistant professor of dermatology at Stanford, pointed out that the study was observational and not a clinical trial, and correlation does not equal causation. “It’s an important finding for high-risk women to discuss with their doctors,” she said, “but it’s way too early to recommend that everyone go take aspirin to prevent melanoma." Dr. Suzanne Trupin, at Hada Cosmetic Medicine states that aspirin use may be useful heart protection for some women, and that coming in for a consultation regarding your overall health can help determine if you should take it, and at what dosage.