Skin Health & Systemic Disease
Crepey body skin may have you wearing long sleeves or pants in the summer. Not only is crepey body skin unsightly, it is a visual indicator of unhealthy skin. In recent studies, scientists have found that the state of your skin can affect your overall health. It’s the chicken-or-egg scenario; they aren’t 100% sure yet if poor skin health causes overall body inflammation, which causes many health conditions and premature aging…or if poor skin health is caused by systemic inflammation. The studies are starting to point toward unhealthy skin being the CAUSE or at least a large puzzle piece toward the cause of disease. Afterall, your skin is your largest organ.
Studies also show that pairing the right lotion (rich in vitamins and minerals and using it at least twice per day), drastically improves the look of crepey skin and improves the quality and health of thin aging skin. Also, exfoliation brings blood flow to your skin cells along with a healing response that kick starts more collagen production and repairs elastin that has been broken down from UV damage, smoking and environmental toxins. I suggest a pouf in the shower, dry brushing or a body scrub.
I use J Renee Organics Supple Body Lotion and exfoliate with a shower pouf to preserve my youthful skin all year, so that when summer comes around, I can be confident in showing off my arms and legs. Supple Lotion has even helped my parent’s skin heal after surgery. Surgery and other stresses on the body can make skin dry and fragile and make your whole body dehydrated because it cannot hold-in moisture like it should. Proper moisturized skin is essential for overall body health.
In recent studies, scientists have found that the state of your skin can affect your overall health. It’s the chicken-or-egg scenario; they aren’t 100% sure yet if poor skin health causes overall body inflammation, which causes many health conditions and premature aging…or if poor skin health is caused by systemic inflammation. The studies are starting to point toward unhealthy skin being the CAUSE or at least a large puzzle piece toward the cause of disease.
Conditions (so far) that are proven to be caused by poor skin quality include: Alzheimer’s disease, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes. “Until recently, the scientific community didn’t believe that skin could contribute to systemic inflammation and disease. But in the last five years, studies of psoriasis and dermatitis have shown that skin inflammation from these diseases likely increases the risk of heart disease," said study lead author Theodora Mauro, MD, a professor of dermatology at UCSF and the San Francisco VA Health Care System.
In the study, published March 5, 2019 in the Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, Mauro, Man and colleagues attempted to reverse age-related skin damage using an over-the-counter skin cream formulated based on prior research by Man and colleagues, and which the researchers had previously shown to contribute to skin repair based on its beneficial ratio of three types of lipids (cholesterol, free fatty acids, and ceramides) that are vital for skin health.
Thirty-three older adults between the ages of 58 and 95 applied the cream all over their bodies twice a day for 30 days. After a month, the researchers measured blood levels of three cytokines—interleukin-1 beta, interleukin-6, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) alpha—that have all been implicated in age-related inflammatory diseases. Using the cream reduced the amount of all three cytokines compared to both the participants’ levels before using the cream and the levels of similarly aged adults who did not use the cream. In fact, using the cream lowered participants’ cytokine levels to be nearly equivalent with people in their 30s, suggesting that rejuvenating the skin can reverse “inflamm-aging.” The cream also improved skin hydration, lowered pH, and repaired the permeability barrier.
