Keep your skin soft, safe, and in perfect shape with these smart steps.
Soft, safe skin
If you have type 2 diabetes,
taking care of your skin is a major part of staying healthy overall.
Diabetics face a double danger: nerve damage can lead to numb,
injury-prone hands and feet, while poor circulation and elevated blood
sugar can slow down wound healing and increase the risk of infections.
About one-third of people with type 2 diabetes will develop a skin
problem directly related to their condition. Most problems can be
handled by a simple daily skin care routine. Others need treatment right
away to prevent serious problems. Here's how to keep your skin in
great shape.
Manage your blood sugar
High blood sugar is dangerous for many reasons, but it can also make
your skin dry, and prone to cracking and breaking. This opens the door
to infections. And if you do get an infection, high blood sugar makes
the infection harder to fight.
"The No. 1 key is to get your
diabetes in check," says Katherine H. Fiala, MD, director of the
dermatology residency program at Scott & White Clinic in Temple,
Texas. "If you do that first, everything else is so much easier."
Control your blood pressure
People with diabetes are also at risk for high blood pressure,
which can affect the skin as much as any other part of the body.
"Because the skin is the largest organ of the body, it's affected by
everything else that affects your health," says Earlexia M. Norwood, MD,
service chief of family medicine at Henry Ford West Bloomfield Hospital
in Michigan. Take your blood pressure medication, and don't forget to
exercise. It will lower blood pressure and blood sugar, and increase
blood flow to your skin, allowing it to stay alive and healthy, says Dr.
Norwood.
Avoid very hot water
It might feel good at the time, but showering or bathing in hot water
is a bad idea because it can dry skin out. Don't let the water
temperature exceed 120 degrees and, generally, don't stay immersed for
more than 10 to 15 minutes, says Dr. Norwood. Burns from hot water are
also a risk if you have diabetic neuropathy, which can cause numbness in
the hands and feet. Set your hot water heater at a lower level,
recommends Elaine Gilmore, MD, PhD, assistant professor of dermatology
at the University of Rochester. Test the water first with your forearm
or another part of your body that still has full sensation, and consider
using a rubber-duck thermometer available in any drugstore's baby
section.
Moisturize often
A regular moisturizing routine will go a long way toward preventing
dry skin. The most important body areas to target are those most prone
to drying and chapping—your legs, arms, back, and belly, says Dr. Fiala.
There are several diabetes-specific moisturizers on the market,
including Gold Bond Diabetic Skin Relief Lotion ($10; amazon.com) and Eucerin Diabetics' Dry Skin Relief Body Lotion ($12; amazon.com).
However, there's no need for a diabetes-specific product, says
Stephanie Kovacs, a clinical dietitian and diabetes educator at
Vanderbilt Children's Hospital in Nashville—coconut oil can also lock in the moisture. But don't put lotion between your toes—some body parts need to stay dry.
Keep skin clean and dry
While you want to keep the more exposed areas of your body moist, the
opposite is true for the warm, dark areas, Dr. Fiala points out.
Moisture collects quickly under your arms, under your breasts, between
your legs, and between your toes, which can result in fungal and yeast
infections. Make sure you dry off thoroughly after a shower or bath. You
can even use a hairdryer in armpits and other areas where there are
crevices, says Kovacs. If you do this, though, make sure it's on a cool
setting so you don't burn your skin.
Be cold-weather savvy
Be especially vigilant about your daily moisturizing routine when
it's cold or windy outside as skin chaps easily in the winter. Lip balm
can smooth lips and using a humidifier
inside will make sure the air doesn't get too dry. And when you're
outside, always wear gloves or mittens—preferably waterproof ones—to
protect against frostbite, says Kovacs. If you have diabetic neuropathy,
the cold may be injuring your hands without you even knowing it. By the
same token, be smart in the summer too. Wear sunscreen and never walk in your bare feet—wear shoes at the beach and on hot pavement.
Drink plenty of fluids
Water as well as drinks without caffeine
or sugar are good choices to keep your skin looking lustrous. One group
of researchers even found that healthy adults who reported drinking
four or more 8-ounce glasses of water a day were less likely to develop
high blood sugar than those who drank less than two glasses a day. This
may be because being dehydrated can increase levels of a hormone called
vasopressin, which spurs the liver to produce more blood sugar.
Eat healthy foods
That means whole grains,
less saturated fat, and lots of fruits and vegetables with one note of
caution: Not all fruit is the same for people with diabetes. "Fruits are
a carbohydrate so they will affect your blood sugar," says Marina
Chaparro, a certified diabetes educator and spokesperson for the Academy
of Nutrition and Dietetics. Limit your intake of dried fruits like
raisins and cranberries—they have a lot of sugar packed into a small
portion. Your best bet? Eat fresh berries, like strawberries,
blueberries, and blackberries. "You can have a lot of these without
raising your blood sugar," says Chaparro.
Choose gentle products
When it comes to soap, choose moisturizing products over harsher
brands, says Dr. Gilmore. Many people have allergic reactions to
perfumed skin products but, more importantly for people with diabetes,
these products don't hydrate your skin as well as products that contain
fewer chemicals, says Dr. Norwood. Eucerin, for instance, is a good
emollient cream for people of all ages, she says. Don't use feminine
hygiene spray or bubble bath, which can by drying. Products containing
colloidal oatmeal, on the other hand, can be both moisturizing and
soothing when added to a bath.
Check your feet every day
Feet are particularly vulnerable because nerve-damage may cause
numbness, so that it's easy to miss blisters, splinters, or small cuts.
Poor blood circulation means such injuries are prone to infection and
slow to heal, which can increase the risk for gangrene and other
problems. "Diabetics need to check their feet every day before going to
bed to see if there are any changes," says Dr. Norwood. There are some
things you can do to prevent problems. Wash your feet daily in warm (not
hot) water and never soak your feet. Afterwards, dry well between your
toes (add talcum powder or cornstarch to speed drying). Then add a
moisturizer or petroleum jelly to the tops and bottoms of your feet
(though not between the toes). If there's an injury that's red and
spreading or you know you generally don't heal well, see your doctor.
Don't remove calluses yourself
If you have diabetes, your feet are also prone to calluses, either
because of ill-fitting shoes or from too much rubbing or pressure on the
same spot due to numbness. The problem: Calluses make it even harder
to feel problems. If you're tempted to take a razor or other sharp
implement to a callus, hold yourself back. "You can easily cut through
the callus and injure the skin," says Dr. Norwood. This is definitely
the time to visit a doctor. What starts out as a tiny cut can quickly
escalate into something more serious when you have diabetes.
See a doctor if . . .
"Diabetes makes you slower to heal and you're at an increased risk of
infection so those two things together make it even more important for
patients to clean any injuries immediately," says Dr. Fiala. Call a
doctor if you have a cut, burn, or infection that stays red or continues
to hurt for more than two days, that spreads, or that is joined by a
fever. "Anything that's not getting better and better but getting worse
and worse, that's a sign to go in," says Dr. Fiala. Of course, if the
injury starts out bad—a major burn or cut—you need to see your doctor
right away. Rapid treatment is the best way to avoid more serious
problems.
When you hear the word "insulin," do you picture giant needles? Many
people find insulin to be less painful or scary than they expected. Find
out what's fact or fiction when it comes to using insulin to treat type
2 diabetes.
Source : Health
