Today's Topic
Today on A.Vogel Talks Menopause, I'm going to be taking a look at surprising things that can irritate sensitive skin in perimenopause and menopause.
We do know that your skin becomes more sensitive and reactive during menopause, and there can be many common irritants. So today, let's look at some of these, as well as ones that may be quite surprising, and that you might not even have connected to what's going on with your skin.
What causes sensitive and reactive skin in menopause
So, why does your skin become much more sensitive during menopause? Falling oestrogen levels can make your skin thinner and drier, and more reactive because of that. It's known too that falling oestrogen levels can affect the hydration of the skin, and that can be a factor too.
The symptoms you can experience include red skin. Your skin might suddenly just come up in red lumps or bumps. It could be itchy. You could end up with a group of spots. It could be hives or what we call urticaria.
You can become more allergic to things that you were originally allergic to - that could be things like pet hair, dust mites, etc.
It could also mean that skin conditions that you already have, such as eczema, could flair up more readily and could be much more uncomfortable than previously.
Common irritants to be aware of
So, what common irritants can make your skin reactive? It can be your shower gel, your body creams, and even your makeup. I had a friend who used the same mascara for many, many years. Suddenly, it was making her eyes water every single time she put it on.
It could also be your washing powder or liquid, because your clothes are then going to be on your skin possibly for hours at a time; so, what you use to wash them can affect your skin.
This can also affect your bed linen. It's something we tend not to think about. Our sheets, our duvets and pillowcases are in contact with our skin for maybe 8 or 9 hours at a time.
It could also be the actual material that you are wearing. Some people tell me that they can no longer wear wool or natural fibres because their skin gets itchy with them.
Surprising irritants to be aware of
But there can also be some really surprising ones. So, let's have a look at a few of them:
Deodorants/antiperspirants: One of the most surprising ones is your deodorant or antiperspirant. I was asked about this just a few weeks ago, which prompted me to think, "Oh, wait a minute. You know, there's a lot more things that may be surprising that we don't realise can give us all these allergic-type reactions."
If you think about it, a lot of deodorants, and especially, antiperspirants, contain chemicals that can block the pores under your arms. And some of these antiperspirants can last for up to 24 hours. So, your poor underarm skin isn't getting a chance to breathe; but also, the skin under your arms can become much more sensitive to all the chemicals that are in these antiperspirants.
To help, you can look at changing over to natural brands of deodorants. I recommend the Salt of the Earth range, which includes fragrance-free as well as fragranced varieties.
And just remember too that if your underarms are blocked and you get hot flushes or sweats, where are the sweats going to go? Very often, if you're wearing antiperspirants, you will sweat from your face up. So, there can often be a link between your antiperspirant and facial flushes.
What you eat: We've noticed too that there are so many more people coming to us saying that food that they've eaten for many, many years is suddenly causing skin irritation, redness, and rashes. Very often it could be things like sugar and dairy products. It could also be spicy food. That seems to be quite a big trigger. It could be alcohol. A lot of people tell us they can't even enjoy their favourite tipple now because they suddenly come up in rashes, lumps, and bumps.
Your jewellery: For some people, jewellery can become a problem, especially if made of silver and nickel. These can sometimes cause reactions at this time when they didn't before. I get ladies who tell me that they can no longer wear pierced earrings because their ears start to get rashes when they put their earrings in.
Stress: It can be due to increased stress. Stress triggers the producton of histamine. which can cause skin rashes.
Harsh weather conditions: Another really interesting one, which I hadn't thought about until I was out in the cold the other day, was that you get the cold wind and suddenly your eyes start to water. But the cold can also bring you out in skin rashes if you get very chilled.
There's also the other end of the scale. Your skin can become much more sensitive to the sun. You can get sunburned more easily.
And remember too that in the cold winter months, if you've got your central heating on, the air becomes much drier and that can cause your skin to become much more reactive.
What can help your skin?
So, what can you do here to help your skin?
Drink plenty of water because you want to keep the skin nicely hydrated to reduce that sensitivity in the first place. Look at supplements such as Sea Buckthorn Oil capsules, which are wonderful for helping to keep the skin nice and moisturized.
You could look at our Neem Cream, which contains extracts of neem leaves and carefully selected essential oils, with natural moisturising, soothing and conditioning properties to care for your skin.
Regular use helps to moisturise the skin and prevent dryness and irritation caused by skin dehydration. It gets to work on troubled skin, helping to calm and soothe sensitive or red areas and can be used on eczema-prone skin.
Neem Cream for dry & eczema prone skin
- Relief for dry or very dry skin
- Suitable for eczema-prone skin
- Calms irritation
- Soothes red, sore skin
"Perfect soothing cream for eczema type skin. I use the cream everyday, wouldn't be without a tube."
Keep a food symptom diary if you think food could be triggering your skin reactions. And also, try changing over to organic body products, washing powders, etc., and you may find that that makes a lot of difference.
If you find that the more stressed you get, the more reactive your skin is, then look at stress remedies such as those containing the herbs Passiflora and Valerian. Plus, for stress, I also recommend increasing your magnesium intake and taking a vitamin B complex.
I hope you find this one helpful. If any of you out there have had or been in this situation and you have found that you've reacted to something, please let us know because it's amazing how your questions and your answers help me look at more subjects that I can cover, so I always really appreciate all your comments.
Until then, I will see you next week for another edition of A.Vogel Talks Menopause.
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