Health > Facial skin problems in growing age
18th Nov 2020
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Health

Facial skin problems in growing age

Does our skin grow old with time?

A beautiful skin is much appreciated in both men and women of all age but, it is also true that our skin do age with time. Old-age is also known as the period of physical decline. The older we grow, the more changes our skin undergoes with time. Growing old is often linked with various structural as well as functional changes not only in terms of body but also in terms of skin.

Ageing may lead to less thickened epidermis though the number of cells remains unchanged but still there is a gradual decrease in the number of pigment cells (melanocytes). With age our skin becomes more rough and ends up losing its elasticity. And all these factors in no time together results in various skin problems, especially face skin problems.

Skin problems on the body along with face skin problems could be a result of various factors such as, it may be due to age or it may be due to the exposure to enormous environmental elements, or sometimes, it may be due to genetics.

Can face skin problems be a topic of worry even though they are very common and benign?

Due to the fact that our skin is very easily visible, Skin problems, especially face skin problems can sometimes be very stressful even though they are extremely ordinary and harmless.

Our face or we may say face skin is almost everytime exposed to harmful agents which contains the potential of causing damage to it thus resulting in face skin problems. It may have physical as well as psychological effect on the person.

In the context of face skin problems, the physical effects can be in terms of itching, sleep disturbance and sometimes even pain can be experienced. Whereas the psychological effects may include loss of confidence, anxiety and sometimes even depression.

Cause for these skin problems

Though there are many causes few of them are problem specific, but lets throw some light on few general ones:

  • Unbalanced face skin Ph.
  • Dryness due to weather condition.
  • Damaged scalp or face skin layer due to prolong use of chemical products.
  • Smoking.
  • Long exposure to sunlight (UV rays)
  • Sometimes diseases like diabetes, may also lead to skin problems.

Face skin shows various signs of ageing along with symptoms of problems

Long sun exposure and time usually takes away our skins charm. With the passage of time our skin grows old and show ageing signs like roughness, loss of elasticity, and finally, wrinkles become prominent.

There are various types of skin problems related to elderly people like skin malignancies, Pruritus, infections and Eczematous Dermatoses.

Various face skin related problems

Exposure to UV rays:

Exposure to UV rays is the most common cause of skin problems. Long exposure to harmful UV rays may result in the loss of Fatty tissues between the muscles and the skin thus creating a face skin problem.

Wrinkles:

It is the most prominent visible sign of face skin problems, it Is caused due to the loss of elasticity in the face tissue.

(In a comparative study of a smoker with that of non-smoker, a conclusion was drawn that the smokers tend to have more wrinkles on the face skin as compared to the non-smokers)

Dryness & itching:

It is again one of the common symptoms experienced by people suffering from face skin problems and is caused due to the loss of oils glands under the skin.

Pruritus:

It is characterised as an unpleasant sensation on the skin which triggers an urge to scratch. Xerosis(dry skin), a medical condition is considered to be the cause of Pruritus in elderly people.

Eczematous Dermatoses:

It is characterised by irritation on the epidermal layer and cause is said to be excessive loss of water from urine or through stool which causes a situation of overhydration and often leads to bacterial infections.

Rosacea:

It is characterised by the redness and swelling caused in face region and can occur in any age group.

ACNE:

This is the most common face skin problem not in elderly but mostly among adolescence. It is characterised by pimples, nodules and sometimes cysts. It is a result of overactivated sebaceous gland which in return produces excess of oil. This problem isn’t harmful but can cause serious decline in self-esteem of an individual.

Seborrheic keratosis:

It is a face skin problem where a wart like outgrowth is observed among the people in the age group of over 70. It may be harmless and usually no treatment is required but can cause irritation in the face region.

Lenigo seneilis:

It is characterised by brown tan or brown spot in the face region. It is caused due to long continued sun exposure and occurs in elderly people.

Cherry Angiomas:

It is characterised by skin growths (non-cancerous) which appears to be reddish in colour as they are made up of blood vessels. These are fairly common and occurs in the age group of over 30. These outgrowths may lead to bleeding if scratched very hard. Hence making it a serious face skin problem.

Melanocytic Nevi:

Also known as moles. Moles are small outgrowth in the skin region. They are mostly harmless but few might tun into cancerous moles.

Are face skin related problems gender specific?

Many face skin problems are unisexual that is, it occurs in both the genders equally for example let’s take Wrinkles, it occurs equally in both the sexes. There is no specification or demarcation that it occurs more abundantly in one and less abundantly in the other.

Though there are some face skin problems which occurs specifically in women and not in men. And the same goes for men too, there are few face problems which are experienced in case of men but not in case women.

Face skin problems experienced by women:

Though the face skin problems are unisexual but, the ones specifically faced by women are –

Extra Dry skin:

Women skin often feels thin due to the decline in the Estrogen levels in the body which further results in the parched looking skin which lacks glow. It is observed that during the first five years of menopause women tend to lose 30 percent of the collagen present in the body and skin. And due to this the skin becomes extra dry.

Itchy scalp and dry hairline:

This is a common problem faced by women, it is characterised by the dry scalp and hairline and is caused due to the excessive use of chemical based shampoo. It may result in dandruff too, though sometimes it is genetical.

Skin damage due to sun rays:

It is observed among women that when they apply face mask, they often skip sunscreen which is crucial for protection of face skin against harmful UV rays coming from sun. it soon leads to various face skin problems.

Brown spots on neck and hands:

It is a condition seen among those women who apply sunscreen regularly. It was,observed that only the face portion was getting protected by the sunscreen and the regions such as neck and hands got missed due to this, continued long term exposure to harmful rays by the sun is experienced by those areas which leads to formation of brown spots around that region.

More sensitive skin:

Due to application of chemical-based lotion and creams the protective layer or barrier in the skin known as stratum corneum becomes thin and due to this the skin becomes more and more sensitive. It may result in irritation as well as redness in some areas.

Maskne:

It is a face skin problem faced by women who wear masks on daily basis. Due to the increased friction and trapped moisture under the skin, or face skin becomes prone to redness and irritation. Though it can be overcome by using soft cloth-based tissues.

Rosacea:

It is a face skin-based problem observed more in women. It is characterised by appearance of red spots along with prominent blood vessels in the face region and might sometimes lead to acne breakout.

Face skin problems experienced by men :

Face Redness:

It is a common face skin problem faced by men who shave very often. Due to excessive shaving the skin underneath becomes irritated and dry and a redness can be observed in that area.

Razor burn:

It is a type of skin problem caused due to lack of lubrication at time of shave. Application pf ice cube may resolve this issue.

Chapped lips:

It is a type of skin condition observed on lip area and is caused due to continuous ignorance of lip moisturiser. The skin in the lip area is much thinner as compared to other areas thus requires regular nourishment in terms of moisturiser.

Rosacea:

Though it is observed more in women, but few cases have been observed in men too. It is characterised by redness and appearance of prominent blood vessels which may sometimes lead to acne breakout.

Can smoking cause or may lead to face skin problems?

We all can agree to the fact that smoking is injurious for health, but you may also be surprised by the fact that smoking is also injurious for the skin health and my lead to face skin problems. The noxious substances found in the cigarette have negative effects on the body, those substances inhibit the oxygen absorption and thus prevents the supply of nutrients in the body, which further results in the damage of skin tissue. It is often characterised by the excessive wrinkles and sagging skin. Hence smoking is also harmful for our skin health and leads to face skin problems.

How to tackle these face skin problems?

Everyone desires for a beautiful, good looking & charismatic skin. But all these things together never come handy. One has to incorporate various lifestyle changes to achieve them. There are enormous methods which can be implied to make skin healthy or to stay away from these face skin problems. Many of them are user friendly and only requires few household remedies, and mind you these remedies are way too effective than those artificial medicines in the market. And the best part is it can be practiced by any group let it be adolescence or aged people anyone can practice these basic steps and can achieve long term results in terms of face skin problems. Few of these are:

  • Get habitual to use of gentle cleanser
  • Exfoliate regularly
  • Wash face only when its necessary to avoid excess of drying
  • Have a control over your caffeine intake
  • Don’t let your skin be exposed to sunlight for too long
  • One can perform simple stretching exercises to tone up the skin.
  • Avoid tanning

The path to healthy skin passes through home

chieving a healthy face skin doesn’t require any rocket science. yes, you heard it right, we can achieve healthy face skin at home. We just have to follow few basic steps but we need to ensure our regularity in it. Let’s see what are those steps required:

Use of lemon:

Lemon as we all know is a rich source of VITAMIN-C. Vitamin C removes the dead cells from our face skin and in return helps to eradicate dark spots. Hence improving the overall face skin health both in men as well as women.

Use of honey:

Honey act as a natural moisturiser and helps in keeping face skin moisturised.

Use of turmeric:

Turmeric act as natural skin lightening agent and aids to remove or minimise scars.

Use of Aloe Vera:

Aloe vera act as a natural antiseptic agent and it checks the growth of any microbial agent, thus keeping our skin away from bacterial like agents which may further induce acne breakouts.

CONCLUSION

Everyone desires for a beautiful skin but only a few are able to perceive it. It is fascinating to know how small and easy steps can lead to a healthy life and take us far away from any face skin problems. We just have to follow them and incorporate it in our busy schedules. Afterall skin is a representation of all the things going inside. Healthy skin reflects overall wellness.

If you or your loved one needs elderly care providers to help them in day to day work, feel free to contact Emoha. At Emoha our aim is to curb all the challenges faced by elderly and to give all types of mental, physical and social support.

If you have any questions, you can contact us at eldersfirst@emoha.com or call us at 1800-123-445555.

Learn about various skin problems in elderly here.