Blog
The Importance of Healthy Skin & Tips to Maintain It
Your skin plays an important role in protecting your body, like helping keep you from getting sick or exposing your bones, muscles, and internal organs to potential damage.
Did you know that skin is your body’s largest organ by size and has many important functions?
- Your skin helps keep your body temperature even. If you get too hot, blood vessels near the surface of the skin enlarge to let the warm blood cool down.
- Your skin also makes vitamin D when the sun shines on it, which is important for the health of your bones and other parts of your body.
Cuts, bumps, and scrapes inevitably happen to most of us throughout life, but some can be prevented with proper precautions. Burns, including sunburn, can also be very painful, get infected easily and can take a long time to heal. Depending on the severity of these injuries, some may even leave bad scars and permanently damage your skin.
If you do get a cut or scratch, clean it right away with soap and warm water and put on a bandage to protect it while it heals. This keeps dirt and germs from getting into the wound and causing an infection. If you come into contact with a plant like poison ivy, wash your skin and clothing right away. If you develop a rash, ask your pharmacist about over-the-counter medicines. For severe rashes, you might need to see your medical provider for treatment.
Watch out for insect bites, too. Try not to scratch them, because they could get infected. And be on the lookout for any adverse reactions, such as swelling, discoloration or pain associated with the area of skin that was bitten, as some insects are carriers of various diseases or release venomous agents that can cause severe reactions if not treated directly.
Good skin care and healthy lifestyle choices can help delay the natural aging process and prevent various skin problems.
Some helpful tips to remember to maintain healthy skin are as follows:
- Wear protective equipment, like gloves, long sleeves, knee and elbow pads, or helmets to help keep your skin safe when performing various activities that are prone to causing injury.
- Use safe sun protection, like applying a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of at least 15 when outdoors or cover your skin with tightly woven clothes and wide-brimmed hats to reduce your skin’s exposure to the sun.
- Stop smoking. Smoking causes blood vessels in the skin to narrow and decrease blood flow, which depletes skin of oxygen and nutrients that help keep it healthy. It also damages collagen and elastin in the skin, which is vital in preventing wrinkles.
- Keep it gentle with cleansing and shaving hygiene habits. Avoid using hot water or abrasive soaps and detergents, as they can strip essential oils from your skin. Also, protect your skin with a lubricant, such as shaving cream, lotion, or gel before shaving to reduce cuts. Apply a moisturizer as needed to reduce dry, flaky, or cracked skin.
- Maintain a healthy diet and drink plenty of water. Eating nutritious foods gives your body the nutrients needed to create cell growth and repair skin, while drinking plenty of water helps keep your body hydrated to function properly. The body water percentage for men is 60% and 55% for women.
- Reduce stress. Uncontrolled stress can make your skin more sensitive and cause acne breakouts or other various skin problems, like alopecia, eczema, psoriasis, rosacea, or hives. Get enough sleep, set reasonable limits to your task list, mediate, or engage in an activity that you enjoy that helps reduce stress.
At SIHF Healthcare, our medical providers are ready to assist you with maintaining your health and wellness needs. Taking it one day at a time and making little improvements, such as incorporating a healthy diet, quitting smoking, and reducing stress, can make life-changing differences in your overall health. Click here to find a SIHF Healthcare health center near you and book an appointment today. Your provider will take the time to listen to your health concerns and offer the best care plan for you.