DISEASES OF THE SKIN

The human body is an incredible creation made of bones muscles nerves and blood vessels The bone occupy the innermost  compartment and are help together by tendons light ments and muscles Blood vessels make way in between along and among these structures The skin acts as a protective  covering for all these structural organs In addition to security vigilance the skin also strikes the right  balance  in maintaining body water and regulating body -tem -perature  Our skin has two layers with sweat glands sebum (oil) secreting sebaceous glands and hair follicles interspersed  between Excess body salts are excreted in the sweat  thereby maintaining electrolyte balance The sweat from the skin vapourises on the skin surface which has a cooling effect Hence by varying the amount of sweat excretion  depending on climate the skin maintains the body -temper at a constant level of 37% (98.6F)irrespective of external temperature Our brain controls all  these functions. nThe sense of touch pain heat cold vibration  etc are all felt when these stimuli are carried as impulses by the nerves in the skin to the brain The brain being the highest seat of consciousness responds to these  stimuli after which we feel and understand the kind of sensation.

Though the skin performs the same function in all human beings it projects diversity when it comes to complexion The complexion of an individual is largely determined by climate type of food consumed and hereditary influences The pigment Melanin give colour to the individual and the lesser its presence fairer the individual.

Consumption of nutritious food and regular bath are the keys to a glowing healthy skin There are several factors leading to skin diseases under a common generic term kushta krishnathi vapuhu Ithi

kushtaha-this means that the the term kushta was coined for those diseases that alter the skin colour giving it an ugly appearance. Though the term kushta scientifically refers to the debilitating disease leprosy in Ayurveda it refers to all skin diseases leading to a darker skin.

The cause of all these conditions are varied and many as stated below:

• prolonged intake of food having completely opposite properties (such as too hot and extermely cold )is a major deterrent to skin health A cup of cold curd at the end of a heavy (hot)meal would show  up as skin problems Withholding nature's call for too long increases toxic substance in the blood that form a thriving ground for micro-orgnisms causing skin diseases Hence imbalance in our biological clock is the root cause.

A large chunk of skin diseases are caused by bacteria fungi and allergens Some of them like psoriasis 

vitiligo ringworm  and the like are curable only under a dermatologist's supervision 

The effective home remedies for some common skin  problems are as follows;

SHEETHAPITTHA: URTICARIA (ALLERGIC CONDITION)

Urticaria is described as sheethapittha in  Ayurveda In some hypersensitive (allergy prone) individuals dew or a cool breeze results in intense itching In addition certain kinds of food especially eggs, wheat , meat, corn, certain, cereals etc detergents and sopa may also trigger violent itching An individual may be allergic to diffferent kinds of substances depending on his/ her own hereditary  charcter andu body constitution It is widely know that allergic tendencies run in families Hence a scinsitive to some substance including sunlight''

Uriticaria is characterised by violent red rashes on the the skin and itching followed bby a terrible burning sensation It may also be associated witle other allergic manifestation like difficulty in breathing chest pain gastroenteritis eye irritation etc uricaria in children is also suggestive of heavy worm infestion.

The following home remedies are useful;

sandal paste is applied over the affected area of the skin left for a while Later it is washed away in lukewarm water simiarly white clay can also be used.

• Thick leaved lavender is an edible green leafy vegetable widely av ilable Some leaves are taken crushed thoroughly and  the juice is extracted. The juice is applied over the areas of skin affected and left for a while after which it is washed away.
• A handful of cumin seeds is roasted over a frying -pan with a pinch of pure  ghee added to it after a few minutes  equal quantity of jaggery is added to make a perfect medicine that immedi ately controls itching on consumption 
• The roots of liquorice are  powdered thoroughly Half a   teaspoon of this powder mixed with quarter teaspoon of hot milk and consumed three time a day This brings down urticaria and its accompanying itching and burning sensations .
• ECZEMN

This skin disorder is termed Gajakarna in Ayurveda which translates into Elephant ear in English The reason behind coining this term is that it is a troublesome itch concentrated in a part of the body which later turns very dark and thick resembling the texture of an elephant ear 

This disorder is commonly seen around joints soles foot areas of the body where the  skin folds like upper thigh  elbow knee etc Eczema may be present either in a dry form or an exudative form The disorder makes frequent appearances during rainfull and winter The disease is  also exacerbated  by consumption of food that have properties opposed to the season The person has to make a herculean effort to resist the violent itching associated with the disorder The paties is advised to wash the affected   part with soap and  water three to four times a day and keep it dry and clean.

The home remedies that are helpful in this disorder are .

A lime is crushed and the juice extracted A turmeric piece is ground well in this juice to obtain a paste This paste when applied to the affected parts three to four time a day give remarkable result due to the anti-allergic and antiseptic properties of turmeric Inspite of the burning sensation this treatement helps in the peeling off  of the affected skin and facilitates grows of healty new skin.

• Coconut shell is burnt till is charred The charred shell is powdered and mixed with sufficient coconut oil to make a paste when this paste is applied to the affected parts  it relives the intense itchig
• Radish seed are powdered well and a tea spoon is mixed with a little quantity of sour curds The resulthing  mixture  is allowed to stand overnight the next morning this paste is applied to the affected body parts left for a while and later washed away Not only does this  relived the itching but also helps in the thinning of the tough skin that finally peels off.
• catechu is powdered well and quarter teaspoon of this powder mixed with equal quantity of honey is consumed three time a day This helps in reducing itching and also in blood purification.
• Two handful of neem leaves are crushed well to extract the juice Half a teaspoon of this juice is added to half a cup of water The resulting solution is heated over a flame till it vapourises and the volume is reduced to half This solution is consumed along with some honey on an empty stomach.

WHITE PATCHES AND CHILBLAIN

the large white patches that appear  on the face back shoulder and chest are termed as chilblains These may sometime itch.

The home remedies that come in handy are;

The root of sweet flag plant is powdered well One teaspoon of this powder is mixed with litlie butter milk to make a paste This is applied overnight It is then washed away in lukewarm water the following day.

• the juice extracted from crushed limed is alpplied to the chilblains and left for a while A little later it is washed  away Similarly the dried skin of a lime fruit is powdered mixed with equal amount of round zedoary and double its quantity of besan flour This mixture is rubbed over the chilblain affected skin and washed away after  a while this makes a perfect mix of medicine that cures chilblains.
• Indian sarasaparilla root is powdered well One teaspoon of this poweder is added to half a cup of water to make a solution which when consumed thrice daily cures chilblains 

CORNS

it is very painful condition affecting the toes and soles particularly those of the overweight it is usually present as hard nodular growth of the skin 

many people  in theri frustration volutarily try to cut off using using unsterilised shaving blades This can in turn cause them more harm than good leading to septic infection some simple tips go a long way in helping such patients.

• The affected leg/s is /are dipped in a bucket  of hot water for a few minutes at night It is later wiped dry and gingiley oil is massaged gently over the corn This relieves the pain and softens the layer of skin.
• plumbago roots are ground well in lime juice extract and paste obtained is applied over the corn This soften the skin making the corn  fall off 

WARTS

Warts are small external  growths of the skin dark in colour mainly affecting the face and the neck This is commonly seen among the obese Though warts do not cause any sort of burning or itching whatsoever they cause great concern to the beauty conscious They can find solace in the following home remedies 

• A potato is cooked well in water .When cooking is complete the water left over is applied to the wart This makes a great medicine
• As in the case of corns plumbago roots are ground well in lime juice extract  and the paste thus obtained is applied to the warts.
• In folk -medicine a strand of hair obtained from a horse's tail is tied tightly along the root of the  warts wither away in a few days The scientific reason behind the success of this treatment is that a hair tied tightly around  the root of a wart cut off its blood supply leading to its fall.

But a horse,s tail is not easily available An alternative home remedy based on the same principle is as follows;

A piece of fine threda is soaked in lime juice extract and a little  turmeric powder is smeared along its   length This thread which tied to the root of the wart makes it fall off in a few days without leaving any scars.

HOw TWO GET RID DARK PATCHES?

Facial patches dark in colour "melasma" never itch or pain or cause any  sort of illness. They may remain for months together and may fade out very slowly.

But a mirror says it all and hence it is a matter of concern for many

The home remedies that help are;

A mixture of  round zedoary sandal paste and green gram flour is used for bathing instead of soap.

• prolonged exposure to sunlight is avoided as it increases the darkness of the affected skin Hence  a cap or an umbrella should be used.
• One whole chebulic myloboron is boiled well in a cup of dried This dried nut is again boiled in milk and the procedure is repeated five in row This is finally dried and ground well in water to make a paste This paste is applied to the darkened areas of skin for a minimum  period of two months to produce results.

The colour of our skin is determined by heredity, our lifestyle and climatic condition we live in Foreigners commonly take sunbath on the sea shores which tans the skin But all said and done no food or medicine can ever change the natural colour of our skin.