Categories
Dental Problems Diabetes Health Tips Teeth

Effects of Diabetes on Oral Health

Need to know About How Diabetes Affects Oral Health

As we all know, diabetes can affect major systems in our body like eyes, nerves, kidneys, and heart and leads to complications like kidney failure, eye problems, and so on. But, how many of you know the fact that diabetes on oral health and can lead to several mouth problems?

Diabetes on Oral Health

Diabetes increases your risk of oral problems like cavities, gum diseases (periodontal), mouth ulcers, and so on. It is a proven fact that gum diseases, teeth problems, and other oral problems are few among the list of diabetes complications.

Let us know discuss how diabetes affects your oral health, what are the symptoms you experience, and also about few ways to improve your oral health and keep your mouth healthy.

Overview of diabetes dental problems

Diabetes is a condition where people have high glucose levels in their body fluids and this too much sugar in the body affects your mouth and leads to infections, pain, and other oral problems. High sugar levels present in your saliva lead to the growth of harmful bacteria in your mouth. This unhealthy and harmful bacteria present in your mouth combines with the food and forms a sticky film and coats your teeth. This sticky thing is usually referred to as plaque. This plaque if not removed properly, turns into tartar and sticks above your gum line, and makes it difficult for you to clean and brush your teeth properly. This tarter makes your gums red, inflamed and also leads to hemorrhage from gums. All these above are the symptoms of a condition called gingivitis (unhealthy or inflamed gums).

If this gingivitis is not treated properly or left untreated leads to a serious condition called periodontitis. Periodontitis is a condition where gaps form between your teeth as the gums get pulled away from your teeth. These spaces or pockets get infected and in long run due to infection both your bones and tissues that hold your teeth in their particular place start to break down. If periodontitis is left untreated or in severe cases, your bones, tissues, and even gums get destroyed and your teeth may become loose and you may also get your teeth removed.

How to know if we have Diabetes on Oral Health?

Diabetes increases your risk of several oral problems and your risk of these oral problems is higher if you’re over 50 years of age. People with diabetes should consult an expert if they experience diabetes mouth symptoms like dry mouth, cavities, red, swollen gums, tenderness in gums along with hemorrhage from gums. People with periodontitis face symptoms like bad breath, gums that have pulled back from teeth, and loose teeth.

In few cases, people may not experience any symptoms until they have serious damage. Hence to eliminate these risks, people with diabetes should consult their dentist frequently and get their teeth checked.

Ways to keep your mouth healthy?

A superior way to keep your teeth and gums healthy is to control your sugar levels. Here are few steps through which you can keep your mouth healthy

  • Brush your teeth twice a day and also practice flossing and rinsing regularly
  • Use a soft toothbrush and change your brush every 3 months.
  • Clean the dentures properly if you are wearing any and also take them out at night.
  • Consult your dentist if you experience any above discussed diabetes mouth symptoms.
  • Do not neglect your symptoms or your doctor’s advice, follow their instructions carefully.
  • Most importantly quit smoking, as it raises your risk of gum diseases and other oral problems.
Categories
Dehydration Fruits Health Tips Summer tips

10 Healthy Fruits to Fight with Dehydration in Summer

Advice and solutions to defeat Dehydration

With the arrival of summer also comes holidays for kids, planning vacations, tours, picnics, and several others. With all this joy and planning also follows difficulties like high temperatures, humidity, sweating, and several others. Dehydration, heatstroke, sunburn, high temperatures, headache, and skin problems are few adverse effects of summer on our body. Dehydration is the main problem faced in summer due to raised temperatures and excess sweating. Dehydration can be dangerous and also can raise the risk of several health problems like sunstroke, kidney stones, constipation, hypertension, gastritis, and so on.

Dehydration

All regarding conventional health

Water plays a very crucial role in our several body functions, in fact, our body consists of 60% of water. Every organ, cell, and tissue in our body utilizes water. Water helps in flushing out toxins from our body, regularises body temperature, creating saliva, and so on. In summer we need more water than other seasons due to temperatures, sweating, vomiting, and diarrhea. People with dehydration face symptoms like dry mouth, thirsty feeling, headache, constipation, dark colored urine, and so on. Dehydration also leads to short-term memory and concentration problems as our brain is made up of about 73% of water. To avoid all these health complications it is important to be hydrated by taking enough fluids. Many experts advise drinking at least 6 to 8 glasses of water daily, but the recommended levels vary depending on their height, weight, age, and the amount of physical activity they do. It is very important to take care of your kids in summer to eliminate summer illnesses like dehydration, sunstroke, prickly heat problems, and so on. Take a look at our summer care tips for children article and let your children enjoy safe summer by following these tips.

List of fruits to fight dehydration

Do you know, you can hydrate your body with not just water but also with what’s present on your plate? Yes, fresh fruits are the perfect example of that. By including fruits in your summer diet you can not only stay hydrated but also can get essential nutrients, vitamins and minerals. Here are few healthy fruits that assist you in warding off the risk of dehydration.

Follow the steps to avoid dehydration

You can avoid the risk of dehydration by following few tips, like

  • Drink enough water whenever you feel thirsty
  • Carry a refillable water bottle along with you
  • Avoid caffeinated drinks instead opt for fresh juices
  • Avoid spicy foods
  • Have coconut water, is filled with all essential nutrients and can succeed in avoiding the dehydration
  • Avoid alcohol, as it increases the frequency of urination and increases your risk of loss of water
  • Quit smoking, it makes you dehydrated
  • Opt for indoor exercises and avoid intense workouts.
  • Eat veggies that have high water content like tomato, cauliflower, green peppers, spinach, and so on.
  • Avoid going out in peak hours, instead plan your schedule in the early hours or the evening
Categories
Bone Health Bone Strength Health Tips

Healthy Ways To Boost Your Bone Health

Healthy Factors to Enhance the Bone Density

Brittle bones and bone pain are the conditions that we think are common among elder people, but now a day’s these are also becoming common among middle-aged people due to low calcium and low bony mass. As we all know bones play a crucial role by supporting a variety of functions in our body, hence improving bone health is very important. Let us in short know about our bone health, foods that are beneficial for our bones and also about few tips like exercises and running tips to make our bones stronger.

Bone Health

What is Bone health?

Generally, our body builds up bones until the age of 30, as we get older our body’s bone-building balance decrease and leads to weak bones. Building strong bones in childhood or early stages helps to avoid the risk of brittle bones and several bone diseases in later stages. People with weak bones or less bony mass are more susceptible to develop a bone disease called osteoporosis where your bones keep thinning over time. There are more than 200 bones in our body and keeping them healthy is very important as they allow us to do several functions like walking, holding, and so on. They also protect different body organs like the brain, heart, liver, and others. Few people tend to have strong bones due to factors like genetics, diet, and also due to the fact how they have managed their bones at earlier ages. Others, no need to worry, luckily we can also improve our bone health by doing several things like exercises, intake of calcium-rich foods and so on.

Food to be intake for Bone health

Food and your diet work as building blocks for your bones. You can improve your bone health through your food. When we think of bones, the first thing that comes to mind is calcium. Yes, calcium is the most important mineral for the development of your bones and also for your teeth and we can also get it from several foods. As adults, we need to take 1000 mg of calcium per day and women are more at risk of osteoporosis and hence they need to have 1000-1200 mg calcium per day. Apart from calcium, there is another important thing you need and that is vitamin D, it helps our body to absorb calcium from the food we eat.

How to increase bone calcium? This would be the main question among many people. For all those people here is the list of healthy foods for your bones

  • From childhood, we are always taught about the benefits of drinking milk for strong bones.
  • Along with milk, milk products like yogurt, cheese, and others are also beneficial for our bones.
  • Green leafy veggies like broccoli, okra, cabbage, turnip greens, and collard greens are also advised for bones.
  • Orange juice is also advised for bones
  • Soya beans, nuts, cereals, and soya milk are also very beneficial for bones
  • You can also have fish and eggs for your bone health

How to make bones stronger

Along with food, one needs to follow few tips to improve their bone health like

  • Going for regular exercises like walking, running, dancing and other weight-bearing and muscle-strengthening exercises improve your bone strength
  • Quit smoking and also control your excess intake of alcohol.
  • Learn about your personal risks like hereditary, family history of osteoporosis, and so on.
  • Maintain your body weight and avoid excess weight to decrease the pressure on bones.
Categories
Eye Health Eye Problems Health Tips

5 Easy Exercises to Improve your Eye Muscles

Eye Muscles exercises to Enhance Vision Fast

The eyes are one of the most treasured organs of our body. They play important role in every activity we do. But now a day’s vision and eye problems have become very common. Several factors like excess usage of smartphones, staring at computer screens, television, tabs, and other electronic devices for longer periods all lead to eye fatigue and strain. People of all age groups including children are facing eyesight problems. Besides all these above factors you can improve your eyesight, relax from eye strain and relax your eye muscles by following few eye exercises.

Eye exercises

What is eye fatigue?

When your eyes feel itchy, tired along with having a burning sensation, then this condition is referred to as eye fatigue. Any factors which lead to eye strain can cause eye fatigue like reading, nighttime driving, staring at a computer screen or your smartphone for a long time, and so on. People when looking at computers or smartphones blink their eyes less often when compared to other times. This less blinking leads to problems like dryness, itching, and burning in the eyes. Sleep also plays a crucial role in refreshing your eyes and lack of sleep can also increase strain on your eyes and lead to eye fatigue. People with eye fatigue face symptoms like dry eyes, blurred or double vision, irritation in eyes, trouble concentrating along sensitivity to light.

How eye fatigue effect Eye Muscles

Eye fatigue is not a serious issue and does not lead to any damage to the eyes, but in severe cases, your eye fatigue can tighten your eye muscles and lead to pain and discomfort in your eyes. You can control this eye fatigue and strain by practicing few eye exercises. Practice these eye exercises to improve your vision quickly.

Exercises to relax and maintain eye muscles health

Here are 5 simple exercises which assist you in easing your eye strain along with improving your eye muscle.

  1. Blink– As discussed earlier blinking is very important. Many people forget to blink while working on a computer. Hence this exercise nourishes your eyes, strengthens eye muscles, and also eliminates dry eyes problem. All you need to do is take short breaks from your work, relax your muscle and start blinking for 20 seconds continuously.
  2. Palming– Even though it looks simple, works very effectively in controlling strain and also in relaxing. To perform this exercise, relax your muscles, cover both your eyes with your palms. Breath usually and start blinking your eyes inside the palms also for few seconds.
  3. Trace number 8– This is a simple exercise that helps in improving eye muscles. For this exercise, imagine number 8 at a distance of 10 feet away from your body. Now trace that number 8 with both your eyes one at a time and repeat it several times.
  4. Eye roll exercise– This exercise not just improves your muscle health but also improves the shape of your eyes. To perform this exercise, relax first and sit straight. Now rotate your eyes clockwise for few rounds and then rotate them anti-clockwise.
  5. Near and far focusing– This is an excellent exercise to improve your vision and also to treat focusing issues. To perform this exercise individuals must sit in a relaxed position and stretch their arms out and keep their thumb up. One should focus on tip of the thumb for 3 minutes, now switch your vision to alternate things like a window or an object. This improves your vision by strengthening your eyes.
Categories
Cardiac Arrest Chest Pain Health Tips Heart Attack

What is the Difference Between Cardiac Arrest and Heart Attack?

Want to understand the difference between Cardiac Arrest and heart attack

Though both cardiac arrest and heart attack are used interchangeably and look alike, there is a huge difference between them. People usually misunderstand symptoms of a heart attack like chest pain, headache, fatigue, tiredness, and others as cardiac arrest, hence knowing the difference between cardiac arrest vs heart attack and how do they affect us is very crucial to save a life. Below let us quickly learn what exactly are cardiac arrest and heart attack? Their symptoms and most importantly the difference between these two.

Heart Health

Overview of Cardiac Arrest and heart attack

A cardiac attack is a condition where the heart does not pump well, it stops beating, whereas a heart attack is a condition where circulation to the heart is restricted due to the blockage in the artery. Here are few facts about both the conditions along with their symptoms.

  • Cardiac arrest– This is a condition raised due to heart electric malfunctioning. In this condition, the heart stops beating suddenly due to which the circulation to the brain and other organs stops. This is an emergency condition, where death may also occur if the individual does not receive proper treatment within few minutes. Causes of cardiac attack may include heart attack, coronary heart diseases, congenital heart diseases, and so on.
  • Heart attack– This is a condition raised due to blockage in the coronary artery, due to which part of the heart does not get any circulation and begins to die. This blockage is due to the buildup of plaque inside the artery. Heart attack is said to be a cause of cardiac arrest, as it leads to abnormal heart rhythm. Risk factors of a heart attack include high cholesterol, smoking, excess alcohol consumption, physical inactivity, and so on.

Cardiac arrest vs heart attack

As discussed earlier most people use these words for a single purpose i.e. when they have pain in the chest, but there is a huge difference starting from causes, symptoms, and others.

Cardiac arrest

Heart attack

A cardiac attack is a condition where the

the heart stops beating forever due to

electric malfunctioning in the heart.

Heart attack is a condition where the

the heart does not stop beating but the

circulation to the heart gets blocked due

to a build-up of plaque in the arteries.

People with this condition do not have

any pre symptoms i.e. there are no pre

cardiac arrest symptoms. As soon as

the attack occurs individuals falls

unconscious faces breathlessness,

their face turns into blue color and if

timely treatment is not provided, they

may collapse.

Heart attack symptoms include pain

and discomfort in the chest, arm, upper

abdomen, and so on. These symptoms generally begin slowly and may persist

for days to weeks before the attack.

Individuals heart stops beating then and

there and the person may also die if

emergency assistance is not provided.

Heart beating does not stop in this

condition, whereas, the longer you

delay the treatment the greater risk and

damage awaits.

Safety steps for heart attack and cardiac arrest

Both cardiac arrest and heart attack are emergency conditions and they should be treated immediately. Cardiac arrest is reversible in few people if timely treatment is provided, one should also give CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) immediately to the affected person until he receives treatment. Even though the symptoms of heart attack start slowly, one should not neglect symptoms like chest and shoulder especially left shoulder pain along with sweating and others. Early treatment is very crucial to avoid further complications.

Categories
Health Tips Vitamin C

Amazing Benefits of Vitamin C

Need to Know About Nutrition level of vitamin C

One of the most crucial vitamins our body needs is vitamin C. It is very important for growth, development, and also to repair almost every part of our body. It improves our immune system and wards off several allergies, infections and is also very beneficial for our heart, skin and avoids hair loss. It acts as an antioxidant and protects our body from free radicals. Vitamin C also helps our body to absorb iron from the food we eat and in storing it.

Vitamin C Benefits

Fascinating facts about Vitamin C

Vitamin C is a water-soluble vitamin, our body cannot store it for a longer period, unlike other vitamins. Our body gets clear of excess vitamins through urine within 24 hours span of consumption. It improves our immunity and helps to fight against all types of seasonal illnesses like cold, cough, infections, allergies, and so on. Few people also believe that it also helps to fight against few chronic diseases like arthritis, coronary heart diseases, Alzheimer’s, and also few cancers.

If you do not get enough vitamin C, you may face symptoms like bleeding gums, bone pain, joint pains, frequently falling sick, fatigue, and so on.

Vitamin C is abundantly available and found in different fresh fruits and vegetables like papaya, carrot, bell peppers, kiwi, citrus fruits like oranges, limes, lemons, grapes, and several others. Vitamin C deficiency is very rare as we get it liberally from various things. People who do not eat any fruits or veggies and depend only on processed foods may develop vitamin D deficiency and deficiency of this vitamin leads to a condition called scurvy.

How much vitamin c daily needed?

As discussed earlier this vitamin can’t be stored in the body, hence we need to take the required vitamin through a daily diet. On average, recommended nutrient intake of vitamin C for adults is 75-90 milligrams per day. For children it can range from 15-45 mg. people who smoke need more vitamin C than others as smoking evacuates vitamin C present in different body tissues and body fluids quickly. People who smoke should add an extra 35 mg to their diet daily.

Some proven health benefits of Vitamin C

As of now, we have learned about vitamin C, its facts, and how much amount we need. Now, let us see some proven health benefits of vitamin C

  • Boosts immunity– Vitamin C improves our body’s strength and protects us from different organisms by stimulating immunity. It controls the risk of allergies, infections, common cold, flu, and so on.
  • Enhances heart health– According to some studies, vitamin C helps to avoid the risk of several heart diseases like stroke, heart attack, and so on. It also controls the level of cholesterol.
  • Improves your eye health– Vitamin C helps to improve your eye health by avoiding the risk of cataracts, uveitis, and several other muscular degenerations of the eyes.
  • Gives you healthy teeth and gums– Vitamin C by producing collagen helps to maintain and improve your teeth and gum health. It also stops the risk of dry mouth and helps to give you clear smile.
  • Beneficial for your skin– Benefits of vitamin C for skin include production of collagen, avoid the risk, and protecting your skin from age-related problems like wrinkles, dryness, and others. It protects your skin from pollution, improves your skin texture, and avoids the risk of eczema.
  • Treats sunburn problems– Most people in summer face sunburn problems. The antioxidant properties present in vitamin C helps in the synthesis of collagen and treats sunburn problems. Vitamin C whether taken orally or applied as oil to the skin improves your skin condition.
  • Beneficial for hair– Vitamin C provides enough benefits for your hair like encouraging hair growth, fighting dandruff, gives you long and strong hair, and avoid premature graying of hair. Vitamin C is full of anti-viral properties and hence protects your hair and scalp from several infections and wards of the risk of dry and itchy scalp.

Along with the above, vitamin C also provides several other benefits like regulates BP, regulates sugar levels, avoid cancer risk, treats preeclampsia, alleviates your mood, and also avoid the risk of gout and urinary tract infections. It is beneficial for all age groups irrespective of genders, vitamin C benefits for men include elevated CRP levels and treats infertility problems by improving sperm count and motility.

Categories
Adenoids Health Tips Tonsillitis Tonsils

Tonsils and Adenoids – Types of Symptoms and Causes

Need to Know about Symptoms and Causes of Tonsils and Adenoids

Both tonsils and adenoids are the two ENT conditions that are raised due to infection from different organisms. These two are treated as the first line of our body’s defense system and helps to trap viruses and bacteria from entering our body. They also produce required antibodies and protect our body from different infections. While protecting our body, sometimes these two also get infected and become enlarged. If left untreated these enlarged tonsils and adenoids lead to complications like hearing loss, sinusitis, obstructive sleep apnea, and so on. In severe cases, these tonsils and adenoids are removed using invasive procedures.

Causes of Tonsils and AdenoidsOverview

As discussed earlier both tonsils and adenoids play a crucial role in protecting our bodies. Let us in detail discuss them along with their causes

Tonsils– These are the two lymph nodes present at the back of your throat. Tonsils mainly produce leukocytes (WBCs) which assist in fighting infections caused due to viruses and bacteria. Tonsils when get infected leads to a condition called tonsillitis. Infection due to viruses or bacteria is the main cause of tonsillitis. This condition is most commonly seen among children as they are more prone to viruses and bacteria in schools and other play areas. When get infected these tonsils enlarge and interfere with swallowing and breathing. Tonsillitis can be both recurrent and chronic.

Adenoids– these are the pads of tissues present at the back of your throat. Adenoids also produce antibodies to fight infections. These mainly help to trap the organisms from entering our body through the mouth and nose. Just as tonsils, adenoids also get affected by viruses and bacteria. Adenoids are very common among children. Children with adenoids mainly face difficulty breathing through the nose and hence start breathing with a mouth.

Common symptoms of tonsils and adenoids

Though both tonsils and adenoids are lymphoid tissues, they affect our body in different ways. Here are few common adenoid and tonsillitis symptoms

Symptoms of tonsils

  • Fever and chills
  • Sore throat
  • Difficulty swallowing
  • Bad breath
  • Stiff neck
  • Headache
  • Tiredness

Tonsils and Adenoids

Symptoms of adenoids

Enlarged adenoids are associated with several signs. Here are few common adenoid symptoms

  • Facing difficulty breathing
  • Breathing loudly through the mouth
  • Runny and blocked nose
  • Fever
  • Altered speech
  • Frequent sinus infections

People with adenoids face dry mouth problems as they breathe through the mouth. Due to this people also face other symptoms like bad breath and cracked lips. Most people with adenoids also face recurrent ear infections, this is due to nasal blockage and excess collection of ear wax.

How to identify Tonsils and Adenoids?

Learning the difference between tonsils and adenoids is very crucial. One can easily see through enlarged tonsils but cannot see through adenoids as they are located at the back of your throat and need small instruments to see. Consult a specialist if you experience any of the above symptoms like blocked nose, sore throat, fever, and so on. Your doctor can easily identify your condition and differentiate between tonsils and adenoids thorough physical examination and may also ask few questions regarding your symptoms.

Categories
Bronchiolitis Health Tips Pneumonia

How to Identify Bronchitis or Pneumonia?

Need to know the difference between Bronchitis & pneumonia

Bronchitis or pneumonia is two different respiratory conditions that usually begin as a common cold. At first, you may have a cold and when it worsens may lead to symptoms like cough, fever, fatigue, and so on. Severe cases of cold or infections may lead to the above two respiratory conditions i.e. bronchitis and pneumonia. If not treated properly these two can lead to some severe complications and can be life-threatening also. Let us learn about these two conditions and their differences.

Causes of Bronchitis or Pneumonia

Overview of Bronchitis and pneumonia

Both bronchitis and pneumonia as discussed earlier are two different respiratory conditions that share some common symptoms. Let us have a quick look at these two

  • Bronchitis– inflammation of bronchial tubes due to infection is termed bronchitis. It mainly develops from the cold i.e. when the cold virus reaches your airways. Due to this infection, your airways get inflamed and this inflammation narrows the airways and leads to excess formation mucus. Bronchitis can be both acute and chronic. Acute bronchitis is a condition that can result from infection due to a virus or bacteria. Even though this gets cleared up within weeks, it is very contagious. Chronic bronchitis is a condition that lasts longer and is not contagious. People who smoke are more susceptible to it. People with bronchitis have symptoms like breathlessness, wheezing, and most importantly persistent cough along with the mucus.
  • Pneumonia– infection of the lungs due to virus or bacteria is termed as pneumonia. Due to infection, the little air sacs called alveoli in your lungs to get inflamed and filled with pus. In few cases, severe bronchitis can lead to pneumonia. It is a serious life-threatening disorder and needs immediate treatment. Common pneumonia symptoms include productive cough, high fever, chills, breathlessness, confusion, dizziness, and so on. Pneumonia can be caused due to organisms like viruses, bacteria, and fungus. Several factors like low immunity, asthma, and other chronic conditions can worsen your condition and can trigger pneumonia.

Bronchitis or pneumonia problems

Difference between Bronchitis and Pneumonia?

Even though both these respiratory conditions share few common symptoms and affect an individual’s ability to breathe, but they have a huge difference. Bronchitis symptoms include dry cough which can produce mucus, sore throat, and body ache, whereas people with pneumonia face symptoms like productive cough along with high fever, chills, fatigue, sweating, fast heartbeat, and rapid breathing, gray or blue colored nails, and lips and confusion. Generally bronchitis is not life-threatening, whereas pneumonia is a life-threatening disorder which needs immediate treatment.

How to identify?

Identifying the difference between bronchitis and pneumonia is very crucial for early and accurate treatment. Though both bronchitis and pneumonia look similar, people with pneumonia face symptoms like high fever, chills, pain in the chest while coughing or while breathing, whereas in bronchitis people may not have fever and chills as pneumonia. Consult your doctor immediately if you experience symptoms of both bronchitis and pneumonia. By examining your symptoms your doctor suggests few tests through which he can easily differentiate between these two and offer you accurate and quick treatment. Do not neglect your symptoms as they can sometimes be life-threatening.

Categories
Dandruff Health Tips Psoriasis Scalp Psoriasis

Difference Between Dandruff and Scalp Psoriasis

Need to know the Differentiation among Dandruff and Scalp Psoriasis

Many people nowadays are experiencing itchy, dry, and flaky scalp, this is mainly due to different scalp problems. Scalp problems can be uncomfortable and embarrassing. These are the leading causes of hair loss and these problems also have the potential to affect the overall health of the hair. Dandruff and scalp psoriasis look alike both produce layers of skin in and below the hair. People with these face symptoms like rashes, white flakes, tenderness.

Causes of Scalp Psoriasis

Scalp problems

Having an itchy and flaky scalp is the worst nightmare for many people. It not only affects your hair but also your looks. Several scalp problems are mainly caused due to factors like hereditary, malnutrition, dry scalp, usage of chemical hair products, hair styling tools, weather changes, immune system disorders, hormonal imbalance, infections, and so on.

People with scalp problems face symptoms like rashes, hair loss/ thinning, white flakes, itching, tenderness, and others. These symptoms differ for each individual and people along with the above symptoms also face several other symptoms depending on the type of scalp disorder.

There are several types of scalp problems like seborrheic dermatitis, scalp psoriasis, ringworm, folliculitis, alopecia areata, and so on. Among these, the most commonly seen scalp problems are seborrheic dermatitis and psoriasis.

Seborrheic dermatitis is also called dandruff and in this scalp condition, people experience flakes of dry skin on different areas of the body like the scalp, shoulders, and so on. Factors like skin infections, allergies, lack of hygiene, Yeast infection due to Malassezia, unhealthy diet, eczema, hormonal imbalance, and so on can trigger dandruff problems in many people.

Scalp psoriasis is an autoimmune disorder wherein people experience a rash or itchy and bumpy red plaques on the scalp and also on other parts of the body like the neck, elbows, knees, and back. Psoriasis can be triggered due to factors like genetics, lifestyle, health disorders, and even trauma. People with scalp psoriasis also face hair loss and itchy scalp psoriasis is very annoying and lead to stress and depression.

Dandruff and Scalp Psoriasis

Even though both dandruff and scalp psoriasis look alike and have some similar symptoms, but there is a huge difference between them. Dandruff is not contagious and does not lead to any complications, whereas psoriasis is a serious issue and if left untreated may lead to several complications. In most cases, dandruff just comes and goes, but psoriasis is a chronic condition. In dandruff, dead skin cells are shred rapidly, whereas in psoriasis the new cells are continuously formed under the skin and the old cells get crashed and form red and whitish flakes. In severe cases of dandruff or if the skin becomes dry then the dry white flakes fall from your scalp to the shoulders, whereas in psoriasis if the skin becomes drier, the whitish red flakes crack and lead to hemorrhage.

How to identify?

Differentiating between dandruff and psoriasis is very important for improving your scalp health. By examining your scalp you can easily identify your problem. Even though they both look similar, there are few differences between them. Under psoriasis, the scales are more dry and thick when compared to dandruff flakes. Psoriasis usually tends to spread to other areas of the body and people with psoriasis also face thick and pitted fingernails.

Categories
Health Tips Seborrheic Dermatitis

What is Seborrheic Dermatitis?

Need to know about Seborrheic Dermatitis

Seborrheic dermatitis is a chronic skin disorder wherein people experience red, inflamed, scaly, and flaky patches on the skin. This mainly affects skin where there are a lot of oil-producing i.e. sebaceous glands like the scalp, mid-face, ears, back, chest, eyelashes, and eyebrows. This condition is also referred to as dandruff and it looks similar to other skin disorders like Eczema, Psoriasis, and skin allergies.

Causes of Seborrheic dermatitis

Overview of Seborrheic dermatitis

Seborrheic dermatitis is a chronic, inflammatory and recurrent condition that affects people of all age groups. Starting from infants to elders, all age groups can get affected. In children, it mainly affects the scalp (cradle cap) and diaper area.

It mostly affects people with oily skin and is more common in men than in women. The exact reason for this condition is not known, but it is believed that several factors like excess oil secretion, yeast problems due to Malassezia, hormonal imbalance, low immunity, weather changes, and genetics play key roles. Risk factors of seborrheic dermatitis include acne, psoriasis, obesity, depression, eating disorders, smoking, alcoholism, stress, and Parkinson’s disease.

Seborrheic dermatitis is not a contagious issue. In few cases, seborrheic dermatitis clears up on its own, whereas in most cases treatment is required as it flares up again. One can control it with few home remedies and proper skincare like washing your skin with mild soaps, using anti-fungal and so on.

Symptoms of Seborrheic dermatitis

The symptoms and severity of seborrheic dermatitis differ in children and elders. Few common seborrheic dermatitis symptoms include

  • Presence of dandruff on different areas like scalp, hair, eyebrows, and so on.
  • Thick red and inflamed patchy scales on scalp and body
  • Itching sensation
  • Hair loss is seen in the affected area
  • The affected area or patches looks greasy and oily.

Symptoms of Seborrheic dermatitis in infants include the formation of yellow, thick, and oily crust along the hairline and scalp. These patches are usually not itchy. In infants, the symptoms of seborrheic dermatitis resolve by themselves within few days and do not require any treatment, whereas in elders the symptoms may last for years and may need treatment.

Seborrheic scalp eczema

Seborrheic scalp eczema is a type of eczema that particularly affects the scalp. People with this condition experience red, itchy, flaky, scaly, and oily patches on their scalp. Factors like genetics, low immunity, stress, weather changes, a fungus called Malassezia, and several others lead to scalp eczema. People with diseases like AIDS / HIV are more prone to this type of disorder as they have low immunity. In severe cases, scalp eczema may also spread to other areas of the body like eyebrows, elbows, back, and so on. Even though both scalp eczema and dandruff look alike, there is a huge difference between them. People with scalp eczema face greasy and yellowish flakes along with inflammation, whereas dandruff is non-inflammatory in nature. Hair loss is the most common symptom seen in people with seborrheic scalp eczema.