Eyesight Is Precious
Your eyesight is precious.
Here are five easy tips to prevent problems with your sight.
1. Get an eye test
Even though you might not need glasses an eye test is a crucial health check for your eyes. The early symptoms of sight loss often go unnoticed and are usually not painful so you may not realise you have a problem. Early detection is vital in the fight against sight loss – so visit your local optician to get an eye test.
2. Don’t smoke
Smokers are more than twice as likely to experience sight loss in later life as non-smokers.
3. Eat healthy
Eating fresh fruits and dark green, leafy vegetables may delay or reduce the severity of eye conditions like age-related macular degeneration.
4. Keep fit
Take regular exercise and monitor your blood pressure and cholesterol levels.
5. Wear 100 percent UV sunglasses
UV radiation and sunlight can damage your eyesight all year round.
Exercise And Eyesight
Lack of exercise contributes significantly to several eye conditions affecting the elderly,with a slightly lower contribution for middle age and younger patients. Much of the evidence is very strong, but some evidence is weak and will take many years to confirm, but logically we should all adopt healthy lifestyles in the meantime.
There is some evidence that suggests that regular exercise can help preserve vision,particularly when combined with a healthy diet and the avoidance of smoking. Exercise may reduce the risk of sight loss from narrowing or hardening of the arteries, high blood pressure and diabetes. Exercise may also reduce the risk of sight loss and other complications from these conditions, once they develop.
Narrowing and hardening of the arteries (arterio-sclerosis) occurs to some extent in all of us during life and is influenced by the balance of different fats e.g. cholesterol in our bloodstream. Exercise has a positive influence on the balance of these fats, for example, it reduces cholesterol and raises the level of other fats such as HDL (High Density Lipoprotein) which protect our arteries from narrowing and hardening. Narrowing of the arteries can block off the blood supply to those areas we need for vision, which include the brain (visual cortex) and the blood supply to the eyes. The blockage of these blood vessels can occur gradually or suddenly (eg a stroke). Exercise reduces the risk of this blockage and should therefore preserve sight.
High blood pressure (hypertension) is increasingly common with age and is linked with hardening of the arteries. High blood pressure increases the strain on blood vessels resulting in further narrowing and hardening of the arteries thus increasing the risks described above. Very high blood pressure dramatically increases the risk of having a stroke in the brain and blockage of the retinal arteries. Severe hypertension can cause leakage and bleeding from the blood vessels in the eye and rarely swelling of the optic nerves with loss of vision. Regular exercise has been shown to reduce the risk of developing high blood pressure and will also help keep the blood pressure down once hypertension has developed.
Diabetes (raised blood sugar) is increasingly common in our society and lack of exercise,obesity and dietary factors are amongst possible explanations. Diabetes occurs when the natural insulin hormone control of blood sugar levels becomes defective. Over years this leads to narrowing and blockage of the smaller blood vessels in the body. The resulting poor blood supply commonly affects the retina (film) in the eyes of patients with diabetes where the blood vessels can leak and bleed and produce scarring which can cause loss of vision. In fact, diabetic retinopathy is the commonest cause of legal blindness in the UK in the under 65 age group. Fortunately the changes can be detected early by regularly attending the local diabetic retinal screening programme and having laser treatment if required. However, prevention is of course better than cure. Lack of exercise and obesity can lead to Type 2 diabetes and regular exercise can improve diabetes control and therefore should reduce the chance of developing sight threatening diabetic retinopathy.
Exercise and obesity….Obesity is strongly associated with diabetes and high blood pressure in later life and as such regular exercise should help prevent and reduce obesity and the potential associated sight-threatening complications.
How Do I Treat Dry Skin?
Moisturizers work well to treat dry skin. Choose a moisturizer that is hypoallergenic (it should say so on the label). The best moisturizers are also the most “gooey.” Ointments (or oils) are best, followed by creams, and then lotions. Petroleum jelly (one brand name: Vaseline) is an excellent skin lubricant, but it can be messy to use.
Put a moisturizer on your skin 3 or 4 times during the day. Put moisturizer on right after you wash or bathe. This will hold in the moisture from the water. If you have very dry hands, put petroleum jelly on them before you go to bed at night and sleep with your hands in cotton-lined gloves.
Changing your bathing habits can also help. If you bathe too often, it may dry out your skin. Try to take short, lukewarm baths or showers. Oatmeal baths (one brand name: Aveeno) may be soothing to dry skin. After a bath or shower, pat your skin dry and put a moisturizer on your skin right away. Use a mild soap every day to clean your genital area and under your arms. Only clean other parts of your body 2 or 3 times a week with soap.
Some people use bath oils to help make their skin less dry. However, these oils can be dangerous because they make your tub slippery. To avoid slipping and falling, put the oil on your skin after you get out of the bathtub. Plain baby oil works well.
Causes Of Itchy Skin
Dry skin
Itchy skin that isn’t accompanied by other obvious skin changes, such as a rash, is most often caused by dry skin (xerosis). Dry skin usually results from environmental factors that you can wholly or partially control. These include hot or cold weather with low humidity levels, long-term use of air conditioning or central heating, and washing or bathing too much.
Other possible causes
Other conditions cause itchy skin as well. Skin disorders, internal diseases, allergies and drug reactions top the list.
Skin conditions and rashes. Many skin conditions cause itchy skin, including psoriasis, inflammation of the skin (dermatitis), scabies, lice, chickenpox, hives and dermatographism. In these cases, the itching usually affects specific areas and is accompanied by other signs, such as red, irritated skin or bumps and blisters.
Internal diseases. These include liver disease, malabsorption of wheat (celiac disease), kidney failure, iron deficiency anemia, thyroid problems and cancers, including leukemia and lymphoma. In these cases, the itching usually affects the whole body, rather than one specific area. The skin may look otherwise normal except for the scratched areas.
Irritation and allergic reactions. Wool, chemicals, soaps and other substances can irritate the skin and cause itching. Sometimes the substance causes an allergic reaction, such as in the case of poison ivy or cosmetics. Food allergies also may cause itchy skin reactions.
Drugs. Reactions to drugs, such as antibiotics, antifungal drugs or narcotic pain medications, can cause widespread rashes and itching.
Pregnancy. Some women experience itchy skin during pregnancy, especially on the abdomen, thighs, breasts and arms. Also, itchy skin conditions, such as dermatitis, can worsen during pregnancy.
Is It Common To Get Itchy Bumps On Your Abdomen During Pregnant ?
Up to 1 percent of pregnant women develop a condition characterized by itchy, red bumps and larger patches of a hive-like rash on their bellies. This is called pruritic urticarial papules and plaques of pregnancy (PUPPP) or polymorphic eruption of pregnancy.
PUPPP usually begins in the third trimester and is more common among women carrying twins and those having their first baby. The eruptions usually show up first on the abdomen around or in stretch marks (if you have any) and may spread to your thighs, buttocks, and arms. PUPPP is harmless for you and your baby, but it can itch like crazy!
Your doctor or midwife will want to see you for a diagnosis and will probably prescribe a topical ointment to give you some relief. She may also recommend an antihistamine. In severe cases, you may need a course of oral steroids.
PUPPP usually disappears within a few days after delivery, although it sometimes persists for several weeks. (In rare cases, it may even begin after you give birth.) Fortunately, it seldom appears again in subsequent pregnancies.
Even more rare than PUPPP is a skin condition called prurigo of pregnancy (or papular eruptions of pregnancy), which is characterized by many tiny bumps that may look like bug bites. These eruptions can occur anywhere on your body, but you’re most likely to get them on your hands, feet, arms, and legs.
Although the eruptions can be itchy and annoying, prurigo of pregnancy appears to pose no risk to your baby. This condition generally starts around the beginning of the third trimester and may last for up to three months after you give birth.
In very rare cases, a pregnant woman will develop very itchy eruptions that start out like hives and then turn into large blistering lesions. This rash is called pemphigoid gestationis (or herpes gestationis, although it has nothing to do with herpes virus). The eruptions often start on the abdomen and spread to the arms and legs.
This condition is considered more serious than PUPPP because it may be associated with an increased risk for preterm delivery and fetal growth problems. It usually begins in the second or third trimester, but it can start anytime — even in the first week or two after you have your baby.
Pemphigoid gestationis can come and go throughout pregnancy, and it often flares up after delivery as well. It usually happens again in subsequent pregnancies and tends to be more severe.
Let your caregiver know if you develop any kind of rash during pregnancy. Whether or not the rash is related to your pregnancy, it’s a good idea to have your caregiver evaluate it and recommend appropriate treatment or refer you to a dermatologist.
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