Tag Archives: health

Why Do My Lips Dry Out At Night?

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Lips dry out at night because all the moisture evaporates off your delicate lip skin. Drinking water doesn’t help. It’s a like a dolphin drying out when he’s out of water — giving him water to drink won’t help. Applying a barrier to prevent water from evaporating will help.

  • Use petroleum jelly (Vaseline, Aquaphor) or any lip balm that you like. Keep it at your bedside. Apply whenever you wake up.
  • Use a room humidifier and avoid antihistamine sleeping medications such as diphenhydramine.
  • Sleep with your mouth closed (not so easy, though).

Photo: Leo Reynolds, Flickr CC

Why Does My Face Turn Red When I Drink Alcohol?

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Many people notice that after drinking alcohol their face turns red. Often acne or rosacea looks much worse. Sometimes people become sweaty and flushed. This is because your liver is eliminating the alcohol in your body and creates acetaldehyde, a toxic by-product. Acetaldehyde causes facial redness, flushing, sweating, and nausea. Asian people are more susceptible. In this video I explain how this happens, why it happens to people of Asian descent more often, and how you can avoid having a red face.

Two Things You Must Do To Prevent Razor Bumps

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Razor bumps are painful red bumps that develop from ingrown hairs. Shaving against the grain or using a razor with many blades can cause them. In this video I’ll show you what causes razor bumps, also called pseudofolliculitis barbae (in case your date asks and you’re trying to impress her). I’ll also give you two tips to prevent them.

3 Ways To Keep Warts From Spreading on Your Hands

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Witches Party! Postcard art collection

Warts aren’t just for witches. People of all ages and races get warts, those ugly, sometimes painful skin growths, most commonly found on hands, feet, and genitals. That’s because warts are caused by a virus, the human papillomavirus (HPV), that’s highly contagious and easily transmitted. You can get a wart by touching someone else’s warts, by touching contaminated surfaces such as soiled towels, or by picking at a wart, causing it to spread to other areas.

Here are three ways to keep warts from spreading on your hands:

1. Stop chewing your nails. Nail biting is the fastest way to spread warts. Nail biting causes tiny tears in the skin on your fingertips and on the nail beds which pokes a whole huge in your front line defense against HPV. The virus finds these tiny openings, takes root, and grows.

2. Stay moisturized: By keeping your skin moisturized, you create a powerful barrier against viruses. Remember that moisturized skin is healthy skin. When skin is dry and cracked, it’s vulnerable, making it easy for HPV to enter the skin and infect you.

3. Wash your hands regularly: Hand-washing is cheap, easy, and effective in the battle against spreading warts. Make sure to wash your hands with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds and to dry them throughly with a clean towel, paper towel, or air dryer.

Photo credit, FCC, koiart71.

Why You Might Be Missing Melanoma Skin Cancer

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Melanoma is a deadly form of skin cancer. Catching it early is critical. The best way to find melanoma is to check your moles using the ABCDs. However, nodular melanomas can be trickier to find. A recent study from the Archives of Dermatology suggest that we might be missing these nodular melanomas which might be the reason why the death rate for melanoma has not improved in 20 years. How can we find nodular melanomas? Add “E” to your ABCDs.

  • Is the mole Asymmetric?
  • Does it have irregular Borders?
  • Does it have more than one Color?
  • Is the Diameter larger than 6 mm?
  • Is it Evolving (changing) or Elevated?
If it has any of the above and you have any concerns, then make an appointment to see a doctor. If a mole has 2 or more of the above, then it is by definition atypical and it must be checked by a physician.

In this video I’ll explain how examining your moles for the ABCDEs is the best way to catch melanomas as early as possible and to minimize the chances that it has spread.