Weathering Winter: It’s Beyond Skin Deep

BLOOMINGTON, MINN. — As whimsical as “walking in a winter wonderland” would be without any skin care worries, it’s not always a reality. Without the proper care, winter can be much more “wicked” on one’s skin than it is “wonderful.” Some of the bone-chilling effects include skin that is dry, chapped and irritated due to harsh winds and temperatures. Joseph Sweere, DC, a professor at Northwestern Health Sciences University, says proper winter skin care involves more than applying the right.

“Our skin is a mirror of our general health — reflecting our proper or improper nourishment and hydration,” says Dr. Sweere. “When taking a holistic approach to skin care, the key is prevention, whole-person wellness and teaching healthy living practices.”

During winter months, low-humidity, harsh temperatures and winds evaporate skin’s moisture and strip it of these lipids.

“It’s important to treat skin as a component of one’s whole being and not as a symptom,” says Dr. Sweere. “Treating the symptoms like dry, chapped skin only relieves the problem temporarily and doesn’t address the root of the issue.”

Dr. Sweere offers the following tips to help maintain skin’s optimal health:

• Include essential fatty oils in your diet. Dr. Sweere stresses the importance of consuming omega-3 fatty oils to improve skin’s tone and texture.
• Avoid heavy use of animal fats. According to Dr. Sweere, animal fats (omega-6 fatty acids), included in dairy, meats, meat products, eggs and cheese, compete with omega-3 fatty acids for the absorption of nutrients beneficial to health.
• Avoid diuretics and drink lots of water. Diuretics are any chemicals that stimulate the loss of fluids in the body. Dr. Sweere says it is important to drink one-half your body weight in ounces of water each day because water cleanses and detoxifies the body’s cells internally and externally.
• Intake more potassium than sodium. According to Dr. Sweere, most people consume 10 times more sodium than potassium but the ideal ratio is twice the amount of potassium to sodium. He says sodium leads to the swelling of tissue and fluid retention that prevent the skin’s oil glands from secreting.
• Avoid trans-fats. Trans-fats, such as partially hydrogenated soybean oil, are commonly used in the processing of foods to extend their shelf life. Dr. Sweere advises against these because they are toxic to every tissue in one’s body and strip the skin of its needed oils.

For additional resources on weathering the winter, visit http://www.nwhealth.edu/nns. The Web site focuses on natural approaches to health and wellness, and is hosted by Northwestern Health Sciences University.

Editor's note: The Natural News Service is a public information program provided by Northwestern Health Sciences University. If you choose to use this release, please attribute the information accordingly. The University offers a wide array of choices in natural health care education including chiropractic, Oriental medicine, acupuncture, massage therapy, and integrative health and wellness. The University has more than 900 students on a 25-acre campus in Bloomington, Minn.