Your skin is talking, are you listening? Skin is more than just a covering, it is a living, breathing organ and it’s connected to every system in the body. Serious medical conditions can produce early warning symptoms which manifest in the skin, prompting a doctor’s visit and an early diagnosis and treatment plan which can be life saving. Here are several skin symptoms that should not be ignored.
Skin Symptom: Cuts That Won’t Heal
Diabetes is a well-known medical condition that hinders or prevents cuts or other wounds from healing. Too much stress also prevents cuts from healing. Stress triggers an increase in the body’s cortisol (hormone pumped out during stressful times) production, the increased amounts of cortisol interferes with the immune system ability to function properly and delays the healing of cuts to the skin. Stress slows skin healing and also contributes to a myriad of other medical issues including heart disease.
Cushing’s syndrome and Raynaud’s syndrome can also prevent wound healing. If a cut takes longer than normal (two weeks) to scab over or heal, see a doctor.
Skin Symptom: Skin That Reddens Easily
The ‘˜silent killer’, high blood pressure, sometimes gives this one skin symptom of it’s presence before it’s detected (or causing a heart attack or stroke). People with high blood pressure often blush easily when anxious, angry, excited or stressed. During these type of emotional times, the body pumps out adrenaline, which can cause the blood pressure to rise and skin to redden.
Rosacea, fever, menopause and some prescription drugs can cause redden skin. See a doctor for a blood pressure check if your skin reddens easily.
Skin Symptom: Pale Skin
Explainable pale skin can be a result of decreased blood supply to the skin, in such cases like fainting, hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), infection or exposure to cold. Inexplicable pale skin can be a symptom of anemia. Anemia is a decreased number of red blood cells and requires treatment (usually an iron supplement) to replenish the iron supply in the blood and counter-act anemia.
A sudden development of pale skin can indicate a much serious medical condition, such as internal bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract, which requires immediate emergency treatment. If pale skin occurs suddenly and is accompanied by weakness, breathlessness, fatigue, pale lip. tongue, inside of mouth and palms, see a doctor immediately.
Skin Symptoms: Bluish Lips Or Nail Beds
Bluish lips or nails beds indicate the skin is not getting enough oxygenated blood. Oxygen deprived blood is bluish-red and a lack of oxygen in the blood can be a symptom of chronic heart or lung disease. Bluish skin can also be caused from asthma, pneumonia, cold air or water or exposure to high altitudes.
Inexplicable bluish skin discolorations, accompanied with breathlessness, chest pain, chronic cough, weight loss and/or loss of appetite can indicate a serious health problem and you should see a doctor.
Skin Symptom: Yellow Skin
Yellow skin is a symptom of liver disease. Liver diseases, such as hepatitis or cirrhosis, cause waste products or bile to build up in the liver, which in turn causes the skin to yellow. Wilson’s disease and Gilbert’s syndrome can also cause yellow skin.
When yellow skin is accompanied by abdominal pain, loss of appetite, vomiting, leg swelling, itching or fatigue, see a doctor.
Skin Symptom: Dry Skin
When skin lotion does little to alleviate all over dry skin or dry skin patches, hypothyroidism is often the culprit. Hypothyroidism occurs when a sluggish thyroid gland is not producing enough thyroid hormone. The under activity tends to create thicker, drier skin which flakes and itches. Hypothyroidism usually manifests with dry skin, fatigue, weight gain , muscle cramps, sensitivity to cold, thinning hair and fluid retention. Thyroid hormone medication usually works to resolve the health issue.
