Skin, Hair and Nail Problems ANSWERED

Like anything in life, if you have a problem you simply work to find a solution. Here are 5 common skin, hair and nail problems that you may have asked yourself before and the answer to those issues.

1. You have been noticing more hair “fly-aways” and wonder where they came from.

Do you commonly pull your hair back into a tight ponytail? Over time doing this will put strain on the finer hair especially around the front of your hairline and directly where the elastic hairband was placed.  To help prevent the breakage, do not wrap your hairband tightly and make sure you remove the band properly. Instead of pulling the band off your hair, gently unwind it to prevent any unneeded pulling on the hair.

2. You are constantly breaking a nail and wonder how the person next to you can manage to keep his or hers looking nice.

Nails get brittle with age, but there can be an underlying condition that is affecting the quality of your nails. This can range from something common like being exposed to water for too long, continued nail polish wear or more severe issues like malnutrition. Making sure your diet has a healthy dose of vitamin including biotin will aid in keeping your nails strong.

3. You are embarrassed by the white specs showing up on the shoulders of your shirt and want it to stop.

Dandruff is a chronic skin condition caused by the buildup of yeast around the base of your hair follicles. While dandruff cannot be cured, it can be controlled.  Utilizing a shampoo containing zinc pyrithione or selenium sulfide can help slow the rate at which the skin cells slough off. When used daily, it can eliminate a majority of the white flakes.

4. The gray hairs are starting to show up and you may think “I’m too young for gray hair, why me?”

Every strand of hair is surrounded by a tube of tissue known as a follicle. Each follicle contains a certain amount of pigment cells known as melanin – which gives our hair its color. As we age, the pigment cells in our hair follicles gradually die. When a strand of hair no longer contains the melanin, it becomes more of a transparent color – gray, silver or white. How early we get gray hair is determined by our genes. Most people will start to have gray hairs around the same age that our parents or grandparents did.

5. You don’t get acne often, but when you do it manages to come back in the exact same spot.

According to Dr. Giacomo Maggiolino, board-certified dermatologist with Forefront Dermatology, “there are two common reasons that you could be getting acne in the same spot.  Underground pimples that swell up and never come to a head, also known as cystic acne, are notorious for reoccurring in the same spot. Another common reason is if you ever squeezed a pimple until it burst, it is possible that the entire blockage was never removed – causing it to become inflamed again.”

If you are struggling with skin, hair or nail issues and don’t know where to turn, the experts at Forefront Dermatology are ready to help.  To find the Forefront dermatologist nearest you, visit the locations page today.