> Health and Disease > Skin and Hair

Your biggest fear is about to happen!

It’s time to put on your shorts and show your legs. This doesn’t have to be a traumatic experience. Instead of worrying about skin disorders, varicose veins or excess hair, why not incorporate natural leg treatments in your daily routine? You’ll kick up your heels in celebration.

Skin conditions like psoriasis (an over-development of cells leading to very red skin patches with silver-coloured scales) and eczema (red, thickened, itchy skin irritations) are associated with allergies and asthma. A common area of inflammation for both disorders is behind the knees.

Stress makes the conditions worse, so practising daily stress reduction such as deep breathing and exercise is very helpful.

Applying capsicum cream made from cayenne pepper will reduce the scaling, redness and itching and takes about six weeks to work effectively. You can also use mashed avocado with vitamins A and E for skin healing.

Omega-3 oils such as evening primrose oil or flax seed oil (one capsule taken three times daily) contain large amounts of gamma-linoleic acid, which is needed for healthy skin but is not produced by your body. It must be obtained through your diet.

Calendula and aloe ointments are anti-inflammatory. Use aloe directly from the plant leaf. You need 70 percent of the plant’s active ingredient for the aloe to be effective. Just break open the leaf and rub the gel into your skin.

Alternatively, drinking a tea made from burdock root, nettle, red clover, yarrow, orange blossom or black currant provides a robust curative. Steep one teaspoon of the chosen herb in one cup of boiling water and drink three times a day.

For immediate itch relief, make a paste of oatmeal (four teaspoons) and crushed dried mint leaves (one teaspoon). Add hot water to get the right consistency and apply the paste to the area once it has cooled. Cover it with plastic wrap for five minutes then unwrap carefully and rinse with cool water. Try the poultice on a test area first before using it on large inflamed areas.

Avoid harsh soaps and use 100 percent cotton bed linen and sleepwear. It’s best to wear natural fibres like cotton or hemp.

Bumps Be Gone!

Have you ever experienced a case of the hives? Many people get hives from sunlight, food, medication, stress or infections. Luckily, hives only last a short time, but while you have them it’s horrendous. Red, ugly, itchy welts with whitish centres all over your legs can drive you crazy. Witch hazel provides enormous relief. (It’s equivalent to one per cent hydrocortisone.) However, the type purchased in drugstores is distilled and no longer possesses tannins. Instead, soak a compress in a solution containing 30 grams of witch hazel bark to a half-litre of water for 10 minutes. Apply it for 30 minutes.

Many skin conditions react negatively to light. Eating or using products that contain carrots, mangoes, celery, citrus oils or juice will intensify the reaction to the ultra-violet radiation from the sun. Allergies to dye and water-repellent clothing will only make this condition worse and permanent press clothing contains irritating formaldehyde resins.

Vein, Vein Go Away

Does your job or lifestyle include a lot of walking or standing? Usually spider and the more serious varicose veins follow. They are caused by a structural malfunction in the valve of the vein that controls blood flow.

When the valve is not working right, the vein becomes swollen and visible. Unfortunately, many people opt for such medical treatment as injecting saline solution into the vein or needlessly have the veins surgically removed when natural methods of treatment are possible. Horse chestnut taken orally increases tone in the capillaries and minimizes valve leakage and swelling.

Daily exercise and vitamin C supplements should be part of your routine since they will assist in increased leg circulation. Using support hose also does the trick. They increase the blood flow to deeper veins in your legs and back to your heart. Make sure to elevate your legs above your hips often. A reclining chair helps.

Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow

Whether you’re a male body builder or woman wearing a summer dress, no one wants hairy legs. Wet shaving is the easiest and least painful method of hair removal. To avoid nicks on your shins and knees or ingrown hairs it’s often better to shave more frequently and less closely. One of the best times to shave is while taking a warm shower of less than five minutes. Too much water exposure will cause skin wrinkling and an uneven shaving surface. Use a body scrub or shaving lotion and a sharp blade. Moisturize after shaving with an alcohol and fragrance-free lotion.

A common method of hair removal is the ancient practice of waxing. Besides hot or cold waxing, hot sugar or honey can also be applied to the skin. By choosing honey as your adhesive ingredient, you’re moisturizing your legs at the same time! It’s a humectant that has the ability to draw moisture from the air into your body. Apply the wax or honey to the area and quickly remove by pulling away the root of the hair with a cloth–taking the unwanted hair with it. Hair removal will last for three weeks to two months. A down side to this method is that you have to grow your hair to at least one-sixteenth of an inch in length before you can treat the area.

Celebrate the new season–show off your legs!

Cindy Mortimer is a kinesiologist living a holistic, vegetarian life in Toronto, ON.

Source: alive #223, May 2001