Skin Conditions

Acne vulgaris, or more common acne, is a skin disorder that starts when oil and dead skin cells clog up your pores. Some people call it blackheads, whiteheads, pimples, or zits. When you have just a few red spots, or pimples, you have a mild form of acne. Severe acne can mean hundreds of pimples that can cover the face, neck, chest, and back. Or it can be bigger, solid, red lumps that are painful (cysts).
Acne vulgaris is very common among teens. It usually gets better after the teen years. Some women who never had acne growing up will have it as an adult, often right before their menstrual periods.
How you feel about your acne may not be related to how bad it is. Some people who have severe acne are not bothered by it. Others are embarrassed or upset even though they have only a few pimples.
Acne usually runs in families. If one of your parents had severe acne, you are more likely to have it.
Symptoms of acne include whiteheads, blackheads, and pimples. These can occur on the face, neck, shoulders, back, or chest. Pimples that are large and deep are called cystic lesions. These can be painful if they get infected. They also can scar the skin.

Eczema is a chronic skin condition caused by inflammation of the skin and it is one of the most diagnosed skin condition in the world. In Canada it is estimated that 10-20 % have eczema at one point in their lives. The total cost of treating eczema in Canada was estimated to be 1.4 billion Canadian dollars annually.
Typically, eczema causes skin to become itchy, red, and dry, even cracked and leathery. Eczema can appear on any part of the body.
Eczema is a chronic problem for many people. It is most common in infants, many of whom outgrow it before adulthood.
Atopic dermatitis is the most common of the many types of eczema.
People with eczema have a higher risk of developing allergic conditions like asthma or hay fever.
The disease is believed to be caused by a combination of environmental, genetic and immune system factors. The exact cause is unknown.
The following factors that may trigger eczema include:
✓ Stress (stressful events in your life) ; feeling angry, anxious or worried
✓ Contact with irritating substances such as woolen and synthetic fabrics and soap
✓ Heat and sweat
✓ Cold, dry climates
✓ Dry skin (in general)

Hives, also known as urticaria, a less known word for it, are an outbreak of swollen, pale red bumps, patches, or welts on the skin that appear suddenly – either as a result of allergies, or for other reasons.
Hives usually cause itching, sometimes intense, but may also burn or sting. They can appear anywhere on the body, including the face, lips, tongue, throat, or ears. Hives vary in size (from a toonie size to a lunch plate), and may join together to form larger areas known as plaques. They can last for hours, or up to several days before fading.
Angioedema is similar to hives, but the swelling occurs beneath the skin instead of on the surface. Angioedema is characterized by deep swelling around the eyes and lips and sometimes of the genitals, hands, and feet. It generally lasts longer than hives, but the swelling usually goes away in less than 24 hours.
Occasionally, severe, prolonged tissue swelling can be really damaging. In rare cases, angioedema of the throat, tongue, or lungs can block the airways, causing difficulty breathing. This may become life-threatening and are part of what is called an anaphylactic reaction.
Hives and angioedema form when, in response to histamine (an organic compound involved in immune reactions), blood plasma leaks out of small blood vessels in the skin. Histamine is a chemical released from specialized cells (called mast cells) along the skin’s blood vessels.
What causes a histamine release? Allergic reactions, chemicals in foods, insect stings, sunlight exposure, or medicines can all cause a significant histamine release. Sometimes, it’s impossible to find out exactly why hives have formed.

Impetigo (a word derived from Latin – meaning “to assail, attack”) is a highly contagious bacterial skin infection. It can appear anywhere on the body but usually attacks exposed areas. Children tend to get it on the face, especially around the nose and mouth, and sometimes on the arms or legs. The infected areas appear in plaques ranging from nickel to quarter size, starting as tiny blisters that break and expose moist, red skin. After a few days, the infected area becomes covered with a grainy, golden crust that gradually spreads at the edges.
In extreme cases, the infection invades a deeper layer of skin and develops into ecthyma, a deeper form of the disease. Ecthyma forms small, pus-filled bumps with a crust much darker and thicker than that of ordinary impetigo. Ecthyma can be very itchy, and scratching the irritated area spreads the infection quickly. Left untreated, the sores may cause permanent scars and pigment changes.
The gravest potential complication of impetigo is post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis, a severe kidney disease that occurs following a strep infection in less than 1% of cases, mainly in children. The most common cause of impetigo is Staphylococcus aureus. However, another bacteria source is group A streptococcus. These bacteria lurk everywhere. It is easier for a child with an open wound or fresh scratch to contract impetigo.
Other skin-related problems, such as eczema, body lice, insect bites, fungal infections, and various other forms of dermatitis can make a person susceptible to impetigo.
Most people get this highly infectious disease through physical contact with someone who has it or from sharing the same clothes, bedding, towels, or other objects. The very nature of childhood, which includes lots of physical contact and large-group activities, makes children the primary victims and carriers of impetigo.

Vitiligo (from Latin – meaning “a kind of cutaneous eruption, tetter”) is a skin condition characterized by the appearance of white patches of skin on different parts of the body as a result of the destruction of the cells that make pigment (melanocytes). This is called a depigmentation. This may vary from one or two white spots on the skin to large areas of depigmentation. This disorder is more visible in people with darker skin.
In Canada it affects 1-2% of the population (around 240,000 people).
Vitiligo is not contagious. Some people are scared when they see people swimming in the pool with this condition. It seems to occur more often among people who have certain autoimmune diseases, being itself an auto-immune condition. For some people, although not for everyone, the depigmentation is progressive and the emotional toll on these people is the highest.
The reason for the loss of pigment from various parts of the body is not well understood. People with a family history of vitiligo are more likely to have the condition. Vitiligo is also associated with the following diseases:
✓ pernicious anemia
✓ hyperthyroidism
✓ Addison’s disease

Psoriasis (a word derived from Latin to Greek – meaning “being itchy”) is a common skin condition that changes the life cycle of skin cells. The skin cells multiply up to 10 times faster than normal. This leads to cells to build up rapidly on the surface of the skin. The extra skin cells form thick, silvery scales and itchy, dry, red patches that are sometimes painful.
Psoriasis is a persistent, long-lasting (chronic) disease. There may be times when your psoriasis symptoms get better alternating with times your psoriasis worsens.
In Canada, around 500,000 people live with psoriasis.
Psoriasis signs and symptoms can vary from person to person but may include one or more of the following:
✓ Red patches of skin covered with silvery scales
✓ Small scaling spots (commonly seen in children)
✓ Dry, cracked skin that may bleed
✓ Itching, burning or soreness
✓ Thickened, pitted or ridged nails
✓ Swollen and stiff joints
Psoriasis patches can range from a few spots of dandruff-like scaling to major eruptions that cover large areas.
Psoriasis can also be associated with psoriatic arthritis, which leads to pain and swelling in the joints. It is estimated that 10% to 30% of people with psoriasis also have psoriatic arthritis.
The cause of psoriasis isn’t fully known, but it’s thought to be related to an immune system problem with cells in your body. One key cell is a type of white blood cell called a T lymphocyte or T cell. Normally, T cells travel throughout the body to detect and fight off foreign substances, such as viruses or bacteria. If you have psoriasis, however, the T cells attack healthy skin cells by mistake, as if to heal a wound or to fight an infection. This is also called an auto-immune disease.
In treating psoriasis, Phototherapy, the use of ultraviolet (UV) light to slow the rapid growth of new skin cells, is helpful and recommended.

Rosacea is a very common skin disease that affects people over the age of 30. It causes redness on your nose, cheeks, chin, and forehead with and affinity for the nose in men. Some people get little bumps and pimples on the red parts of their faces. Rosacea can also cause burning and soreness in your eyes.
Rosacea is not caused by alcohol abuse, as people thought in the past. But in people who have rosacea, drinking alcohol may cause symptoms to get worse (to flare up).

Rosacea often flares when something causes the blood vessels in the face to expand, which causes redness. Things that cause a flare-up are called triggers.
Common triggers are exercise, sun and wind exposure, hot weather, stress, spicy foods, alcohol, and hot baths. Swings in temperature from hot to cold or cold to hot can also cause a flare-up of rosacea.
Experts are not sure what causes rosacea. It seems to run in families. Most of the time medical tests are not needed or used.

Herpes is a recurrent viral infection of the skin or mucous membranes, characterized by the appearance of single or multiple clusters of small blisters (vesicles) on a reddened base.
There are two types of herpes simplex virus: HSV-1 and HSV-2. Both virus types can cause sores around the mouth/lips (herpes labialis) and on the genitals (genital herpes). Herpes can also appears as Shingles.
The cold sore type tends to be HSV-1 while the genital herpes tends to be HSV-2. Data suggest that 30-100% of all adult population in Canada have been infected with one, or both, of the strains of the herpes virus. The risk of acquiring herpes infection is up to 75% after having sexual contact with a person infected with herpes lesions.
The incubation period is in between 2 and 12 days, but averages around 6-7 days. The regional lymph nodes can be tender or inflamed. Once the infection has cleared, the virus becomes dormant in the nerve cells of most individuals. It can be reactivated and outbreaks can happen after minor infections, stress and sun exposure. Especially stress. And by now, the disease is called Shingles.
The herpes simplex virus usually enters the body through a break in the skin around or inside the mouth. It is usually spread when a person touches a cold sore or touches infected fluid-such as from sharing eating utensils or razors, kissing an infected person, or touching that person’s saliva. A parent who has a cold sore often spreads the infection to his or her child in this way. Cold sores can also be spread to other areas of the body.
The herpes simplex virus that causes cold sores cannot be cured. After you get infected, the virus stays in your body for the rest of your life. If you get cold sores often, treatment can reduce the number of cold sores you get and how severe they are.

Candidiasis is a fungal infection that can affect areas such as the:
✓ Skin
✓ Genitals
✓ Throat
✓ Mouth
✓ GI tract
✓ Blood
It is caused by the overgrowth of a type of yeast called Candida, usually the subtype Candida albicans. This yeast is normally found in small amounts in the human body, from mouth to anus.
But certain medicines and health problems can cause more yeast to grow, particularly in warm, moist body areas. This can cause uncomfortable and sometimes dangerous symptoms.
There are several types of candidiasis:
✓ If it is in the mouth or throat, it is called oral candidiasis, oropharyngeal candidiasis, or thrush.
✓ If it affects the genital area, it is called a yeast infection. In women, it may be called a vulvovaginal yeast infection.
✓ If yeast infects the skin on a baby’s bottom area, it causes a diaper rash.
✓ If the infection enters your bloodstream, it is called invasive candidiasis or candidemia.
Vaginal yeast infections are common in women. Common symptoms include:
✓ Extreme itching in the vaginal area
✓ Soreness and redness in the vaginal area
✓ White, clumpy vaginal discharge that looks like cottage cheese
✓ Painful intercourse
But men can get a yeast infection, too. This is more likely in men who are not circumcised.
Symptoms in men include:
✓ Red rash on penis
✓ Itching or burning on the tip of the penis
It is important to get treated for a genital yeast infection. You may pass the infection back and forth to a sexual partner.
If you get frequent yeast infections, your doctor may need to investigate why you are having them. The doctor may suggest probiotics to prevent future infections. Probiotics are healthy bacteria similar to those that naturally occur in the intestines. They may be found in supplements, yogurts, and some other foods.
A Naturopath will mostly deal with yeast infection of the GI tract (an overgrowth of Candida, not an infection per se, to be more precise) or of the vagina. To diagnose the overgrowth of the candida in the GI tract, we employ a test called Candida Panel from Rocky Mountain Analytical.