# dry skin conditions in elderly ...



## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

Does any elderly person use "hyaluronic acid serums" and/or "retinol" for treatment of dry skin? If so, what has been your experience?


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Hyaluronic Acid. Yes. Goooood stuff.


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## Terri (May 10, 2002)

Most of the junk they sell today is too full of alcohol because it dries quickly. And alcohol is not that good for dry skin

I got my very elderly Father to use Burt's Bees lotion, and that worked MUCH better


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## robin416 (Dec 29, 2019)

I use CeraVe with hyaluronic acid. Pretty effective without being greasy.


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## Max Overhead (Feb 22, 2021)

I'm no doctor or oldster (yet) but I recommend some dilute apple cider vinegar for the dry skin, or any skin problem, really. I learned this from a book called "Vermont Folk Medicine" by Dr. Jarvis. It's also a fine conditioner for hair, and will disinfect and help to heal wounds.


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

Do you guys "lock it in" by using some type of cream over it? The research says this Hyaluronic Acid evaporates easily!


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## doc- (Jun 26, 2015)

Save your money...Get cheapo skin cream that's mostly lanolin-- the "active ingredient" in our natural skin oils....The problem is, it evaporates quickly (?the alc they add?) and needs to be re-applied every 2 or 3 hrs to remain effective....Vaseline type applications can last longer, but then you have to deal with the messy grease.

Temporary relief of the itch can be achieved by cooling the skin-- cold water, ice, menthol-type skin applications.

Winter itch (from the low humidity) is a common problem that increases with aging...Rarely is a new, uncontrollable itch a symptom of a hidden cancer. Itching as a sign of kidney or liver disease is a late complication of those-- by then you already know you have the disease. Itching as a result of infestation (lice, fleas, mites) usually is obvious with rash and others in the household afflicted also.


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## Wolf mom (Mar 8, 2005)

Water, water, water! Drink lots. Hydrates from within. 

Shower every other day not every day. Damp dry, then rub in lots of your favorite lotion - all over.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

If you coated me with lanolin, I would have hives.

You could try coconut oil, too.


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## Gayle in KY (May 13, 2002)

Water inside and out is good advice. I also apply a thin coat of castor oil as soon as I finish towel-drying after my bath. 

Now that I think about it, I could just add the castor oil to my bath. Heck, that would be easier. Doing that today!


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## MichaelZ (May 21, 2013)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> If you coated me with lanolin, I would have hives.


Then we could call you “honey”.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

I don't know about putting oil in the bath water. It would make you slippery and make a mess in the tub. And the soap would cancel it out.

Tried that once with one of my babies, it did not work out well.

Have you looked at the person's diet? Older people tend to be undernourished because they have smaller appetites. Dry skin could be an indication of a nutrition deficiency.









When Vitamin And Nutritional Deficiencies Cause Skin And Nail Changes


If patients are not getting enough micronutrients or macronutrients, dermatologic conditions can arise in the skin and nails. Accordingly, this author offers salient insights on cutaneous manifestations of various vitamin and nutritional deficiencies.




www.podiatrytoday.com


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

Was reading where older people can get sweat ducts clogged, even causing bumps to rise on skin, simply due to their lack of exercising enough to sweat. Have no idea if this is true or not; but sounds logical. Seems the older we get the more we have to concern ourselves with our "basic" needs, i.e. nutrition as well as exercise....neither seems to be easy with the elderly...............


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## backwoodsman7 (Mar 22, 2007)

I have an occasional dry skin problem on my hands that's usually much worse in cold dry weather. I find that taking a lot of vitamin E helps it a lot; I take 1200 IU per day, for that and other reasons. When it gets bad enough to get my attention, petroleum jelly is about the only thing that helps it. I keep meaning to make some colloidal silver for it; from the way it acts, I suspect it's caused by some kind of pathogen, and that solved a similar problem on my feet some years ago. Maybe the above mentioned apple cider vinegar treatment would accomplish the same thing.


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## MichaelZ (May 21, 2013)

I use Jergens Ultra Healing - works for me, for the most part and it is inexpensive. Once temps start going up again it won't be a problem. Then in the summer, we combat humidity! 

A humidifier is another solution.


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## CKelly78z (Jul 16, 2017)

I use hand lotion on my hands, and keep a pot of water boiling on the woodstove (about 3 gallons a day).


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## Gayle in KY (May 13, 2002)

I've been thinking about this and wondering if older people might just need to bathe less frequently and use regular bar soap. The grease in the bar soap might be less drying than the liquid body washes that are popular these days.


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## wdcutrsdaughter (Dec 9, 2012)

7 Benefits of Using Sesame Oil for Skin | How to Use It the Right Way?


Ever wondered how to make use of Sesame oil for skin. Here we bring you an ultimate guide on the benefits and nutrient contents of Sesame oil. Read more..




www.goodhealthacademy.com





Sesame Oil. It's a little pricey but the bottle lasts a long time. Months. At the moment it is $7 more than usual....




https://www.amazon.com/Life-Flo-Organic-Pure-Sesame-Ounce/dp/B00714TCNY/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=life%2BFlo%2Bsesame%2Boil&qid=1614863082&sr=8-1&th=1


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

Sesame Oil (and other oils mentioned) sounds worth the try....


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## Evons hubby (Oct 3, 2005)

Wolf mom said:


> Water, water, water! Drink lots. Hydrates from within.
> 
> Shower every other day not every day. Damp dry, then rub in lots of your favorite lotion - all over.


Every other day!?!?! Terrible waste of water! Try once per season! Spring summer and fall, too cold in winter.


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## painterswife (Jun 7, 2004)

I use an in shower lotion. I have used both Curel Hydra Therapy and Nivea in shower lotion. I like the Curel better. You don't rinse after it. They are both good though. The Curel is more expensive but you need so little of it because it goes on when you are wet. My husband likes the Nivea.


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## wdcutrsdaughter (Dec 9, 2012)

motdaugrnds said:


> Sesame Oil (and other oils mentioned) sounds worth the try....


I should add that in the summer I use almond oil instead of sesame.


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

Wdcutrsdaughter what have you noticed the difference to be between the two you use?


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## wdcutrsdaughter (Dec 9, 2012)

I do not notice a difference. It's a seasonal change recommended by an aryuvedic book I read.
Also, in the summer I may skip some days, because of the humidity.


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## backwoodsman7 (Mar 22, 2007)

Well, it took a spammer to draw my attention back to this thread. Hopefully the spam will be deleted soon; not really sure why it takes so long, sometimes days, for that to happen.

Anyway... I discovered a few months ago that the dry skin problem on my hands is a very common chemical sensitivity, to an ingredient that's in almost all shampoo, dish detergent, and liquid hand soap: Sodium lauryl sulfate, or sodium laureth sulfate. On the scalp it mimics seborrheic dermatitis, a common cause of dandruff; but the chemical sensitivity is very common, and its effects often get incorrectly blamed on seborrheic dermatitis. I figured out the shampoo thing 20 years ago, and solved a fairly bad dandruff problem, but it never occurred to me to check the other products. So all these years I've been washing my hands mostly with dish detergent and smearing that stuff all over them, then having to take lots of vitamin E and occasionally apply petroleum jelly to deal with its effects. When I started washing with bar soap and using rubber gloves when I have to immerse my hands in dishwater, it started clearing up. So far it's acting just like my scalp did when I discontinued shampoo -- took a couple weeks to start clearing up, then fast at first, then slower and slower, and I expect it to be completely gone within a year or so. I've already cut back on vitamin E (I take it for other reasons actually) and have had to use petroleum jelly way less, and way less frequently, this winter than in many years.

So, I hope that helps someone.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Thank you! My hands have suffered. This may help!


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## MichaelZ (May 21, 2013)

Started putting and old canner kettle filled with a few inches of water on top of our freestanding wood fireplace. It really helps!


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## frogmammy (Dec 8, 2004)

Why not try olive oil?

Mon


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