The Hemp Connection:
dermatologist

One of my goals in the near future is to pay more attention to skin problems associated with PCOS. They are many, and we have a great resource in our network, Dr. Susan Van Dyke. If you have any skin questions at all, please post them here and I'll forward them to her for answers to post.

The most widely recognized PCOS-related skin problems are acne, hirsutism, and melasmas. However, I've worked with quite a few women also struggling with problems like eczema and psoriasis, both related to diet, in particular, omega-3 fatty acid balance.

This past week I had a new client who wanted help for her eczema. I brought her samples of an Australian homeopathic remedy from the Expo, and she absolutely loves one of them. She shared that this product reduces the itching almost immediately, something the prescription creams she'd tried were not able to do. She also felt the redness started to go away quickly as well.

That's a pretty great testimonial!

I shared the product information with Dr. Van Dyke and she noticed that one of the ingredients in this product listed as"inactive", in Western (non-homeopathic) medicine, gamma-linolenic acid (aka borage oil) has been shown to help eczema. She suggested that it wasn't as"inactive" as the company realized!

Apparently some people with eczema do not convert omega-6 fatty acids well to the gamma-linolenic by-product that the skin needs. So the omega-6's build up and never get into the form that the skin needs.

My client is increasing the omega-3 content of her diet, reducing the omega-6 content, and using the cream…and if that doesn't correct the imbalance, we'll consider supplementing with GLA. We'll keep you posted!

The product I'm referring to is called Natralia. I did not see it in my local Sprouts store, and I did not see a store locator on their website. But I did find it on amazon.com. Here is the link to all of the Natralia products. (The products I'm sharing from the Expo are so new many of them can only be found online for now. Be sure to ask for them at your favorite store so they are more convenient to buy locally.)

Henz BM, Jablonska S, van de Kerkhof PC, Stingl G, Blaszczyk M, Vandervalk PG, Veenhuizen R, Muggli R, Raederstorff D. Double-blind, multicentre analysis of the efficacy of borage oil in patients with atopic eczema. Br J Dermatol. 1999 Apr;140(4):685-8.

If you want to learn the latest about hair removal, don't miss this interview with Dr. Susan Van Dyke, a board certified dermatologist!

Here is a video demonstrating Light Sheer Duet, a newer, faster, less painful laser hair removal treatment that was discusssed in the interview.

Hirsutism is such a devastating condition, worthy of understanding and treatment. Here are some explanations about how to get started and how to find the best practitioner to help you.

Such exciting developments on the skin care front! You've likely seen Carmina McGee's posts here at inCYST. Carmina is a registered dietitian as well as a licensed esthetician, and she loves to teach about skin care from inside out. If you haven't heard her interview on PCOS Challenge, and you want to know more about everything from acne to acanthosis nigricans to skin tags…I highly recommend it.

Speaking of skin, we're soon to have a new inCYST member with some great new information for you! Dr. Susan Van Dyke is a board certified dermatologist in Paradise Valley (near Phoenix), Arizona, who has a special interest in PCOS. She's got a great new laser technique called Duet LightSheer Laser, which is only available in select locations in the United States. You can read about Dr. Van Dyke and her procedure at this link, and you can join her Facebook group at"Van Dyke Laser and Skin".

I am learning from all of you how important it is to understand the emotional issues surrounding the appearance changes PCOS induces, and it's important to me that we provide support for you in those areas as well as in areas where we're currently very actively discussing.

I love what Carmina is doing and I'm absolutely thrilled Dr. Van Dyke is joining our group. I hope it's only the beginning of new, helpful information and services we at inCYST can offer to our readers.

About a month ago, Dr. Susan Van Dyke did a great webinar for inCYST on the many aspects of PCOS that can be helped by working with a dermatologist. One of the conditions she spoke about was melasma, a skin patchiness/darkening that can be caused by hormonal changes and the use of birth control pills.

Coincidentally, a few days later, a friend casually mentioned that she had noticed the skin on her head was darkening even though she was diligent with sunscreen. What she showed me looked just like what I'd seen in Dr. Van Dyke's slides…and when I asked, she mentioned that the skin change actually did appear after she changed birth control pills about a year earlier.

I saw her last night, and she shared that she had been to see a dermatologist after we spoke and it turned out that she DID have melasma.

I had originally posted the photo you see in this post on our inCYST Facebook page and several women commented they had similar skin changes but had no idea they could be caused by birth control pills. I was very surprised these women did not know this, since so many women with PCOS have been prescribed them!

So I wanted to expand the audience that this message got to, to be sure that all women know, if you are on birth control pills, and your skin starts to look different, there may be a connection. And there are options for addressing it.

I'm really grateful to have Dr. Van Dyke on our team, she is just a wealth of information! I am working on editing a guest post she's done for us, it will be up later today. If you'd like to have a copy of her webinar (which includes Power Points), click here to order.