Your Skin and Diabetes
This post's close to my heart, because I deal with these realities every day. But just because it's reality doesn't mean it can't be effected, changed and dealt with. I should state in advance that nothing in this blog post is intended to offer, or be taken as medical advice, or as a substitute for medical advice.
Itchy skin is very common with diabetics, usually for one of three reasons; dry skin, yeast / fungal infections, and poor circulation, especially in the lower legs. One of the best suggestions for the creepy/crawly skin sensation and itch is to bathe less often, and use a mild soap. Focus here on the word soap. That doesn't mean bath gel, body wash, or anything containing sulfates. It means real, genuine soap. This was helping me even before I researched the topic.
Over and over, in every resource I investigated, one of the easiest and most common bits of advice in preventing bacterial skin infections was to prevent allowing the skin to become too dry. Dry skin itches; people scratch what itches, and scratching can cause micro abrasions which allow an entry point for bacteria and the resultant infections.
Items you may want to avoid, even though it may seem counter-intuitive, are harsh anti-bacterial "soaps" (those items, usually liquid, that contain any sulfates) and the anti-bacterial hand-sanitizers. The base of most of those gels is normally isopropyl and/or ethyl alcohol, which yes, you guessed it, dries out the skin. You can read more about hand sanitizers here and decide for yourself if the risks outweigh the benefits. Keep in mind that not all bacteria are harmful, and it has been suggested that the over-use of anti-bacterial soaps and sanitizers may result in building stronger, more resistant bacteria.
So what else can you do, besides mild soap and less frequent bathing (which simply avoids over-stripping the natural oils of the skin)? Moisturize, moisturize, moisturize. If you're using a real soap made with real, beneficial oils, that's step one, and it's a great one. Step two is to find a very good moisturizer that works well for you. There are thousands on the market, and while I'd just absolutely love it if you used my hemp-seed-oil lotion, the fact is, you have so many choices, and you'll be able to find one that works for you. Avoid trendy things and the latest fads, and look for products which have a nice variety of ingredients that are good for your skin.
Oh...and ladies, consider giving shaving your legs with hair conditioner a try. Yes, I know, it sounds silly. But just a small amount of even the most economical hair conditioner applied to wet legs, leaves a nice sensation after shaving. It's less irritating, the razor glides wonderfully, and for me, it has decreased the incidence of razor nicks.
Along with the above tips, it's important to be aware of your skin's condition on a daily basis. Inspect legs and feet, and of course consult your doctor with any concerns. Skin tears and wounds generally heal less quickly for diabetics, so awareness is very important to avoid allowing a situation to worsen.
Exercise and of course, monitoring one's blood glucose levels is perhaps the most critical aspect of taking care of your overall health, but in focusing on just one aspect, smaller things can get lost along the way.
