Health & Beauty - page 9

“Eating dirt is beneficial for children: it builds their immune system!” The old wives’ tale reassures mums who watch in dismay their tots nibbling at the sandbox or licking the floor.

But what if it becomes a habit?

If this behaviour continues consistently and sometimes compulsively, you may want to seek medical attention, in particular, if they are pre-teens, teens or young adults.

Pica is diagnosed through the medical history of the patient, usually after a series of acute episodes, whether or not resulting in a trip to A&E – although medical attention is always advisable if you’re concerned your child may have swallowed something dangerous.

If relatively big quantities of substances with no nutritional value, toxic or dangerous for the body, like rusty scraps, glass, plastic, wood, soap, pebbles, metal, ash, are ingested voluntarily, consciously and repeatedly for  a month at least, it is advisable to make a GP appointment to discuss treatment, whether pharmacological or psychological.

The incidents must be acknowledged as developmentally and culturally inappropriate to qualify for a pica assessment.

In fact, some cultures consider acceptable and actually advisable the ingestion of non-food items like clay or charcoal to treat dysentery, or flowers or ash for ritual purposes: in these cases, pica is ruled out because ingestion is not the consequence of a recurring impulse, but an informed choice.

Children under two years of age do mouth objects to explore the world and this leads to accidental ingestion, but it doesn’t mean to be a pica telltale, unless they throw mealtime tantrums as a consequence.

However, pica seldom causes loss of appetite for conventional food, and sufferers tend to binge on non-food items on a whim. 

Often it is a sign of mild or severe malnutrition and it can be corrected by identifying the missing nutrient(s) and modifying the diet accordingly.

There are no path-lab tests to ascertain pica, but iron and other minerals deficiency tests are advised, because the disorder may subside as soon as supplements are introduced in the diet and the chemical balance is restored.

The patient should also be tested for potential side effects of the substances ingested, for example for lead poisoning if they ate paint flakes, or intestinal blockages if they went for paper or hair, and for viral or bacterial infections if they ate contaminated matter – urgently in case of their own excrements, which isn’t uncommon for potty-training toddlers. 

It is frequent for pregnant women to crave for non-food, especially pebbles, so they must discuss it with their obstetrician as soon as it happens. Furthermore, amylophagia (cravings for purified starch) may indicate gestational diabetes.

A sudden desire for chalk for example can be an instinctual cry for help from their bodies that are lacking in calcium for the baby’s bones. They should then redirect their attention towards cottage cheese or brown bread.

Pica may also be a side effect of mental disorders and it can lead to spotting the early signs of autism or schizophrenia. Here, the patient can be dissuaded from consuming non-food items with the offering of treats of the same aspect, such as chocolate if they want wood, or jelly beans if they fancy flower petals.

Pica may follow trichotillomania, the hair pulling disorder, when the patient ingests or tries to ingest any pulled hair (trichophagia), and excoriation, when scabs and skin are picked, as well as onychophagia, caused most of the time not by sulfur deficiency alone, but by anxiety and a lower degree of self-harm tendencies.

Pica was first described by Hippocrates and later named after the Latin word for magpie, a bird popularly believed to steal and be able to digest everything.

Subtypes are named after the Greek word for the substance ingested: geomelophagia for raw potatoes (watch out! Uncooked spuds can be poisonous!); xylophagia for wood and paper; acuphagia for sharp objects; hyalophagia for glass; lithophagia for stones; cautopyreiophagia for spent matches, and so on.

Bodily fluids make the list too with mucophagia, emetophagia, urophagia, coprophagia and hematophagia: these must be taken very seriously since they are the cry for help from a malnourished body in such desperate need for nutrients to be prepared to recycle its own refuse. 

This article is aimed at being informative only with no medical pretense. Consult your GP if you suspect someone is suffering from the condition described.

The skin is the body’s largest organ and it is important to take care of it so that it remains healthy, although it’s not necessarily considered to be the most important organ by our bodies and the nutrients we ingest typically go to other more vital organs first, with little left to nourish the skin. This means that we should make sure that we apply vitamins topically (directly on to the skin) to be sure that it gets what it needs.

Most of us have a regular skincare routine that involves cleansing, toning and moisturising, sometimes with the added boost of anti-aging products, and most of us know that we should wear protective sunscreen to limit exposure to harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays. In fact sunscreen is often the first thing on a dermatologist’s list when it comes to skincare, because it’s the best anti-aging product around.

However, a little bit of sun can be beneficial because our body creates vitamin D from direct sunlight on our skin when we’re outdoors. Just 10–15 minutes of daily exposure helps manufacture vitamin D throughout the skin. Vitamin D is one of the best vitamins for your skin, along with vitamins C, E, and F. Taking vitamins in supplemental form can keep your skin healthy and supple and looking youthful, but they are also found in vitamin enriched skincare products such as moisturisers, serums and cleansers, and are a great addition to incorporate into your established skincare routine.

Here’s our guide to the ABC’s of vitamins:

Vitamin A wins the gold star because in its purest form it is also known as retinol, beloved by dermatologists for restoring and regenerating damaged collagen. If your skin is dry, rough, or slow to heal, then this is a good sign that it needs Vitamin A. Using a retinol-based product may make the top layer of your skin dry and flaky, so it’s best to apply it at night and wear moisturiser and sunscreen the next morning. Always sk a dermatologist if you are unsure about how to use it properly. Choose skincare products containing common vitamin A derivatives such as retinol and retinyl palmitate to help minimize fine lines and even skin tone and texture.

Vitamin B is in the rock star category in skincare because these can keep the skin protected from free radicals and therefore keep it more youthful looking. The skin loves Vitamin B and this makes it well suited for faces creams and body creams, particularly for dry or eczema-prone skin. There are several B-complex vitamins that may improve skin health such as B-3, or niacinamide, which may help some signs of skin aging. Some studies suggest that it may help reduce the appearance of age spots and other forms of skin discoloration

Vitamin C is another powerful antioxidant that again protects you from free radicals and can possibly assist in lowering your chance of skin cancer. This vitamin is also known for its brightening effects on the skin and its ability to protect against pollution. Use it to help brighten dull skin and decrease dark spots with continued use.

Vitamin D was traditionally used to treat conditions like psoriasis, but also assists in repairing skin damage and can help in preventing infections that might be caused due to skin injuries as well as being used in creams to rejuvenate the skin. It can be applied topically as an oil to soothe the skin.

Vitamin E is commonly found in skin care products and can aide certain skin disorders as well as being used for skin repair, for cellular restoration from sun damage and as a healing support for scars or burns. Vitamin E is an antioxidant preventing oxidative damage to cells by helping to remove free radicals and is often used for its moisturising properties.

Vitamin F, sometimes thought of as the new-kid-on-the-block vitamin, is probably best known for its ability to hydrate, plump and heal the skin, but it is an excellent carrier oil that can get below the surface of the skin and is often used to facilitate the penetration of other active ingredients such as antioxidants.

Unfortunately, having great skin is not part of our DNA and can be affected by the environment, where we live and by air pollution, so using essential vitamins can help you achieve optimum skin health.

Always contact a dermatologist or seek medical advice if you have any queries or experience any problems using skincare products.