I have been having dry and unhappy looking skin lately. It can't be an external issue because the only thing I use on my skin is pure jojoba oil.

I eat plenty of fat, namely avocado, some olive oil, flax oil occasionally.
What could my skin be missing???


This may be unrelated, but
a few months ago I had muscle testing for nutritional deficiency and was tested as being low in Omega 3s- particularly EPA- The prescription would have been fish oil, but I decided to look for an alternative. The problem is that flax, hemp, and other vegetarian sources of oil have the DHA but are low in the EPA... which is the nutrient that I need.
Even a good source that I found, made up of seaweed, is still low in EPA. ( [www.v-pure.com] )

Could the EPA be contributing to dry skin?

And does anyone know of a good EPA source that is vegan?


Lecithin is another thing I heard about for the skin.. how do I know I get enough?

Dry skin is a common symptom of hypothyroidism and low thyroid function.

Will post more information later.

[www.vegankingdom.co.uk]

My 4 year old is dry, so dry she scratches her back raw :'(.
I'm going to try coconut oil though I prefer to avoid tropical stuff whenever possible. Shea works OK but it of course keeps coming back. I'm sad for her, she should be living an itch free life.

I see a huge improvement over dry elbows and hands lately. I don't know if it's the Vitamin D I've been taking for a couple months (1 capsule of 5000IU daily) or the povidone iodine I've been using in my rinse bath water and soaking it that from head to toe.

Iodine does give you soft skin, but due to blood tests I showed low on Vitamin D and while my insurance didn't cover the prescription of the Vitamin D I did get otc Vitamin D.

I have my reasons, but I'm pretty sure it's the Iodine. Coco, you might try a soaking bath with 1 oz. of Povidone or Betadine Iodine for your little girl. A couple times a week should see improvement soon enough.

Love,
Prism

I have lugol's, is that the same? It's a bit pricey to be dumping in the bath though... I need to remember the Vit D for them every day, thanks for the reminder.

The Iodine you can use for topical use is a generic brand here in the US called Povidone, and by the brand name it is called Betadine. You can buy it by the 8oz and 16 oz. at places like drug stores and retail stores like Walmart, Kmart, etc. But you can also buy it online from Amazon.com and it's a lot cheaper that way. They have 1 gallon size.

I put it 1 oz. for my rinse water to soak in. It's very inexpensive and does so much good.

You can also swab it on all over her back and let it air dry after her bath. It's very healing.

Love,
Prism

Ok, thanks Prism.
By rinse water do you mean after having a shower you soak in the bath? How long do you sit in the iodine solution, is it safe to get in the eyes and mouth? 'Cause you know kids, lol.

I always take baths, then after my first bath I empty it and put in new water along with the Povidone Iodine. I put in about an oz. but you can put in so that the water looks like tea colour if you wanted. There's no need to put in so much though.

I lay in the tub and soak from top of head to bottom of feet. I stay in about 15 minutes and I don't rinse off the rinse bath water when I get out, but there's no time limit.

I've rinsed my mouth out using water and a little Iodine plenty of times for mouth health.

I also have been using my own homemade eye drops of filtered water and Lugol's Iodine. I put it in every morning..3 drops in each eye. I mix 1 oz. of water and 3 or 4 drops of Lugol's 5% solution of Iodine and keep it in a 1 oz. glass eye dropper bottle. I've been doing that for over 3 years.

If kids play and splash around that's ok. I wouldn't want them to drink it though because the Povidone has other ingredients called surfactants.

When I wash my dog I use a rinse water mixed with Iodine and after the rinse I don't rinse anything off. I just towel dry.

Love,
Prism

I wouldn't use the coconut oil Coco, Coconut Oil is a surfactant which means it acts like soap, it can stip the natural oils causing the skin to dry out.

Avocado oil is a good choice.

[www.vegankingdom.co.uk]

Powerlifer - I'm sure your information is wrong about coconut oil. Absolutely everything I have read on numerous sites says that coconut oil is hugely beneficial for the skin. i haven't put any links because if you google this subject pages of them are available - take your pick

But my skin certainly got hugely dry when my thyroid became underactive - particularly on my lower legs. This is not the only reason why skin gets dry though.

arete - there is a very useful chapter on Essential fatty acid conversion in the book Becoming Raw by Brenda Davis and Vesanto Melina (chapter 7). I can't recomend this book highly enough.
They explain how your body converts essential fatty acids from plants to make the highly unsaturated fatty acids such as AA, EPA and DHA. This conversion is often inefficient depending on age, genetics and overall health. High intakes of omega 6 fatty acids can have a profound effect on omega 3 fatty acid conversion reducing it by as much as 40 -50%. The chapter goes on to explain all this in detail and what to do etc etc

Saponified[alkalized] coconut oil is a detergent--like in Doc Bronner's products--but regular coconut oil is a fine moisturizer, if a tad greasy

Nice one Tamukha - thanks for the clarification there.

flipperjan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Powerlifer - I'm sure your information is wrong
> about coconut oil. Absolutely everything I have
> read on numerous sites says that coconut oil is
> hugely beneficial for the skin. i haven't put any
> links because if you google this subject pages of
> them are available - take your pick

Most of these from coconut oil praise sites or retailers of coconut oil, im a big fan of coconut oil myself just that it is a strong surfactant and has the potential to dry out the skin by stripping the natural oils.

[www.vegankingdom.co.uk]



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/26/2012 10:57AM by powerlifer.

Powerlifer - did you see Tamukha's post? I think it sheds some light on the situation.

flipperjan Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Powerlifer - did you see Tamukha's post? I think
> it sheds some light on the situation.

One of the reasons coconut oil is easier to digest than other oils even in the absense of bile is because of its natural surfactant properties.

[www.vegankingdom.co.uk]

But... it's not a surfactant until it's saponified...???

No coco, coconut oil is a natural occurring oil with surfactant properties. Surfactant can mean with soap like properties. If I remember when I was making soap with Lye, I read there's a plant that when the leaves are rubbed they soap up. I can't recall the name of the plant off hand. I'd have to look it up.

A light application of coconut oil is nice, as is other oils like almond, avocado, etc. If you want to attract moisture to your skin though, you can buy vegetable glycerin and use that like body oil.

Oh yea....Soapwort. That's the plant.
Love,
Prism



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/26/2012 10:33PM by Prism.

I have a bag of soapwort, you have to boil it to get it foamy. There was a plant my mom and her young friends used to bubble their hands up with at the summer cottage, I'll ask her to point it out again and try to identify it.

I've got glycerin, I'll rub her all over with that. I ordered a handmade product with Hyaluronic acid in it too, maybe I'll try that when it gets here.

Weird about the coconut oil, I thought it was good. Oh well.

Have you tried the Iodine Coco. I'm just wondering about attracting moisture or keeping moisture in the skin if she has some broken skin or rash. Use the Lugol's Iodine if that's what you have. If there's no broken skin and she just seems itchy try the glycerin.

Love,
Prism



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/26/2012 11:21PM by Prism.

I have used coconut oil as my main skin moisturiser for many years, and everyone remarks on how radiant and soft, my skin is; because of that, many people I interact with have begun using it themselves and are loving the results.

It absorbs best into skin that is still slightly damp.

Not everything works for every body, of course; you have to find what works best for you.

At other times I have used Shea butter or Almond oil, but coconut oil is my go-to skin treatment.

Eumocream also work well for dry skin. eumocream is an everyday moisturising cream for dry, sensitive, itchy skin and skin prone to eczema & dermatitis.