Is it acne or rosacea induced by exercise?

Flare-ups of acne during exercise is commonly mistaken for rosacea induced by exercise. Poulopustular is red bumps, often, but not always pus filled. Another side effect of rosacea is bright redness on the face accompanied with red bumps, particularly on the cheeks. Most people assume this is acne-but it's not.

One main trigger of rosacea is brought on by exercise. In addition to red bumps skin conditions can also include dryness, burning and itching. The actual causes of rosacea induced by exercise are unknown, but some possibilities for this form of allergy, can include long term exposure to UV rays, using benzoyl peroxide for acne and chemical peels.

To help flare-ups, if possible, it's best to exercise in a cool climate with limited or no intense sun exposure. Heat and blood and oxygen rushed to the skin's surface during cardiovascular activity attributes to the flare-ups. Of course you can't avoid these conditions brought on by exercise but there are a few preventive measures you can take.

Before exercise avoid eating food high in spices. Drink plenty of water during exercise in intense heat conditions. Avoid using products containing benzoyl peroxide, alcohol and for women, don't wear make-up during exercise as this is an irritant to this skin type prone to rosacea and can contribute to flare-ups.

There is no cure for rosacea. Products containing anti-inflammatory properties and soothing ingredients like aloe vera will help when applied prior to exercise. Products, for internal and external use claiming to cure rosacea induced by exercise are untrue.

By Sandy Alcide founder of Motion Medica fitness skin care Copyright 2011

Acne Induced by Exercise?

Acne Induced by Exercise?

Melanoma On The Rise for Athletes

An overlooked category of persons are at the highest risk of melanoma-athletes.

What is Melanoma?

Melanoma is a kind of skin cancer. It's not as common as other types of skin cancer-but it's the most serious of concern.

Melanoma affects the skin only but it can spread to your organs and bones if not treated and cured in the early stages.

Causes of Melanoma

When spending too much time in the sun without the correct protection against harmful ultraviolet radiation as most athletes do, causes normal skin cells to become abnormal. The abnormal skin cells grow out of control and attack tissues around them. Weekend warriors and avid outdoor fitness lovers may think they are protecting their skin against skin cancer, but not all sun screens are suitable for long term exposure and sweat repellent.

Athletes who don't have melanoma that runs in their families tend to think they are safe with the average sunscreen, or using none at all. This is a dangerous misconception.

Symptoms of melanoma is a change of an existing mole or other uncommon skin growth, even a birthmark you have since childhood. The mole can change color, be lumpy, rounded, ooze fluid or sometimes bleed.

When your doctor checks your skin for melanoma a sample tissue from the mole will be taken and a pathologist will check the tissue for cancer cells. In some cases, a very thick cancerous mole may leave a scar and additional surgery will be needed to remove the scar.

The countries that have the highest amount of melanoma among athletes are Australia, United States, Canada and The Netherlands.

A sunblock, known as a "physical block" that completely blocks ultraviolet radiation, and does not absorb into the pores of the skin must be used by the outdoor fitness person. Z-Cote, a transparent zinc oxide professionally recognized in the dermatological community must be in the sunblock. A sunblock that does not absorb into the skin, even with sweat expelling from pores, will help not to clog the pores possibly leading to breakouts. One reason, some athletes opt not to use a serious sun protector.

The Advanced Protection SPF 30 is a leading seller among athletes who are serious about avoiding melanoma and used by doctors.

The new American Athletic Skin Care Association is also working to bring awareness to this skin ailment for athletes.

By Sandy Alcide founder of Motion Medica fitness skin care.
Copyright 2011

The importance of exfoliating your skin

Athletes and weekend warriors have a higher dead skin cell turnover rate. If you, or someone else, finds your skin to appeal dull, lackluster with occasional or frequent breakouts, chances are you are not exfoliating enough with the correct product.

Exfoliating is the most easiest and common natural way to remove dead skin cells without chemical peels or costly microdermabrasion. It will actually give you better results when done frequently.

The best time to exfoliate is after a sweat induced by exercise. It will open your pores during exercise so you will need to exfoliate within a short period of time after exercise.

This will remove dead skin cells that can't be seen by the human eye and leave your skin's surface clean and ready for new skin cells to regenerate. Time constraints with our busy workout schedules needs the convenience of an exfoliater that also contains a cleanser. Exfoliating agents alone will not clean the skin.

Use an exfoliater that will not abrade delicate skin tissue and contains no chemicals that get get into your bloodstream via open pores. Never use a brush on your delicate facial skin unless you want broken capillaries and exfoliating agents that contain aluminum will eventually make its way into your bloodstream.

The Tenacious Champion AHA/BHA 2 In 1 Exfoliating Cleanser is one of the most highly recommended exfoliating cleanser on the market for fitness lovers.

Do this treatment on a twice weekly basis and, in this world of judging, will give a healthy look to healthy skin.

Copyright Sandy Alcide, founder Motion Medica fitness skin care.

Preventing dry skin in cold climate with an athletic lifestyle

An active lifestyle can bring on a new set of challenges to your skin.

Extreme climatic conditions can cause dry, brittle skin. Cold air lacks moisture and indoor heat causes dryness, a common complaint among winter loving athletes.

This is the reason why there must be special care for this skin type in order to have smooth healthy skin. Extreme dryness to your skin adds a whole new dimension to your skin care regimen.

You must protect your skin when exercising outdoors. Do not use petroleum jelly as this will clog the pores that naturally open during exercise to expel sweat. Your skin also needs to breathe even in outdoor cold conditions. Before heading outdoors use a sunscreen with zinc oxide in it. Not only will it protect your skin from the sun's rays but it will help hold moisture in the skin.

Moisturize, moisturize, moisturize! After washing away sweat with a gentle astringent cleanser, always apply moisturizer after every cleanse. Never skip this step in your skin care regimen. If you cleanse at night before bed time , in the morning just splash some luke warm water on your face and follow with moisturizer. If heading out to ski or for a long run apply sunscreen after your moisturizer.

You must continue to exfoliate dead skin cells with a gentle exfoliating cleanser. The removal of dead skin cells will help the emollients in the moisturizer to penetrate the skin more effectively. Removal of dead skin cells and keeping adequate topical moisture levels will help ward off dry skin and reveal smooth, soft skin.

Your face that is the most exposed seems to get the most attention, but the same regimen applies to your body even under protective clothing the dry air will effect the skin too.

By Sandy Alcide, founder Motion Medica fitness skin care.

Teaching athletic kids about skin care

As with all habits parents lead by example. If you take care of your skin most likely your children will follow. But how do you teach kids to take care of their skin when they have no interest in it?

Here are a few pointers....

In the single digit ages parents must supervise and be diligent of cleansing their child's skin. When there is no bath night the child must be supervised at the sink and get them into the habit of washing their face and hands.

Tell your kids about the important job their skin has to do. It keeps infections out of the body and keeps them from getting sick. When they take care of their skin they are helping skin do it's job!

Taking care of the skin today, will help with future problems, like acne, wrinkles and even skin cancer.

One simple way to take care of your skin is to keep it clean. This is essential for an active child in sports to prevent acne from their sweaty activities which harbors acne causing bacteria. Tell them how important it is to wear sunscreen when playing outdoors. You may want to show them a picture of a person's skin who neglected it, by being riddled with acne, and lots of wrinkles and dry skin at a young age from too much sun with no sunscreen protection.

Over zealous cleansing is unnecessary. Cleansers should not contain salicylic acid as it is too over sensitizing for this tender young skin. A gentle cleanser with lots of natural astringents will do the job and never apply alcohol based products to the skin as this will dry and irritate their skin.

Sports active tweens and teenagers should make a good habit to cleanse their hands (which will transfer dirt to the skin), and face following the sport and always before bed time. If skin is thoroughly cleansed at bed time just some luke warm water will do in the morning and a lip balm to prevent chapped lips from water.

Children of all ages and those who do not practice sports should never be permitted to go to bed without washing their face and hands if it's not bath night.

My own daughter who is twelve is now an avid runner and independently cleanses her face after her runs and immediately coming home from school when she has physical education. She told me a lot of kids in her school the same age as her has acne but she doesn't. It proves this method of teaching your kids holds true and it's never too late to start it.

Start this skin healthy habit now and they will have their parents/guardians to thank for healthy adult skin.

Motion Medica's Unwavering Determination Daily Cleanser is a simple solution for fresh faces and is gentle on young skin and washing away a hard day's play!

By Sandy Alcide, founder of Motion Medica fitness skin care. www.MotionMedica.com

Alcohol can stress your skin

During the holidays, and off training times, it's easy to drink too much. And as people age, their metabolisms typically slow down, so, you often feel worse after drinking-less.Alcohol can wreck havoc on your skin.

The ethanol in alcohol dilates blood vessels, says David Colbert, a dermatologist in New York City. "Initially you might flush a bit during a night out", he says. "But over time too much drinking can stretch capillaries, sometimes to the point where they expand, giving you a permanent red hue."

Alcohol also dehydrates your skin, leaving it with a dry, weathered appearance. If you do some drinking, before you go to sleep drink plenty of water even if it means some trips to the bathroom in the middle of the night. At bed time, be sure to cleanse your face and apply a liberal amount of moisturizer. This will help with the appearance of dehydrated skin the morning after.

If you want to socialize with alcohol, try to stay with the lesser alcohol content such as light beer or wine.

If you do wake up with a nasty hangover, sweat those toxins out with a good sweaty workout and drink up on lots of water. No matter how much you have to push yourself it will be well worth the effort.

By Sandy Alcide www.MotionMedica.com