Last updated on August 21, 2024 by Dr. Subashri Thanigaivel
Skin is one of the most sensitive parts of your body. It faces all the challenges together with you. Let those challenges be physical or mental or environmental. It easily gets affected by the changing climate too.
5 Common Skin Problems that can make you spell “Oops”
- Patchy Skin Discoloration
- Dark Circles
- Oily T Zone
- Open Skin Pores
- Skin Rashes
But skin problems aren’t similar for everybody. It changes from person to person based on their skin type and the environment they live in.
According to Ayurveda skin type varies based on the prakriti of the person. And skin problems occur when the doshas of the prakriti are in an imbalanced state. Here, “Prakriti” is the core body constitution of an individual with which they were born. Just think about this – what if you aren’t aware of your dosha levels?
Are you following the right skincare routine for your skin?
Dig deep to find how dosha imbalances can cause skin problems and plan your skincare routine accordingly.
Patchy Skin Discoloration
Skin discoloration itself is self-explanatory. It is a change in your skin that shows a difference from your natural skin tone. It also varies in color based on the cause of discoloration. It can be a sign of aging or hormone issues. People generally report that it increases with exposure to the sun (caused due to Pitta and Vata) or cold wind (Vata and Kapha). It is harmless if it is not associated with any other complaints like itching/ burning. It is better to check the underlying reason and choose a proper treatment.
Causes of Skin Discoloration:
- Allergies: Intake of certain foods that your body rejects causes rashes leading to discoloration.
- Medical reasons: The aftermath of certain treatments (like cancer) can lead to discoloration.
- Other: Production of low melanin pigment in our body leads to vitiligo causing discoloration. Sunburns are another type that causes discoloration.
How to Overcome Skin Discoloration?
- Do Nasya with anu tailam every day by instilling 2 drops in each nostril.
- Use kumkumadi thailam at night after consulting your Ayurveda physician.
- Make sure to include lots of fresh fruits and vegetables in your diet.
Dark Circles
Dark patches appearing around the eyes are called dark circles. Usually, these circles appear only when you are tired or sleepless. These circles indicate you to get an adequate amount of sleep, change unhealthy habits or lifestyles, improvise your diet plan, etc. But for various reasons, people tend to avoid dark circles. Sometimes these circles are caused due to infections, allergies, or aging factors. A sign of reduced blood circulation to the face. Always due to imbalanced Vata caused by lack of sleep, exposure to screens, overthinking, or stress.
Causes of Dark Circles:
- Lack of sleep: Not getting enough sleep at the right time.
- Dehydration: Less water content in the body.
- Hyperpigmentation: Excess production of melanin.
- Medical reasons: Aftermath of any eye treatment.
- Other: Due to aging, frequent exposure to sunlight, eye infection, irritation, etc.
How to Overcome Dark Circles?
- Include good fats in food like ghee, mutton soup, butter, etc.
- Physical exercise improves overall circulation.
- Timely food definitely helps in resetting your sleep cycle.
- Introspection through yoga and meditation helps you re-evaluate your choices and decisions.
- Coconut oil, castor oil, or nalpamaradi oil around your eyes and eyebrows before bed will help you sleep better and also reduce dark discoloration.
Oily T-Zone
It is the zone that covers your forehead and travels through your nose bridge to reach your chin. This forms a T-shape and is hence termed a T zone. This zone is distributed with more sebaceous glands which secretes an oily substance to keep your face moisturized. Excessive oil and sebum production in the most exposed area of the face. Usually present along with dry cheeks. Caused by a combined imbalance of Vata and Kapha.
Causes of Oily T-Zone:
- Oil production level: High secretion of oil from the sebaceous gland.
- Environmental factors: Changing climatic conditions can alter your oil secretion.
- Other: The lifestyle and diet that you follow can also affect your oil secretion.
How to Overcome Oily T-Zone?
- Eat foods that boost your Agni so that Vata and Kapha can be balanced.
- Use cleansing scrubs/ face packs such as – green gram flour + honey + rosewater (Vata prakriti) Multani mitti + rosewater (Pitta prakriti), Kasturi turmeric + neem powder + rosewater (Kapha prakriti)
Open Skin Pores
Your skin pores appear to be larger than their normal size. Could occur on acne-prone skin and is definitely a sign of aging. It is due to disturbed Vata, in combination with Pitta or Kapha, depending upon the individual.
Causes of Open Skin Pores:
- Thick hair follicles: The pore size of your hair follicles is larger than the normal size and opens up a larger pore.
- Excess sebum secretion: More amount of oil is secreted from the sebaceous gland.
- Other factors: Some open pores occur due to genetics, age, and too much exposure to sunlight.
How to Overcome Open Skin Pores?
The straightforward solution to this is eating better. Apart from this, these can also help your skin improve its texture and tone.
- Papaya fruit face pack.
- Sandalwood-liquorice face pack.
- Multani mitti face pack.
Skin Rashes
A constant irritation or itching on your skin leads to rashes forming a red, inflamed, and bumpy surface. This can sometimes be dry and painful based on your skin type. Usually called hives. Caused due to an imbalance of Pitta. Kapha may or may not be associated. Itchy rashes on arms and thighs are quite common and may be due to causes such as allergies or excessive exposure to sunlight. Rashes on the neck, back, and buttocks may be due to causes such as fungal infections. They are also caused due to intake of incompatible foods (viruddha ahara) such as milk+fruit, milk+savoury food, heated curd, and so on. All of these factors contribute to disturbing Pitta and Kapha.
Causes of Skin Rashes:
- Allergies: Allergies due to some medication, oils, food, etc.
- Infection: Bacterial, viral or fungal infections.
How to Overcome Skin Rashes?
If you are someone who is prone to this, then these will help you prevent them once and for all.
- Consume bitter-sweet vegetables – gourds, bean varieties, moringa, and amaranth.
- Avoid all dairy products.
- Consume coriander seed or Guduchi or turmeric water with a pinch of black pepper powder for drinking purposes.
- Use nalpamaradi thailam regularly in the daytime and wash it off with gram flour.
Keeping your skin healthy is a must. Try to follow the above remedies to avoid those skin problems. Work according to your skin type.
To know your prakriti, click here.
When your skin cries you might not be able to hear it, but you can feel it. As it is the one that stands together protecting you from harsh conditions. So help your skin in staying happy and healthy.
