At first you may not even be aware that the appearance of areas of dry skin associated with menopause. However, without special care and treatment is a slight anxiety can turn into a serious problem.

Perhaps anxiety about dry skin seems ridiculous, if you are concerned about such conspicuous symptoms like hot flashes and mood swings Mood swings in women - bad character or a disease? . But changes in the skin may also become a serious problem. To defeat dry skin, you should first find out what are the causes of this phenomenon - from hormonal to lifestyle. And then you need to start to use special means to care for dry skin.

Perpetrators of dry skin

Every woman's menopause symptoms are individual and may occur in varying degrees. About 30% of women experience dry skin during menopause. Here are some of the reasons that can transform your smooth skin dry and flaky.

• Reduced estrogen levels. With age, estrogen levels drop and this affects the condition of the skin. Estrogen affects the amount of produced sebum, which moisturizes the skin. When the reduced estrogen level, and decreases the amount of moisture in the skin.
• Reducing the amount of collagen. Reduced estrogen levels Estrogen - the key to bone health   and causing reduction in the amount of collagen that maintains the smoothness and elasticity of skin. When the optimal combination of fat and collagen breaks down, the skin becomes more prone to dryness and aging.
• Too much sun. Sunburn on the face and body adorned you when you were younger, but now that the skin wrinkles begin to appear, it's time to limit yourself to the sun baths. Nothing aggravates the condition of the epidermis, as UV rays. And if the skin is dry, it is an additional reason to protect her from the sun.
• Bad habits. Smoking and alcohol can be very bad for your skin. Not only do they generally worsen the condition and appearance of the skin, bad habits also lead to a weakening of the natural barrier to retain moisture.

Update your protection

Hormonal changes do not mean that all is lost. There are many opportunities to restore health and the level of skin hydration. It may seem that to rebuild their habits will be difficult, but skin care can literally save her.

• Moisturize your skin while cleansing. If after a shower you experience unpleasant sensations of dryness, tightness or itching, you may use too aggressive means for cleaning. Reduce dry skin can, using the appropriate cleaning agents. To choose a person rich creamy with a moisturizing effect. Body soap should be used instead of moisturizing gels, for example, oil-based.
• Exfoliates. Tired of peeling? Use the exfoliator to remove dead skin from the skin flakes. So you not only achieve a fresh complexion, but also to ensure better absorption of nutrients from cosmetics. Scrubs is better left to the toughest areas of the skin - elbows, knees and feet, and for the rest is better to use chemical exfoliator. It is best to apply funds from alpha-hydroxy acids (AHA), including glycolic acid and lactic acid. Remember that AHA increases sensitivity to sunlight, so be sure to use sunscreen every day. If you have sensitive skin Sensitive skin: causes and care , Better to start with small concentrations of AHA.
• Moisturize the skin. Universal lotion, which you may have used to enjoy may not be sufficient to hydrate the skin during menopause. Select means comprising urea, glycerol or lactic acid - they effectively moisturise the skin, penetrating deep into it, in contrast to, for example, lanolin or cocoa butter. Recently, too, can be useful, but they serve as a barrier that prevents the skin to lose moisture, but does not produce its own moisture. Moisturizers are best applied immediately after the shower.
• Prevent dehydration. We must take care of the barrier that keeps moisture in the skin. Protective lotions providing a barrier should be applied over other means actually moisturizing. Protective substances not give moisture to evaporate from the skin surface.

In the new phase of life you have to get used to the new rules of care. However, skin care - is only part of the necessary actions. Major changes should relate to lifestyle - you should drink plenty of water, eat a balanced diet and avoid unhealthy habits - or new agents for the skin will not be effective enough. And do not forget about protection from ultraviolet radiation.

Be sure to use funds from the sun to prevent accelerated aging of the skin Aging Skin: The three most common problems and their solutions . Once you get used to follow these recommendations, your skin will again look healthy and radiant.

Menopause - the word on everyone's lips, and the majority of women are what it is. But with such concepts as premenopausal and menopause, not all familiar. But it turns out that they are part of menopause or just menopause.

From what period is the climax

The climax consists of premenopause, menopause and postmenopause Postmenopause - is it possible to control it?   and is a physiological period in the life of a woman when there is fading menstrual function and fertility, and then age-related changes occur in metabolism and in all organs and body systems.

Premenopause begins mainly after 45 years and ends with the last menstruation, that is, with the onset of menopause. Postmenopause - this time after the last menstrual period.

Moment of menopause is determined retrospectively, that is, only a year after the last menstrual period. It is necessary to be sure that this is really the last menstrual period, because menstrual cycle during premenopause becomes irregular with a tendency to elongation.

Premenopausal

During premenopause is a gradual decrease in the secretion of ovarian estrogen female hormone. Estrogen is the main hormone of the first half of the menstrual cycle, under their influence oocyte maturation takes place in the ovary. It stimulates the secretion of estrogen pituitary follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), which also contributes to the maturation of the egg. The greater the estrogen is released, the lower FSH and vice versa with a decrease in estrogen secretion, an increase FSH secretion that occurs during premenopause.

Estrogens contribute to the widening of the mucous membrane of the uterus. If estrogen is not enough, the egg is not fully mature and are not released from the ovary that is not ovulation Ovulation - How to determine as accurately as possible?   and the second half of the menstrual cycle, at which locally ruptured follicle must form a temporary endocrine gland and corpus luteum secrete hormone second half of the menstrual cycle, progesterone Progesterone - norm and pathology . Thus, most menstrual cycles are single or anovulatory. Thus the egg in the ovary is gradually begins to atrophy (decrease in volume), and reduces the production of estrogen. When estrogen becomes very small, and they are not able to support the development of uterine lining, it is rejected and menstruation occurs.

The danger of this period is prolonged menstrual bleeding, accompanied by the loss of a large amount of blood. This occurs because the non-uniform sustained release of estrogen contributes to the slow rejection of the mucous membrane of the uterus.

Many women premenopause condition goes unnoticed. But because estrogen affects virtually all functions of the body, it is often a so-called climacteric syndrome - a set of changes in metabolism, central and autonomic nervous system, which is a complication of physiological decline in sexual function.

When menopause syndrome appears irritable weakness, decreased performance, depression Depression - a little more than a bad mood , Severe headache (including migraine), sudden changes in blood pressure (the low, high), palpitations, sweating, flushing and heat in the head and upper body, and so on.

Menopause and postmenopause

After menopause, the fore expressed metabolic changes that lead to the emergence of many diseases. Metabolic disturbances during this period are known as metabolic syndrome.

Metabolic syndrome occurs due to a significant reduction in the amount of estrogen in the blood, which play an important role in metabolism. As a result of violations of protein metabolism cells are aging, and with them the tissue - the skin becomes dry and wrinkled, hair and nails - dull and brittle.

Disorders of fat metabolism, while reducing metabolism in general lead to the fact that the woman begins to gain weight, while the fat is stored not in the traditional areas (in the hips and buttocks) and male pattern (under the influence of male sex hormones) in abdomen and abdominal organs. This oil has a higher biological activity and contributes to disorders of carbohydrate metabolism.

Disturbances of carbohydrate metabolism appear to change the resistance of cells to insulin - cells lose the ability to grab the insulin, which means that the cells are not absorbed by the main source of energy - glucose (insulin helps metabolize it). It is a vicious cycle that contributes to even greater disruption of fat metabolism and the development of type 2 diabetes (when the insulin much, but still tissue glucose is not absorbed).

Metabolic lead to changes in the autonomic nervous system: a large amount of adrenaline, which constricts blood vessels. Insulin deficiency promotes vasoconstriction - all contributing to the formation of resistant hypertension - high blood pressure.

To overcome the difficulty of menopause can only be a healthy lifestyle, proper diet, moderate exercise and timely recourse to the doctor.

Galina Romanenko