The Skin as a Maker For Your Health

You can refer to your body as a machine, similar to a car with different part working simultaneously to keep it running. When you start a car, there are so many parts that work together to keep it running. These parts range from the Carburetor, the spark plug, the radiator, the fan belt, the battery, and name it, if you have a car then you should know that these parts work together to ensure the car performs at optimum function.

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If there is an issue with one, then it becomes an issue for all because the car will be unable to move. A good example is when the radiator is bad and water is leaking from the radiator, the car immediately overheats, and the car has to come to a stop else it could lead to an eruption of fire. This is similar to the human body because our body is just like that car. It is made up of 79 organs and these organs work together to keep each and every one of us alive but when there is an issue with one, then there is an issue with all because they all work together to ensure we are alive and fine.

Let's take the skin as one organ and see how it can be faulty, and what would happen when it becomes faulty but before we jump into this, let's learn a few things about the skin. Being the organ that covers the entire body, the skin is the largest organ in the body followed by the liver. While the skin can have its own infections, issues with our internal organs can be reflected on the skin. Issues with our heart, liver, bowels, and even hormone deficiency can reflect on the skin.

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When you come across the word "Dermis" either as suffix or prefix, you know that it is associated with the skin, so let me pick the first skin condition which is Dermatitis Herpetiformis which is a skin condition that looks phenotypically like Herpes as there are fluid filled blisters that show up on the skin but it is not related or have anything to do with the herpes virus rather it is as a result of a person eating diets extremely high in gluten and gluten is present in Rye and Wheat Barley.

Patients that have Dermatitis Herpetiformis suffer from Celiac disease which is a disease that happens when the either genetics or environmental factors causes the immune system to launch an attack on gluten thereby attacking the linings of the small intestine and in doing so, attacks the enzyme Tissue Tansglutaminase.

When patients have celiac disease, they can experience weight loss, diarrhea, bloating, and other nutritional deficiencies but from what I have written there is no sign that mentions blisters, well this is because for some people with celiac disease, the body produces antibody for another enzyme that is similar to Tissue Tansglutaminase which is Epidermal Tranglutaminase which is found in the skin which leads to a rash in the skin. The rash and itch will clear up when the patient begins a eat gluten free food.

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Another skin issue that one might experience as a result of another condition is Xanthomas and it is just the presence of fatty plaques in the skin. While these plaques do not come with symptoms people can reach the hospital because it can be a nuisance to them but while the external isn't having and symptoms attached to it, there can be something else going on inside the body because if fatty plaques can be building up on the skin, then there could be fatty plaques building up inside the body like in the blood vessels of the heart. While increased in lipid level can be high as a result of genetics, it can also be associated with conditions like liver disease or diabetes.

With xenthomas, the lipid involved can be identified by the part of the body it appears on for instance, Eruption Xanthomas appear on the buttock, shoulder or arms depicting that the patient has high triglycerides in the body which can have diabetes as the underlying issue. When the xenthomas occur in the tendons (Achilles tendon) are associated with Familial hypercholesterolemia which is as a result of high LDL in the body.

In the course of this post, we have mentioned the skin showing signs of diabetes, high Low Density Lipid in the body, high Triglyceride, and Celiac disease. The skin doesn't stop there because it can serve as our litmus to identify a condition even when we do not thing it is extremely important. Not all skin condition is a fungal one that require those antifungal tube, some shared light on health conditions inside the body.

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