Thank you for joining me again this evening for our nightly podcast. I am Dr. Harrison Campbell owner and chiropractor at Restoration Health a premier sugar land chiropractors office. In tonights podcast we will be discussing hygiene and the effects it will have upon our lives.
The concept of hygiene is basic and most of you are rolling your eyes saying, of course, it is important. This is due to the fact that hygiene places a big roll in the presentation of ourselves and how we are viewed by others. The culture we live in places high value on looking presentable. As sugar land chiropractors know being dressed like a slob or having body odor will portray a negative view of ourselves, the practice, and the care which we can provide.
The aspect of hygiene which we are addressing tonight will go beyond the basics of presentation however. First and foremost having poor hygiene will affect the skin. To understand the importance of this point we must first understand what function the skin performs for our bodies. The skin is primarily a barrier for our protection. It prevents bacteria and other germs from being able to infect our body. Cleaning the skin brushes off the old layers of skin or the dead cells and removes superficial bacteria and germs from the skin.
As sugar land chiropractors can tell you having poor hygiene allows dirt, bacteria and germs a breeding ground on our skin. Now this is not saying good hygiene removes all bacteria from the skin but stating that poor hygiene allows an easier time for bacteria to take root on the skin. When we do not scrub the skin clean excess amount of the dead skin cells remain. They are not removed or to term in properly sluffed off. These dead skins cells create surface area allowing bacteria to grab onto and form a hold.
Secondly not cleaning allows oils and dirt to build up on the skin. Dirt can create irritation to the skin creating abnormal wearing and even infection and the skin becomes inflamed. Oils can trap bacteria or clog pores and allow for infections to build up in the pores in what sugar land chiropractors will term dermatitis or more commonly called acne.
Now this proper skin hygiene is important for the entire body but takes special importance in areas that are moist. What I mean by this is the areas which are more commonly warmer than others or areas which more commonly have a build up of sweat which is not wicked away. The groin, feet, and underarms are the primary areas which come to mind.
As sugar land chiropractors will tell you, the groin is one of the warmest parts of the body due to location and clothing. Combining this body temperature with the natural sweating of the body and the environmental conditions of humidity and heat and this can become problematic. Bacteria as sugar land chiropractors will tell you thrive is moist warm environments. In addition to being a breeding hot spot for bacteria constant moisture erodes the bodyís natural protections. Skin which is constantly moist becomes less structurally sounds allowing for wounds and bacteria to take hold quicker.
The feet are in the same boat as the groin which is complicated do the the movement of the feet and as well as socks and sweat. Back during the Great War renamed World War One trench foot was a common illness which troops on both sides suffered. This illness came about from constant water surrounding the feet which sugar land chiropractors will tell you allows bacteria to grow. This creates infections on the feet and in some instances allows the skin on the feet to rot away.
Now moving onto the underarms. Most people know that by the time puberty hits the use of deodorant is required for good hygiene. This is because of the body odor produced from under the arm should deodorant not be used. As sugar land chiropractors will tell you the glands under the arm secret oils and this combined with the bacteria present under the arms produces the odor which is associated with poor hygiene. The deodorant helps reduce the odors produced from this process, hints the name deodorant but in some cases special antiperspirants are required to help reduce the sweating under the arm as well.
Each of these three body areas are only part of the areas which must be cleaned to have good hygiene. These were just the most common areas in which problems arise. Recently there was a patient of mine who suffered from a skin infection on the upper leg due to damp clothes being worn for a long period of time. This moisture allows for a pore to become clogged which resulted in an infection similar to acne. While note serious at the stage in which he presented, it was irritating when he was walking due to this infection.
Therefore it is is important to remember to bath on a regular basis. The body is always good at adaptation. What this means is that should you go from bathing once a day to once a week your body odor will increase due to poor hygiene. The body will produce oils at a rate that is constant but factors in how often the skin is cleaned. The more often you clean the skin the faster the body will produce these oils. Decreasing the rate at which the skin is cleaned will allow the oils to build up due to the rate of oil production being based on the bathing ritual of one a day.
Thank you for joining us once again. I do hope you found this podcast educational and are able to implement this information into your daily life. As always should you or someone you know require the services of sugar land chiropractors please give restoration Health a call today. We will be happy to work with you on returning you to optimal health. Thank you once again and have a good evening.