Skin, Hair and Body

Why does skin health matter for your overall health?

Your skin is your body’s largest organ and its first line of protection. It shields the body from losing too much water and from germs, helps control body temperature by holding in or releasing heat, senses touch, pain, temperature and pressure, and makes vitamin D in sunlight.

How does Arizona’s climate affect your skin?

On average, a person living in Arizona sees more than 300 days of sun a year. In Phoenix the monthly average UV Index is 8 in June, July and August, and it never drops below 3, even in December. Arizona ranks among the states with the highest melanoma rates in the country: from 2018 to 2022, an average of 2,962 new cases of invasive melanoma were diagnosed in the state each year. Low humidity, as in the Southwest, is also a common cause of dry skin.

What everyday habits keep skin healthy?

• Use a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30, about an ounce for the body, and reapply about every two hours outdoors, or after swimming or sweating.
• Moisturize while your skin is still damp after a shower or bath; ointments and creams hold in more moisture than lotions.
• Keep showers and baths to five to ten minutes, in warm water.
• Check your skin regularly, and see a board-certified dermatologist about any spot that changes, itches or bleeds.

What are the warning signs of melanoma?

Dermatologists use the ABCDEs:

• Asymmetry: one half of the spot is unlike the other half
• Border: an irregular, scalloped or poorly defined edge
• Color: colors that vary from one area to the next, such as shades of tan, brown or black
• Diameter: usually larger than 6 millimeters, about the size of a pencil eraser, though melanomas can be smaller
• Evolving: a spot that looks different from the rest, or is changing in size, shape or color

Caught early, skin cancer is highly treatable.

How does skin change with age?

The outer layer of the skin thins, and the skin makes less oil, which makes it harder to keep moist and can leave it dry and itchy. Blood vessels in the skin become more fragile, so bruises form more easily, and wounds may heal up to four times more slowly.

What causes hair loss?

Hereditary hair loss is common, affecting an estimated 50 million men and 30 million women in the United States; it is related to hormones called androgens, and in women it becomes more common after menopause. An underactive thyroid can also lead to ongoing shedding, and people who are under a lot of stress for a long time can shed more hair than usual. Sudden loss of large amounts of hair is a reason to see a doctor, and the sooner the cause is found, the better the outcome.