Guard yourself against chill and infections too

ALLAHABAD: The biting cold of the winter does not only make everyone shiver, it also causes various fungal infections and different allergies infecting the skin. Be it dryness or cracked skin and lips, dandruff, scabies or lice, cases of infection are on the rise.
K G Singh, head of the department of Skin and Venereal Diseases at Moti Lal Nehru Medical College, Allahabad said following the winter chill, cases of scabies have recorded a sharp rise especially among the rural community."Because of the chill and dearth of woolens, blankets, etc. family members share a blanket or bed and if any one of them suffers from an infection, the rest contract it too," said Dr Singh. Things would worsen when large congregation during the kumbh mela takes place, he added.
Talking of rashes, eczema and other skin infections, Singh said outbreak of rashes on the body changes the way the skin looks and feels. Rashes can be localised to one area or may spread. Common types of rashes include scaly patches on skin caused by fungal or bacterial infection, and red, itchy bumps or patches all over the body. Although rashes are seldom dangerous, self-diagnosis is not a good idea, he added. In many cases it could be a hereditary skin problem which often surfaces during childhood in the form of chapped cheeks and scaly patches on the scalp, arms, legs, and torso but later on, may affect the inner sides of the elbows and knees as dermatitis on the hands, around the eyelids, genitals and other parts of the body, said Dr Singh.
As the mercury dips, problem of lice and dandruff too become common.
Detailing lice infestation, Dr Amit Kumar Tiwari, whose PhD research in AU's department of Botany was on the subject, said the problem aggravates in winters because of hair oil which is a bad conductor of heat and forms a protective layer retaining moisture within the strands and provides conducive habitat for lice growth.
Dr Tiwari said non-toxic, natural products from plants, especially essential oils, are good candidates as safer control agents and provide good anti-lice activity and low level of resistance. Olive, neem, Tea tree, Lavender and Mentha oils are all known to be good lice repellants, he said. Similarly, mixture of Neem and lemongrass oils prevents breeding of lice eggs.