Menopause symptoms And It’s Treatment
What is Menopause?
Menopause is described as a permanent irreversible termination of the menstrual cycle in a woman. This is associated with a decrease in female reproductive hormones. Such hormonal variation results in a number of psychological, physical, and sexual changes in menopausal women. Related dermatological conditions can be categorized as age-related changes, physiological changes, and changes due to estrogen deficiency.
In this article, we review the skin disorders that result from the hormonal changes of menopause and other common dermatoses observed during this period and assess possible therapeutic approaches.
Can Menopause Cause a Rash?
Menopause can bring about many physical changes. As estrogen production slows and the ovaries stop producing eggs, periods become erratic and then stop. Declining estrogen levels contribute to symptoms that include:
- hot flashes
- night sweats
- mood swings
- vaginal dryness
Estrogen doesn’t only affect your body’s menstrual cycles. By stimulating the production of substances like collagen and oil, estrogen also helps your skin stay healthy and youthful-looking.
While menopause can dry out and wrinkle your skin, it doesn’t directly cause skin rashes. However, shifts in estrogen levels before and during menopause may leave your skin more vulnerable to redness, bumps, and other signs of irritation.
How to care for skin during menopause
Menopause, which officially begins one year after a woman’s last period, can bring with it some noticeable changes to the skin and hair. However, with the right care, you can lessen these effects.
Menopause, which officially begins one year after your last period, can bring with it some noticeable changes to your skin and hair. As hormone levels plummet, your skin can become dry, slack, and thin. You may notice more hair on your face and less on your scalp.
With the right care, you can lessen these effects. Here’s what dermatologists recommend.
Age spots and other signs of sun-damaged skin
If you’ve spent ample time in the sun without sun protection, you’ll likely see the effects now. Age spots and larger areas of darker skin can appear on your face, hands, neck, arms, or chest.
Skin cancer and pre-cancerous skin growths have also become more common.
What you can do
To protect your skin, you want to:
Apply sunscreen every day before going outdoors To give your skin the protection it needs, use a broad-spectrum sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher. Apply it to all skin that clothing won’t cover.
This can help fade age spots, prevent new spots from forming, and reduce your risk of getting skin cancer.
Make an appointment to see a dermatologist for skin cancer screening Your risk of getting skin cancer increases with age. As your risk rises, skin cancer screenings become so important. The earlier you find skin cancer and pre-cancerous growths, the more treatable they are.
Start skin self-exams During your dermatology appointment, ask your dermatologist how often you should examine your own skin. You’ll find everything you need to know to examine your skin, Detect skin cancer.
Ask your dermatologist to recommend treatment for age spots Before you buy any treatment for age spots, see your dermatologist for a skin exam.
Skin cancer sometimes looks like an age spot or other dark spot on your skin. If you use your age-spot treatment on skin cancer, you may fade the spot and delay treatment. Delaying treatment for skin cancer gives the cancer time to possibly grow and spread. This can make cancer more difficult to treat.
After examining your skin, your dermatologist can recommend an age-spot treatment that’s suitable for your skin.
Bruise easily
As estrogen levels fall, skin becomes thinner. Thin skin bruises more easily.
What you can do
You may be able to reduce thinning skin. Here’s how:
Apply a broad-spectrum sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher every day While this cannot thicken your skin, it can prevent further thinning. You want to apply sunscreen to your face, hands, neck, and any other area that clothing won’t cover. And you want to do this every day, even in winter.
Consult with a dermatologist about treatment options A dermatologist will be honest about what may work for you. For some women, a retinoid cream can help. Laser treatment may be another option.
Dry skin
In menopause, skin loses some ability to hold water, so skin can get quite dry. This can be especially noticeable when the air is dry.
What you can do
The following can help combat dry skin:
Wash with a mild cleanser instead of soap For mature skin, soap can be too drying. And you definitely want to skip the deodorant bars.
Apply moisturizer after bathing and throughout the day when your skin feels dry A moisturizer with hyaluronic acid or glycerin can be especially helpful.
See your dermatologist if your skin still feels dry Exfoliation or microdermabrasion may help, but you want to see your dermatologist before trying one of these. At menopause, skin becomes thinner, and trying one of these at home may cause more harm than good.
Facial hair
As levels of female hormones fall, you can see unwanted hair under your chin and along your jawline or above your lip.
What you can do
Waxing may be an option If your skin becomes too thin for waxing, your skin can tear and bleed. To remove unwanted hair, you’ll want to:
See your dermatologist A board-certified dermatologist can tell you what you can use to remove unwanted hair. Options include laser hair removal and a prescription hair-reduction cream.
Have a board-certified dermatologist perform laser hair removal, if that’s an option In skilled hands, this treatment may seem easy. Your risk of side effects increases dramatically when the person performing your laser treatment lacks the medical training and in-depth knowledge of the skin.
Types of itching during menopause
Every human body is different. The itchy feeling what one woman experiences might not be the same for the other. There may be variations in types of itching during menopause. Two prominent types are – skin itching and genital itching.
1. Skin itching
The skin becomes dry and less elastic during menopause. Due to this, a woman may become more susceptible to various products like soaps and detergents. This may irritate the skin and cause itchiness and inflammation. Some women may also experience prickling, tingling, or numbness of the skin. This condition is called ‘paresthesia’.
In exceptional cases, a woman may also experience a rare type of paresthesia. This condition is referred to as ‘formication’. Under this condition, you might have the sensation of insects crawling under your skin.
However, the symptoms may vary from mild to severe. If the symptoms lead to disruption in your daily life, you must visit a dermatologist. ( Menopause rash)
Some other skin changes you may notice are:
- Skin rash
- Dry skin
- Small bumps on the skin surface
- Reddening of skin
2. Genital itching
Women may experience vaginal irritation more frequently during menopause. This form of itching may occur more repeatedly if a woman also has vaginal dryness.
Vaginal problems may arise or worsen due to reduced levels of estrogen. This may happen during or after menopause. The tissues of the vagina become more dry and thin than normal. When this condition occurs, it makes the vagina feel sore and itchy. This condition is known as ‘vaginal atrophy.
Various factors that may lead to vaginal itching are inflammation, vaginal cancers, or irritation from detergents or soaps. ( Menopause rash)
5 Surprising skin problems during menopause
1. Acne
So the first one we’re looking at is acne. It’s amazing how many women come to me and say, “I’m getting teenage acne all over again. What on earth is going on here?”
One of the things we know that can happen is the liver can get stressed in menopause. There’s a big link between the way the liver detoxes and our skin; but, also in menopause, our digestion and elimination get affected, and, very often, everything starts to slow down. We get a bit constipated or a bit bloated, or we get sluggish bowels, and that will affect the skin as well.
So, a combination of poor liver function and poor bowel function can result in you getting acne spots and all kinds of horrible, itchy spots.
2. Skin conditions getting worse
Your symptoms can get worse. So, if you’ve already got a skin condition such as eczema, or psoriasis, or acne rosacea, then you might find that these conditions flare up a lot more, or they tend to get worse as you go through menopause.
In this situation, again, it’s exactly the same as the previous one. Your liver is going to be more stressed. There are going to be more hormonal fluctuations going on, and again, that can affect the stability of our skin.
You can even become more prone to getting these conditions if you’ve never had them before, but also if you have them, then they tend to just get that little bit worse. ( Menopause rash)
3. Skin discoloration/skin pigment change
We can also start to get discoloration of the skin in certain places. I know for me it tends to be the hands. You start getting liver spots, or you might find that you get a lot frecklier when you go out into the sun.
4. Sunburn
Because your skin is thinner, you may have more problems with the sun, generally. So, if you’ve been someone who’s been used to doing a lot of sunbathing, you might find, again, that you burn much more rapidly even though you’re taking the same precautions with your Suncreams as you have always done. And again, it’s just due to the thinning skin which may react more quickly to sunlight.
5. Slow-healing wounds
One of the other things that can happen is that wounds can take longer to heal. You might find that if you cut yourself or bump yourself, it takes a lot longer for things to resolve.
Top Skin-Care Tips For Menopause symptoms
So, what can you do about looking after your skin? Here are my top tips for helping to protect your skin that little bit better during menopause.
1. Drink plenty of water
Number one is water. This is really important, especially if your skin’s thinning, or if it’s getting more sensitive. So, remember to put that one in, right up there at the very top.
2. A healthy diet
This is really important – look at your diet! You need lots of good healthy oils in menopause, so you’re looking at your omega-3s and your omega-7s. Your omega-3s are your fish oils. If you are vegetarian or vegan, you can go for flaxseed oil. ( Menopause rash)
3. Sea Buckthorn oil
You can look at sea buckthorn oil if your skin tends to get dry. If you suffer from issues like eczema or psoriasis, then a sea buckthorn oil supplement would probably be worth investing in.
4. Vitamins for healthy skin
Vitamin E is so important, not only for helping the skin to keep wrinkles at bay but also for keeping your skin nice and elastic which is a really important thing here.
And also look at zinc. Zinc is very important for skin, especially when it comes to wound healing. Your hormones also need plenty of zinc and, sometimes, you can become a little deplete in menopause with all of the changes going on. So, again, taking a 15-milligram zinc supplement on a daily basis can work for a whole range of issues during menopause.
5. Balance your hormones
You can balance the hormones. Again, falling estrogen will have an impact on all of this, so, if it’s appropriate, you could look at our Menopause Support.
6. Don’t forget your suncream
If you are going out into the sun, then definitely look at your suncream. The problem is with the conventional ones, there are loads of chemicals in them. And, if your skin is getting more sensitive, you might find that you’re reacting to them. So, you need to look at some of the more natural skincare products.
The only thing here is we have a little bit of a dilemma. Vitamin D is vital in menopause for our mood, for our bones, for all sorts of things, and, if you put suncream on before you go out in the sun, you are possibly blocking the production of vitamin D in the skin.
Is Rash a Menopause symptom?
Lack of estrogen can make your skin itch or make it more vulnerable than usual. This increase in sensitivity makes you more likely to develop a rash. This often happens when you are prone to harmful substances such as perfumes, dyes, or itchy fabrics. ( Menopause rash)Reduced estrogen also prevents the skin from healing as easily as it did before.
It is not necessary that you will develop a skin rash during menopause. However, it is normal for you to experience skin reddening and irritation. This is typically short-lived and will stop once a hot flash disappears.
Home remedies for itchy skin
You may often avoid or treat irritated and itchy skin by making a few changes in your diet and lifestyle. You may also implement a new skincare routine that suits you the best. Some of the common home remedies to prevent and treat itchy skin are:
1. Use a cool compress
Applying a cool, wet compress to itchy areas can help to soothe irritation. Covering the area with a damp towel overnight may be particularly helpful if the itching disturbs sleep.
2. Take an oatmeal bath
Bathing in colloidal oatmeal can help to alleviate itchy skin. Colloidal oatmeal is oatmeal that is in a fine powder form. Suspending this powder in water enables the skin to absorb the cellulose and fiber contained within the oats easily. These substances soften and soothe the skin.
Use colloidal oatmeal in a warm bath. Avoid using hot water, as hot baths can make the itchiness worse. People can find colloidal oatmeal in most drug and beauty stores or online.
3. Moisturize regularly
Moisturizing the skin after a bath or shower can help to lock moisture into the outermost layer of the skin. This helps to alleviate dryness and associated itching.
Those with pruritus should choose a perfume-free moisturizer suitable for dry, sensitive skin. Natural moisturizers, such as aloe vera gel or coconut oil, are renowned for their skin-soothing properties.
4. Avoid scratching
Even though it is tempting, avoid scratching the surface. This can damage or tear the tissue, especially if you have sensitive skin. If you have itchy skin at night during menopause, wear gloves while sleeping to prevent a scar from scratching.
5. Choose what you wear
Your clothes can have a severe impact on your irritated skin. It can either soothe your already sensitive skin or make it worse. Wool and synthetic fibers can aggravate even the toughest skins. Try to wear cotton, soft, smooth, and loose-fitting clothes. Such fabrics are soft and breathable and are easy on your body.
6. Exercise
Stress does not cause skin conditions, but it may provoke certain symptoms. Regular exercise, deep breathing, and meditation are the keys to deal with stressful situations. The capability to reduce stress levels may help to control your eczema.
Medical treatments
In some cases, pruritus may persist despite home treatment. Over-the-counter (OTC) treatments or prescription medications may be necessary.
Steroid creams
Mild steroid creams are available over the counter or on prescription. These contain at least 1 percent hydrocortisone that works to soothe itchy and inflamed skin when applied directly to affected areas.
Steroid creams are for short-term use only. Using topical steroids for more than a week can cause adverse effects, such as skin thinning, redness, and blistering.
Anesthetic creams
Topical anesthetic creams, such as Benzocaine cream, numb the skin and provide temporary relief from itching. They are for short-term use only and should not be applied to broken or visibly damaged skin, as this can make any irritation worse. ( Menopause rash)
Antihistamines
Although antihistamines are used to treat allergies, some people find that they provide relief for menopause itching. Antihistamines can be applied topically as a cream or taken in tablet form.
Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT)
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is used during menopause to help replenish declining hormone levels. It can help with menopause symptoms, including hot flushes, vaginal dryness, and bone mineral loss.
Though menopause itching is not a primary reason for people to use HRT, increasing estrogen levels may reduce the itching.
HRT may come with some risks and side effects. Anyone considering HRT should consult a doctor who will assess whether it is an appropriate treatment for them.
Phytoestrogens
Phytoestrogens are naturally occurring compounds found in plants. Although they differ from estrogen produced by the body, they can bind to estrogen receptors and work in similar ways.
Research into the efficacy of phytoestrogens for treating menopause symptoms is still relatively new. However, a review article from 2014 suggests that phytoestrogens may provide some similar benefits to HRT, but with fewer or less severe side effects.
Menopause Symptoms
Your Menopause symptoms will depend on how menopause affects your skin. During hot flashes, you may notice a red flush or a sensation of warmth spreading across your skin. This flush will be most noticeable on your face, neck, and at the top of your chest.
Skin sensitivity may cause red bumps or hives to form when you come into contact with irritating substances.
Preventing itchiness during menopause. ( Menopause Symptoms)
Also read: Treating An Ear Infection During Pregnancy: Causes, Symptoms & Remedies
When to see a doctor?
If your Menopause Symptoms persist even after trying home remedies, you must schedule an appointment with your doctor or visit a clinic for medical assistance. In such cases, prescription medications may be vital.
Some over-the-counter (OTC) medicines are also available to treat such symptoms. This includes steroid and anesthetic creams, which might provide temporary relief. However, it is best to consult a doctor before starting self-treatment.
You must immediately consult a doctor if you develop a fever along with a rash, or if your rash spreads quickly to other parts of your body. ( Menopause rash)