Skin: The Largest Organ
Over 10% of body elimination occurs through the skin. It is often considered the third kidney. I have never spent much time worrying about my skin. I suppose I should have during my many years of life guarding and competitive swimming. As I read more about health and taking care of the body, I see more and more about the importance of our skin as an organ that takes in nutrients and toxins. Chlorine and other chemicals in our bath and pool water is an issue to be considered. Deodorants and cosmetics introduce toxins into the body via our skin.
One of the side-effects of the chemotherapy drug that I am on is a red burning pain on the bottom of my feet and the palms of my hands. This has been mild until just recently. As a support, my doctor prescribed an ointment called Biafine. Biafine is a wound dressing used to treat minor cuts, burns, skin ulcers, skin grafts or donor sites. It hasn’t been a big help but I continue to apply it to my feet and hands hoping that it will bring me some relief.
Emollients
My doctor has a patient that prefers to use Shea Nut Butter on the hands and feet. It is used for treating: fading scars, eczema, burns, rashes, acne, severely dry skin, blemishes, dark spots, skin discolorations, chapped lips, stretchmarks, and wrinkles. Like many emolients made from plants, there are two types, Certified Organic Unrefined and the Refined version. In this case the latter has been bleached and refined with chemicals such as hexane and bleached thus lacking many nutrients and phytochemicals.
Salt Baths
Taking a salt bath can also help to draw toxins through the skin. When magnesium sulfate (epsom salt) is absorbed through the skin in a bath, it pulls toxins from the body, reduces swelling and relaxes muscles. Also Dead Sea Mineral Bath Salts are natural and contain essential minerals. They too draw out toxins, stimulate circulation, and relax aching muscles and joints.
Skin Brushing
Here is yet another way to eliminate toxins, stimulate the lymph system, remove dead skin cells and encourage cell regeneration. Dry skin brushing is gaining popularity. Get yourself a soft natural bristle brush or loofa from a health food store or pharmacy. In the morning before your shower start brushing at your feet and work upwards, brushing the legs, then buttocks, then on to the chest and stomach, arms and finally the face – always brushing towards the heart. Skin cleansing and detox are essential for eliminating pesticides and other drugs and environmental chemicals.
Doug on 08.30.07 @ 10:37 AM PST [link] [No Comments]
Well we just got back from six days at the city of Berkeley’s family camp located near the entrance to Yosemite along the Tuolumne River. It is a wonderful place to spend a week as you lounge around in Adirondack chairs, read and enjoy meals cooked for you. If you feel like it, you can float or take a dip in the swimming hole. A favorite past time of the kids is to jump into the river off one of the many large granite rocks that lay scattered around. Besides the occasional crying child, it is very relaxing and a great way to camp. Tents and platforms are setup with mattresses and springs. You just need a sleeping bag and pillow and your set. 
prog·no·sis (prŏg-nō'sĭs) 
Arriving in Ketchikan we learned that it is both the salmon capital of the world as well as the rain capital. They harvest and ship all five types of salmon while enduring 150 inches of rain a year. For a second day the good weather followed us. Nick and I were stripping off layers as we took a morning tour through the Tongass Rainforest. This is considered a temperate rainforest since it doesn’t have the tropical temperatures we associate with them. Still, it supports a wider variety of life than the Amazon. As we walked along our guide taught us about the fauna and animal life. Along a salmon stream, we expected to see plenty of bear as their primary food source flopped around in the shallow waters. Turns out that they don’t like the sunshine, makes them too hot in their black fur coats. 
With all of these towns along the inside passage their economic dependency on the cruise ships is obvious. Ketchikan has 42 jewelry shops and they are working on an ordinance to limit them. All shops in town contain souvenirs from cheap little totem poles to precious gemstones and are usually crowded with cruisers. In the winter when the ships aren’t visiting, the shops all close up. 
Yesterday it was Scagway and a trip on the White Pass Yukon Railway. We toured the town a little but the rain put a damper on things. The train ride was beautiful as we climbed the same route that the gold prospectors did at the turn of the century. Thousands made the trek and only a handful struck it rich. One valley was so treacherous that they estimate they lost over 1,000 horses. The stench reached fifteen miles back to the town of Scagway.
After 48 hours on board, our ship finally stopped in Juneau. Overcast skies, low clouds and drizzle for this fine August day. Our shore excursion included a visit to a salmon farm/hatchery and a trip to the Mendenhall Glacier. The hatchery was impressive. They raise and release to the ocean over a million salmon each year. Those that survive, return to spawn, climbing a lengthy fish ladder right to their processing plant. Today, they were busy filleting and taking the roe from hundreds of fish that were in the holding pen.
Here is some good news! Nick and I are set to take our yearly summer trip together. We have taken on a few camping trips in the past but this year, due in part to my fragility, we are going in style. Saturday morning we fly to Seattle to begin a one-week cruise of Alaska’s Inland Passage. I chose a big ship with lots of teen activity going on. This way, I can relax and not stress on where to eat, where to stay, what sites to see, etc. We have chosen shore excursions that will take us on the White Pass scenic railway out of Skagway, a walk through the Tongass National rainforest, and an Orca whale-watching trip.