Many older people suffer from dry skin, particularly on their lower legs, elbows, and forearms. The skin feels rough and scaly and often is accompanied by a distressing, intense itchiness. Low humidity — caused by overheating during the winter and air conditioning during the summer — contributes to dryness and itching. The loss of sweat and oil glands as you age also may worsen dry skin. Anything that further dries your skin — such as overuse of soaps, antiperspirants, perfumes, or hot baths — will make the problem worse. Dehydration, sun exposure, smoking, and stress also may cause dry skin.
Dry skin itches because it is irritated easily. If your skin is very dry and itchy, see a doctor. Dry skin and itching can affect your sleep, cause irritability, or be a symptom of a disease. For example, diabetes and kidney disease can cause itching. Some medicines make the itchiness worse.
The most common treatment for dry skin is the use of moisturizers to reduce water loss and soothe the skin. Moisturizers come in several forms — ointments, creams, and lotions.
Ointments are mixtures of water in oil, usually either lanolin or petrolatum.
Creams are preparations of oil in water, which is the main ingredient. Creams must be applied more often than ointments to be most effective. One of most known skin care cream Tretinoin is used to to treat aged, sun damaged skin.
Lotions contain powder crystals dissolved in water, again the main ingredient. Because of their high water content, they feel cool on the skin and don’t leave the skin feeling greasy. Although they are easy to apply and may be more pleasing than ointments and creams, lotions don’t have the same protective qualities. You may need to apply them frequently to relieve the signs and symptoms of dryness. Moisturizers should be used indefinitely to prevent recurrence of dry skin.
A humidifier can add moisture to the air. Bathing less often and using milder soaps also can help relieve dry skin. Warm water is less irritating to dry skin than hot water.
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Tags: aged skin care, dry skin, dry skin care, ointments, reduce water loss, skin care cream
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Background
Rimonabant (Acomplia, Zimulti), a selective cannabinoid-1 receptor (CB1) blocker, has been shown to reduce body weight and improve cardiovascular risk factors in obese patients. The Rimonabant in Obesity–Lipids (RIO-Lipids) study examined the effects of rimonabant on metabolic risk factors, including adiponectin levels, in high-risk patients who are overweight or obese and have dyslipidemia.
Methods
We randomly assigned 1036 overweight or obese patients (body-mass index [the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters], 27 to 40) with untreated dyslipidemia (triglyceride levels >1.69 to 7.90 mmol per liter, or a ratio of cholesterol to high-density lipoprotein [HDL] cholesterol of >4.5 among women and >5 among men) to double-blinded therapy with either placebo or rimonabant at a dose of 5 mg or 20 mg daily for 12 months in addition to a hypocaloric diet.
Results
The rates of completion of the study were 62.6 percent, 60.3 percent, and 63.9 percent in the placebo group, the group receiving 5 mg of rimonabant, and the group receiving 20 mg of rimonabant, respectively. The most frequent adverse events resulting in discontinuation of the drug were depression, anxiety, and nausea. As compared with placebo, rimonabant at a dose of 20 mg was associated with a significant (P<0.001) mean weight loss (repeated-measures method, –6.7±0.5 kg, and last-observation-carried-forward analyses, –5.4±0.4 kg), reduction in waist circumference (repeated-measures method, –5.8±0.5 cm, and last-observation-carried-forward analyses, –4.7±0.5 cm), increase in HDL cholesterol (repeated-measures method, +10.0±1.6 percent, and last-observation-carried-forward analyses, +8.1±1.5 percent), and reduction in triglycerides (repeated-measures method, –13.0±3.5 percent, and last-observation-carried-forward analyses, –12.4±3.2 percent). Rimonabant at a dose of 20 mg also resulted in an increase in plasma adiponectin levels (repeated-measures method, 57.7 percent, and last-observation-carried-forward analyses, 46.2 percent; P<0.001), for a change that was partly independent of weight loss alone.
Conclusions
Selective CB1-receptor blockade with rimonabant significantly reduces body weight and waist circumference and improves the profile of several metabolic risk factors in high-risk patients who are overweight or obese and have an atherogenic dyslipidemia.
Source Information: From the Quebec Heart Institute, Laval Hospital Research Center, and the Division of Kinesiology, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Laval University, Ste.-Foy, Que., Canada (J.-P.D.); the Service of Therapeutic Education for Chronic Diseases, University Hospital Geneva, Geneva (A.G.); and the Department of Body Composition and Metabolism, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Göteborg, Sweden (L.S.). Full Article at The New England Journal of medicine Website
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Technorati Tags: acomplia, obesity, rimonabant, Weight Loss, weight management, zimulti
Tags: acomplia, obesity, rimonabant, Weight Loss, weight management, zimulti
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