Skin

The skin is made of the:
• Epidermis; which prevents skin shedding
• Basement membrane zone; which attaches the epidermis to the dermis firmly
• Dermis; which hosts sweat glands, nerves, hair and nails
• Subcutaneous layer; which provides insulation and stores lipids
(Clark & Kumar, 2002)

Relatively little is understood about the pathology of the skin when compared with other organs.

However, with the holistic perspective much improvement has been made with skin problems to resolve the issue. The skin is our largest organ as it covers our entire body. Most think of it as merely a cover to our other body systems holding it all in place and making sure we don’t leak (apart from at the appropriate places). However, it is far more complex than that. Skin has many nerves in which allows us to feel which gives us the ability to handle objects better and also to warn us if we are touching something harmful to us. It allows us to alter our body temperature through a complex system of sweat glands, hair and blood flow. Through this sweating system it also allows us to excrete toxins. (Gascoigne, 2001)

This concept of the skin being an excretory organ is what allows the holistic practitioner to help so much in skin conditions. Often, when a person suffers bouts of eczema it is due to stress. Stress causes liver heat which tries to relieve itself by making its way to the surface; this can create dandruff, psoriasis, eczema etc. It can be widespread and very difficult to relieve. Often it is red and dry and sometimes itchy.

When taking a patient who has a skin problem answers to the following questions should be obtained:
- How long has the rash been there?
- Where are the lesions found?
- What are the patients symptoms?
- Is there any family history of skin problems?
- What drug/allergies does the patient have?
- What is their past medical history?
- Does anything make it worse?
- Does anything make it better?
- Have they had any previous skin treatments?
(Clark & Kumar, 2002)

It is important to look at the rash but also it must be felt including the hair skin and nails. If possible, pictures can be useful to monitor the improvement of the rash.

References
Gascoigne, S (2001) The Clinical Medicine Guide: A Holistic Perspective. Ireland: Jigme Press.
Clark and Kumar (2002) Clinical Medicine. London: Elsevier