De-Stressing Your Way to Healthy Hair, Skin, And Nails

With the stress of finding a way to pay all the bills, costs associated with sending your kids back to school, and allergy season wearing your body down, it’s no wonder why your hair, skin, and nails are the least of your concern. But did you know that stress can be very damaging to your hair, skin, and nail health?

Stress and the Skin
When a person becomes stressed, the level of the body’s stress hormone (cortisol) rises. This in turn causes an increase in oil production, which can lead to oily skin, acne and other related skin problems. Even if you do not typically get acne, you can develop temporary stress-related acne due to increased oil production. While dermatologists are still debating whether stress actually causes skin disorders, they seem to agree that stress triggers or aggravates skin conditions such as acne, hives, eczema, psoriasis, rosacea, warts, cold sores and blisters. So to keep your skin healthy, it is important to control your stress level. It can make a difference between having smooth clear skin and having a skin condition that may need medical attention.

Stressed-Out Hair
There are many reasons why men and women lose their hair, but stress may be the primary reason for unexplained hair loss. When someone is under stress, hair can go into the telogen (fall-out) phase. Telogen effluvium is a very common hair loss problem that can occur up to three months after a stressful event. After the initial hair loss, hair usually grows back in six to nine months. But if it does not, consult a dermatologist as the hair loss may be due to a medical condition.

Effects of Stress on Nails
Some people develop the nervous habit of biting their nails or picking at them when they feel stressed. Another stress-related nail habit is rubbing the fingers over the thumb nail, which can create a ridge across the nail. This rubbing causes a distortion of the nail plate, and when the nail grows, a raised ridge forms in the middle of the nail. Additionally, physical or emotional stress can cause white horizontal lines to appear across the nails. Brittle, peeling nails also are a common side effect of stress. To control the effect stress has on your nails, it is important to control your physical reaction to stress. So avoid biting, sucking, or rubbing your nails.

How to Reduce Stress
The easiest way to reduce stress is to change the way you react to a situation. But we all know that is easier said than done. Some other ways to reduce the effect stress has on your body include, adequate rest, exercise, proper nutrition, and relaxation. An adequate amount of sleep can help recharge and rejuvenate the body, making it more resilient. Exercise helps release hormones (endorphins) in the body that can reduce stress. Proper nutrition provides vitamins and nutrients to promote hair growth, nail strength, and skin health. And relaxation calms the body, soothes the mind, and may even give you the boost you need to face those stressful events head on. So when the stress becomes overwhelming, take a moment to take a break. Walk in the park, go to the spa, or simply have a good laugh with friends and family. Something as simple as a change in perspective can make a difference. So tonight, pour a glass of wine (or non-alcoholic beverage of your choice) and toast to looking at the glass half full.

By Emily James (Avenue L Salon And Spa)