Dermatologist shares five things you cannot control

From skin pores to hair length, here's what Dr Gurveen Waraich said about them

New Delhi | November 30, 2021 09:40 PM IST

4 min read

Embrace your imperfections. (Source: Pexels)

As humans, we often give a lot of importance to things that are not in our control.

Hence, it is extremely significant to embrace yourself with love and try not to feel disheartened about things you can not really do anything about. Dr Gurveen Waraich discusses some such things that are beyond one’s control. Check out the post here:

Pre-menstrual breakouts

The appearance of a zit before your periods begin every month is no coincidence. “Just like bloating and mood fluctuations, breakouts or acne is a normal occurrence during PMS (premenstrual symptoms),” the dermatologist said. This, she said, is due to a fall in estrogen and progesterone (female hormones) levels just before periods and a relative increase in testosterone (male hormone) levels. “It’s normal to get 1-2 breakouts 5-7 days before periods which should start settling down once the bleeding starts. But if your acne are persistent, cystic and painful then you need to consult a dermatologist,” she said.

Hair length

Do you often find yourself worrying over the length of your hair? It might give you relief to know that hair length is “completely controlled by the length of the anagen (growth) phase of your hair follicle”, said Dr Waraich, adding how long this period lasts is mostly determined by genetics. The anagen phase for scalp hair, on an average, varies from as short as two years to as long as seven years. “An individual whose anagen phase is five years, will be capable of growing hair longer than the one whose anagen phase is only two years,” she shared.

Skin Pores

Skin pores are a cause of concern for many, but do you know what they are? They are tiny openings of oil or sebaceous glands on the skin. Dr Waraich said: ”They are a natural and essential part of our skin. It’s usually more prominent in individuals with oily skin and increases in size as we age. We cannot and don’t want to get rid of them completely. But yes, with proper skincare regime and a few treatments we can reduce its prominence.”

Moderate hair loss; 100 strands a day

“Shedding hair is natural part of hair growth cycle. Hair grows and dies in four phases: Anagen (growth phase), Catagen (transitional phase), Telogen (resting phase) and Exogen (hair shedding phase). And once the hair has completed it’s cycle it will shed off, so it’s natural to lose 100-150 hair strands daily,” she explained.

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Natural skin colour

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While fairness creams and brightening products were all the rage a few years ago, a lot has changed since then. Every person is born with a unique skin colour and must strive to take care of it in the healthiest way possible. ”There is a difference between even skin tone and whitening, aim for the former not latter. Every skin colour is unique and exotic, be proud of it,” she concluded.