The modern beauty market offers a large number of skin care products, including for different areas of the body prone to peeling. For example, lips, feet and elbows. Meanwhile, contrary to popular belief, normally the skin of the entire body should be equally moisturized, says dermatologist, candidate of medical sciences Irina Skorogudaeva . According to the doctor, dryness of a certain area of the skin, for example, the elbows, may indicate diseases and disorders in the body.
Article on the topic Eczema under control. How to deal with dry hands
Why does the skin on my elbows become dark and dry?
Harmless reasons leading to darkening and roughening of the skin on the elbows:
- The cause of the formation of scabs, thickening and blackening can be the habit of sitting at the table, leaning on your elbows. Constant thorn and pressure in such a situation leads to a change in the structure of the skin and its color (such inconveniences for the epidermis give a signal that the thickness of the skin should be increased).
- The skin on the elbow can react to changes in temperature and humidity. Crusts and roughness of the skin often form during the heating season or during the summer holidays, when a person spends a lot of time in the open sun - the skin simply dries out.
- Lack of vitamins A and E. Against the background of such a deficiency, the condition of the skin significantly worsens and in dense areas it can become dry and darken. Improper and untimely skin care can also serve as an impetus for changes in its condition.
All these reasons can be eliminated by a person at home, so getting your elbows in order is not difficult.
Treatment of atopic dermatitis
Cause-and-effect treatment involves eliminating the allergens that cause chronic symptoms. Sensitization is possible when antihistamines are prescribed as medications for allergic reactions in order to reduce the body's increased immune response.
In the case of children, the basis of treatment is the restoration of the damaged epidermal barrier and the temporary exclusion of harmful foods from the diet.
To treat rashes in the bends of the knees and elbows, the dermatologist selects steroid medications.
Symptomatic treatment consists of pharmacotherapy (treatment with drugs) - immunosuppressants, antihistamines or corticosteroids, wearing anti-allergic clothing and bandaging the affected areas after bathing. And. Dermatologists recommend phototherapy (UVA and UVB radiation) and photochemotherapy (PUVA).
What disease can black elbows be a sign of?
Not all causes of darkening and drying of the skin on the elbows are easily removable and harmless. There are a number of diseases that can cause such symptoms, and they require urgent treatment. The source of gray, cracking and hard skin may lie in the following diagnoses:
- Diabetes . This is a systemic disease that affects the entire body. Due to a lack of insulin production, the normal nutrition of all cells is disrupted, and the skin is no exception. General negative changes lead to the skin becoming dry and thinner, areas with dense skin and folds are especially affected;
- Disorders of the thyroid gland (including hypothyroidism). This also threatens to disrupt the nutrition of cells, metabolic processes slow down, the skin does not normally get rid of dead cells, which is why it becomes covered with dark, rough spots;
- Dermatological diseases . Often darkening of the skin and its peeling are symptoms of dermatitis, neurodermatitis, etc.;
- Iron deficiency anemia and autoimmune diseases cause dirty elbow syndrome.
Plasmolifting
The plasma lifting method is based on the use of the patient’s own plasma. Blood in special tubes is placed in a centrifuge. With its help, platelet-rich plasma is isolated from the general material, which is injected into the problem area. Platelets release the “growth factors” necessary for the creation of new cells, as a result of which blood circulation and metabolism are normalized - the skin of the elbows becomes smooth and taut. The required number of procedures is determined by the doctor; as a rule, the course consists of 4 to 6 procedures, which are carried out every 2 weeks.
What to do and how to get rid of black spots on elbows?
If the color or condition of the skin on your elbows changes, you should consult a doctor. During the examination, the specialist will check the condition of the thyroid gland, blood sugar levels and the absence of skin diseases.
- If everything is in order, then the reason should be sought either in a lack of vitamins, or in the peculiarities of caring for this area of the skin.
- In the case of diseases, it will be possible to cure dryness and dark spots on the elbows only after the root cause has been cured.
An important question remains: how to treat darkening and roughening of the skin? This is where numerous store-bought and homemade formulations will come to the rescue.
Baths will help remove rough spots
Baths help achieve a comprehensive effect on the problem: warm water softens the skin, and the components added to it can more easily penetrate the layers of the dermis and produce their positive effect. You can resort to the following recipes:
| Recipes and methods of use | |
| A liter of warm water is “enriched” with baking soda (50 grams) and table salt (100 grams). After the ingredients have dissolved, you can immerse your elbows in the composition for a third of an hour. After the procedure, wipe the skin with a dry, hard towel and apply moisturizer. | |
| For even greater effectiveness, the above recipe can be improved by using fresh potato broth instead of clean water. | |
| Take a teaspoon of liquid soap and ammonia per liter of water, and immerse the problem areas in the resulting mixture for half an hour. Significant changes will be noticeable quite quickly - within a week the skin will become softer and brighter. |
Such procedures allow you to comfortably and without aggressive influence cope with the problem of rough, dark elbows.
Scrubs are an effective remedy
A scrub is a cosmetic product that contains solid particles of different sizes that allow you to exfoliate keratinized and blackened skin particles with a selected intensity. Scrubs are effective in the fight against dark and rough elbows.
There are two options: you can resort to purchased products, the choice of which is large in any cosmetic store, or you can prepare the mixture yourself at home. It is worth considering that store-bought body scrubs are developed by specialists, and therefore, in addition to exfoliating properties, they also moisturize and nourish the skin, and when preparing a homemade product, you should rely on the same principle. Let's look at a few popular recipes:
| Exfoliating scrubs | |
| Coffee and honey scrub. To prepare the product, a thick, preferably even candied bee product is mixed in equal proportions with coffee grounds. The scrub is applied with light rubbing movements onto the skin of the elbow, then left for about 10 minutes and washed off with water. | |
| Based on sour cream and salt. Fat sour cream is mixed with a large amount of fine salt and the elbow area is treated with rubbing movements. |
Laser resurfacing
Laser resurfacing works in two directions – restoration of normal tissues and removal of pathological ones. This is a highly effective method of medium and deep peeling. Under the influence of the laser, the cells heat up and evaporate. At the same time, the temperature effect on healthy tissue stimulates growth factors, which in turn accelerate the regeneration process. To achieve the desired result, it is necessary to carry out several procedures (the exact number is determined by the doctor).
How to quickly whiten dark elbows on your hands
To whiten skin color on the elbows and other parts of the body, traditional medicine recipes containing acids are used. If the skin on the elbows hurts and there are small wounds and cracks, then the use of such products is contraindicated.
| Main component | Recipes for folk remedies |
| Application of lemon. Citrus fruit should be cut into slices, applied to the elbows and wrapped with a bandage for 30 minutes. After this period, you need to remove the bandages, rinse the area with clean water and apply a nourishing cream to avoid even more drying of the skin. The result in the form of softening the skin and brightening its tone can be observed after just a week of daily procedures. For whitening, rubbing zinc ointment once a day can also be used. | |
| Grated potato compress. To do this, one raw potato is grated on a fine grater, and the resulting mass is simply placed on the elbows, securing the top with a bandage. The duration of the compress is one hour. | |
| Compress made from onion pulp. Apply it for half an hour to abrasions and white plaque on the elbows. The top of the treated area is wrapped in cellophane or cling film. For a better effect, you can wrap your hand in a warm towel. | |
| To make elbows smooth, rough and blackened skin is coated with sour cream for a quarter of an hour, then washed off with warm water and olive oil rubbed into the treated area. | |
| You can clean your elbows of pigment spots and thickenings using hydrogen peroxide. Recipe: 1.5 tbsp. mix lemon juice with 1 tbsp. hydrogen peroxide. The mixture is rubbed into the thickenings for 5 minutes, after which they wait until it dries completely. Then the composition is washed off and the outer and inner sides of the elbow are lubricated with cream. |
How to remove dark spots with creams and ointments
The main purpose of the product that will be used to eliminate the roughness of dark elbows should be to moisturize and nourish. Creams and ointments should be the final stage of any scrubbing procedure to protect the skin from drying out and prevent the appearance of cracks. Usually no special compositions are required for this. Apply existing creams either for the hands or for the body in general.
For targeted lightening of the area, Zinc ointment, Hydroquinone, Revitol lightening cream, Clinicians Complex skin cleansing and lightening agent, etc. can be used. If the skin begins to itch and bother you, you can apply a thin layer of Vaseline to it.
Vitamin complexes for healthy skin
Vitamin and mineral complex Imedin - Time of perfection (Pfizer, Denmark). A distinctive feature of the drug is the Biomarine Complex and LycoPhence GS complexes, which act directly on skin cells, preventing their dehydration, enriching them with essential elements. The cost of a package of vitamins (60 pcs.) is 3,000 rubles.
Vitamin and mineral complex AlfaVit Cosmetics for beauty and health from the Russian manufacturer Akvion. Contains vitamins, minerals, flavonoids and coenzyme Q10. The VMC is designed so that all the elements are contained in 3 tablets, which must be taken during the day with an interval of 4-5 hours. This separation promotes better absorption of substances. The cost of the complex is 350 rubles.
The vitamin complex Complivit Radiance (Russia) contains 11 vitamins, 8 minerals, lipoic acid and green tea extract. Pack of 30 pcs. designed for a monthly course of use. As a result, the body compensates for the lack of microelements, healing the skin, hair and nails. The cost of vitamins is 300 rubles.
Reviews
Leah: I really liked rubbing my elbows with lemon juice - natural and effective! The most important thing is not to forget to apply cream afterwards!
Karina: Baths seemed like too much of a hassle to me. At one time the result is minimal, but I don’t want to do this for two weeks.
Sveta: Dark skin on the elbows is simply poorly exfoliated, so the best solution is a scrub. The honey-coffee mixture gives simply excellent results.
Olya: My elbows turned black due to vitamin deficiency, I started taking vitamins and everything gradually went away by itself. I didn’t take any additional measures, although I systematically scrub my entire body, maybe this had some significance.
