 What are
whiteheads?
All adolescents,
young adults or those concerned with their healthcare are
curious to know about what are
whiteheads. This does not mean that they know
nothing; it is rather a matter of knowing more about
them. By the end of this paper we hope to have added to
what you already knew.
What are
Whiteheads?
White heads
are non inflammatory, pin head sized, white, convex,
shiny fore runners of acne that appear on face and other
soft parts of body, usually cheeks, nose, under the eyes,
chin, neck or back. On account of the apparent pus
content, which gives them their name, they look too
weird. Teenagers, already undergoing quite a few other
changes are only too depressed and psychologically
disturbed to see them appearing on their
faces.
Why do whiteheads
appear?
Human body secrets
many hormones which act as messengers. They coexist in a
balance and as long as the balance is maintained, body
functions normally and no unusual changes appear. In case
of any hormonal disturbance or disbalance unusual changes
like the appearance of whiteheads, particularly among
teenagers, are observed too frequently and with quite a
notable degree of severity. Root cause of whiteheads
is hormonal
imbalance.
What is hormonal
balance?
There are two types of hormones
Androgens which are male specific and estrogens, which
are female specific. Both the hormones exist
simultaneously in males and females. In Males, androgens
are predominant while estrogens are present in much
lesser quantity. In females estrogens dominate while
androgens too are present to a lesser extent. When both
the hormones coexist in natural ratio, they are
considered well balanced. Whenever one of the two exceeds
or recedes excessively, the balance is lost and unusual
changes start to appear.
How the imbalance
causes
whiteheads?
It is for androgens
to convey to the sebaceous glands (oil glands) as to how
much sebum (skin oil) needs to be supplied to keep the
skin moist and soft. During teenage the androgens
increase suddenly and make the glands supply superfluous
quantity of sebum to the skin. This extra oil coming out
of hair follicles finds its way to the exterior of skin.
There it meets the already present extra oil,
perspiration residue, decayed organic materials
comprising of cellular debris and commensals; the
bacteria normally present on human
skin.
These
bacteria; Propionibacterium acne and Staphylococcus
aureus find the aforementioned mix or paste, like an
enriched medium or fertile compost and start growing very
fast. The former cause acne while the later produce pus.
Contained in the closed protrusion of skin, pus appears
white in color, occasionally with slight pink coloration
at periphery. It is on account of this whitish appearance
that they are known as whiteheads. On account
of their enclosed structure they are at times known as
closed comedones. Lever performs multitasking and one of
the major tasks is detoxification or removal of the
poisonous substances or ‘toxins’ from body. Healthy
liver, hormonal balance and balanced diet are the key
factors to ensure whiteheads free, smooth
skin.
Related
Articles
-
Whiteheads on
chin
Whiteheads is
a skin condition that has been there for a long
time.Read this article to gather information about
the whiteheads on chin.
-
Treatment for
whiteheads
White heads have come to be
known to belong in a class of skin condition called
acne.Read this article to gather information about
the treatment for whiteheads .
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