Itch, scratch, repeat. Or try our nourishing skin serum.
It’s winter and the skin is dry and itchy.
It’s summer and a mosquito bites your ankle and it’s itchy.
It’s allergy season and the skin itches.
Your new medications make your skin itchy.
It’s any time and your scalp itches.
You scratch the itch, the broken cells have released histamine and amplified the itch. Now the skin is scratched, red and swollen, and even broken. And, worse, it still itches. What to do? Scratch again.
Understanding itch
It seems that the itch (a.k.a. pruritus) mechanism evolved so that animals could rid of disease-causing insects and irritating or poisonous plant matter.
In our domesticated life, chronic itch caused by dry skin, psoriasis, diabetes, or even liver disease, and it can be maddening. New and old scars can be itchy. Damaged skin can be itchy.
How does itch happen?
Maximal sensitivity is found at the basal cell layer (the innermost layer of the epidermis) both C- and Aδ-fibers transduce itch sensation. Itch follows the activation of peripheral sensory nerve endings after damage or exposure to inflammatory mediators and ascends to the brain through the spinal thalamic tract. Many mediators can stimulate these afferent nerves leading to itching, including biogenic amines, proteases, cytokines, and peptides.
How to stop the cycle of itch and scratch!
…before you damage your skin.
Solve the problem if at all possible.
Try to keep your skin well moisturized. Any of our moisturizing products will help, and those containing sea kelp bioferment have additional benefits.
Some antiallergic over-the-counter (OTC) medicines live Zyrtec work well for itchy skin.
Note: Yes, you can use hydrocortisone cream in an emergency, but long-term use of this medication will thin the skin and bring other problems.
Endocannabinoid receptors in the skin are involved in the itch sensation. Although cannabinoid (CBD) has a very low affinity for the receptors CB1R and CB2R, recent studies have suggested that CBD is an allosteric modulator and an indirect antagonist of CBRs. This is why we are now including CBD in some of our products. Read more about CBD in my blog posts https://hannahsivak.com/blog/which-cbd-for-what-use/ and https://hannahsivak.com/blog/will-your-skin-care-for-cannabidiol-cbd/
Skin Actives products to try:
Nourishing skin serum with hemp extract
Squalane, Linum Usitatissmum (Flax) Seed Oil, Rosa Canina (Rosehip) Seed Oil, Lecithin, Salvia Hispanica (Chia) Seed Oil, Punica Granatum (Pomegranate) Seed Oil, Cannabis Sativa (Hemp) Seed Extract, Argania Spinosa (Argan) Kernel Oil, Tocotrienols, Tocopherols, Astaxanthin, Lycopene, Xanthophyll, R-Alpha Lipoic Acid, Beta-Carotene, Docosahexanoic Acid, Ceramide-3, Ubiquinone, Phytosterols, Oryzanol.
Sensitive skin cream with hemp extract
Water, Simmondsia Chinensis (Jojoba) Seed Oil, Sorbitol, Butylene Glycol, Cetyl Alcohol, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Stearyl Alcohol, Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Oil, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Persea Gratissima (Avocado) Oil, Squalane, Cetyl Myristoleate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Olea Europaea (Olive) Leaf Extract, Cannabis Sativa (Hemp) Seed Extract, Beta Glucan (Yeast), Tetrahydrodiferuloylmethane (and) Tetrahydrodemethoxydiferuloylmethane (and) Tetrahydrobisdemethoxydiferuloylmethane, Cholesteryl Oleyl Carbonate (and) Cholesteryl Nonanoate (and) Cholesteryl Chloride (and) BHT, Ceramide-3, Boswellia Serrata Extract, Centella Asiatica (Gotu Kola) Extract, Polypodium Leucotomos Leaf Extract, Andrographis Paniculata Extract, Dipotassium Glycyrrhizate, Luteolin, Quercetin, Cyanocobalamin, Xylitol, Polysorbate 20, Citric Acid, Dimethicone, Carbomer, Aminomethyl Propanol, Phenoxyethanol, Methylparaben, Propylparaben.
Water, Seakelp (Lactobacillus/Kelp Ferment Filtrate) Bioferment, Sodium PCA, Bisabolol, Hydrolyzed Collagen, Sodium Hyaluronate (Hyaluronic Acid), Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Fruit Juice, Fucoidan, Astaxanthin, Fucoxanthin, Porphyridium Polysaccharide, Guaiazulene, Phenoxyethanol (and) Caprylyl Glycol (and) Sorbic Acid.
References
Avila C, Massick S, Kaffenberger BH, Kwatra SG, Bechtel M. Cannabinoids for the treatment of chronic pruritus: A review. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2020 May;82(5):1205-1212. doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2020.01.036. Epub 2020 Jan 25. PMID: 31987788.
Mounessa JS, Siegel JA, Dunnick CA, Dellavalle RP. The role of cannabinoids in dermatology. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2017 Jul;77(1):188-190. doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2017.02.056. Epub 2017 Apr 14. PMID: 28416341.
Kupczyk P, Reich A, Szepietowski JC. Cannabinoid system in the skin – a possible target for future therapies in dermatology. Exp Dermatol. 2009 Aug;18(8):669-79. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0625.2009.00923.x. PMID: 19664006.
Potenzieri C, Undem BJ. Basic mechanisms of itch. Clin Exp Allergy. 2012 Jan;42(1):8-19. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2222.2011.03791.x. Epub 2011 Jun 6. PMID: 21645138; PMCID: PMC3170689.
DISCLAIMER: These claims have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, cure, treat or prevent any disease.