Dermatology Myths Debunked: Truths About Your Skin

Welcome to another episode of Skin Side Out where Dr. Zain and Courtney dive into the world of skincare myths and facts. In this episode, they tackle common misconceptions about minoxidil, sunscreen, wound care, sunscreen, and various other skincare topics. They also discuss the importance of professional skincare advice to navigate the sea of misinformation online. From whether shaving causes hair to grow back thicker to if natural skincare products are truly better, they clear up many widespread skincare myths with scientific explanations and professional insights. Tune in to make sure your skincare routine is based on facts, not myths!

00:00 Introduction and Myth Busting Overview
01:25 Minoxidil and Hair Shedding
03:48 Sunscreen Myths and Facts
06:26 Vitamin D and Sun Exposure
07:56 Wound Care Best Practices
10:38 Hair Growth and Shaving Myths
12:49 Blue Light and Skin Health
14:35 Mites on Your Skin
15:34 Pores and Water Temperature
17:45 Melanomas Without Pigment
19:31 Sunscreen for Darker Skin Types
21:39 The Impact of Diet on Acne
23:18 Neosporin and Wound Care Myths
25:17 Debunking Natural and Clean Skincare
27:47 Understanding Acne Causes
28:51 Frog Pee and Warts: A Southern Myth
30:28 Differences in Men's and Women's Skin
31:48 Adult Acne: It's Not Just for Teenagers
32:52 Retinoids: Myths and Facts
34:19 Sun Damage vs. Genetics in Skin Aging
35:22 Skin Irritation: When It's Not a Good Sign
38:30 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Creators and Guests

Host

Courtney Carroll, LE

Courtney Carroll, LE is a licensed aesthetician with extensive experience performing non-invasive cosmetic treatments and customized skincare.

Host

Dr. Zain Husain, MD

Dr. Zain Husain, MD FAAD FACMS is a dual board-certified dermatologist and Mohs micrographic surgeon with fellowship training in cosmetic dermatology.

What is Skinside Out?

Welcome to Skinside Out, where science meets beauty, the ultimate dermatology podcast! Dive deep into the fascinating world of skin health with expert insights, evidence-based discussions, and myth-busting truths. Each episode explores the medical, cosmetic, and surgical aspects of dermatology, while keeping you informed about trending skincare topics. Whether you’re a skincare enthusiast, medical professional, or just curious about how to achieve your best skin, Skinside Out is your go-to resource for staying informed and inspired.

27 Skinside Out - Myths
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Dr. Zain: Welcome to Skin Side Out. We're Science Meets Beauty. I'm your host, Dr. Zane with Courtney. So today I thought we were gonna do something a little fun, a little different. We're gonna do some myth busting. How does that sound?

Courtney: I love that.

Dr. Zain: All right, so what we're gonna do is we received some.

Statements from some of our followers, and we just wanted to, you know, let you know whether we think it's a myth, it's a truth, and then give a little bit of explanation so you guys can learn something. Um, Courtney made these [00:01:00] beautiful little signs here, so we're gonna be so

Courtney: crafty. I know. So cute. I love it.

You wanna test it out? Yeah, let's go ahead. All right.

Dr. Zain: Myth or truth. Dr. Zane is the handsomest dermatology I ever worked with.

Courtney: Myth.

Dr. Zain: All right, let's get right into it. Um, so let's start off with, and the questions will be on the screen and, uh, these are questions that we haven't seen yet, so we're gonna answer on the fly.

Um, so Minoxidil can cause hair shedding.

Courtney: Oh yeah. Ah, got you.

Dr. Zain: So Minoxidil can cause hair shedding. So Minoxidil is the key ingredient in Rogan. Um, originally a blood pressure medication, but we often use it in dermatology to help with regrowing hair, and it is a great medication. It works really well for androgenetic alopecia. However you can experience initial hair shedding.

So why do we get that hair shedding?

Courtney: Um, [00:02:00] usually we see it because those hairs essentially were gonna fall out anyways. Mm-hmm. And so what's happening is while that new hair is being stimulated and you're getting that shedding effect, it can be a little frightening sometimes. Mm-hmm. Um, but those hairs were gonna shut out anyways, and the minox still is essentially just, um, making that a occur faster.

Dr. Zain: Yeah. And just to kind of educate, so there are three phases of the hair growth cycle antigen. Um, Tigen and Telogen. Mm-hmm. So 85% of your hair approximately is in that antigen phase. Mm-hmm. And then there is the tigen and te telogen phases, um, afterwards that lead to shedding. So when Minoxidil works, it's kind of.

Almost kind of sinking all the hairs to come into the growth, same growth phase, so things that we're going to naturally shed anyway in the next several weeks to months. It just gets prematurely pushed out so those new hairs can come in.

Courtney: I know I definitely misread that question because I was thinking about that myth that people, that myth, that people say that [00:03:00] if you.

Stop minoxidil that you'll lose more hair. And that's also a myth because, um, I think people, it's just stark contrast where you're used to seeing the hair. Mm-hmm. And then it's the hair that you are gonna lose anyways because of androgenetic, you know, um, influences or hormonal horal. Yep. And so it's, that's also a myth.

But

Dr. Zain: yeah, so I mean, I never understood this argument. I have like patients who refuse to go on Minoxidil because. They're afraid that once they stop, they're gonna lose their hair. But you're gonna lose your hair anyway. Yeah, exactly. So you might as well do something.

Courtney: Mm-hmm.

Dr. Zain: And what we're using the minoxidil for is to artificially keep your hair.

Mm-hmm. So we're almost kind of trying to fight against your genetics. Mm-hmm. And hormones artificially stimulating. So if you don't wanna be bald, just use it. Just use the minoxidil. All right. So sunscreen causes cancer.

Courtney: Ugh. Get out of here. I hate, I, let me tell you, I hate, hate, hate. And I think like we've seen this like [00:04:00] resurgence of like this like.

Natural, yada, yada, you know? But when, even if you're looking at chemical sunscreen and you're looking at the studies that they done, um, and even regardless of like the cancer, some people will say like, it will change your hormones or stuff like that. It was a crazy amount of time and a crazy amount of sunscreen. Mm-hmm. So I just think it's not realistic when you think about how much you're applying sunscreen in your day-to-day life.

Dr. Zain: Yeah. And like rodent studies from the past, you know. The surface area to like sunscreen ratio. Mm-hmm. I mean, it just doesn't translate into real life. And we know that UV light is a carcinogen. We know that there is so much scientific evidence. I'm a MO surgeon. I operate on skin cancer every day and we know that that is a truth.

Courtney: Mm-hmm.

Dr. Zain: Whether these chemical filters potentially cause. Any skin cancer, we don't know that. And we actually have done many studies and nothing has proven

Courtney: that. Mm-hmm. [00:05:00]

Dr. Zain: So if I'm gonna go with a bet, I'm gonna go with protecting myself because I know I'm protecting myself from a known carcinogen.

Courtney: Mm-hmm.

Dr. Zain: And all this false information and, you know, misguided, you know, false media that I think we see all the time. Mm-hmm. I think that patients are getting their information from the wrong sources. Mm-hmm. And they're just. Opting not to protect themselves and they may get skin cancer in the future.

Courtney: And if you're worried about it, just use zinc.

You know, zinc we use on babies, we use Yeah. Right. Dest. Yeah. That's zinc

Dr. Zain: oxide. So, I mean, it's an inert mineral. Um, we need it in our bodies. Mm-hmm. So it can't be bad for us. Mm-hmm. So I do think that, um, it's a little misguided, some of these claims that people make.

Courtney: Yeah. Yeah. It's, um, funny. I will hear people say like.

Will I make my own sunscreen with like, oh, please.

Dr. Zain: With what Testing.

Courtney: With what Testing. You know, like coconut oil, which is gonna probably make you burn. You know,

Dr. Zain: it's just so crazy. I mean, just to test SPF, I mean, it's a [00:06:00] process. Mm-hmm. And we're actually testing at different levels the amount of time it takes with exposure to UV light in order to get a sunburn.

Courtney: Yeah.

Dr. Zain: I don't know any of those people are doing those DIY sunscreen, doing any of those studies. And on top of that, it has to be regulated by the FDA. There are stringent rules, um, that need to be satisfied for it to be approved for public safety.

Courtney: Yeah,

Dr. Zain: a hundred percent.

Courtney: Um, so next one is you need sun exposure to get vitamin D.

Myth. So I think this comes from, um, you know, like people being vitamin D deficient, and I think that's such a real common problem, especially in our darker skin types. We see that. Um, but you know, and you'll hear people say like, oh, you just need to go in the sun for 15 minutes. Un unprotected a day. There are so many foods that you can get that vitamin [00:07:00] D and those nutrients from that you don't need to put yourself at risk.

Mm-hmm. With the sun, you can get those elsewhere.

Dr. Zain: Yeah. And oral supplementation. Mm-hmm. What's wrong with that? So you can get your vitamin D sufficiently from supplements and from your diet. You don't have to get sun exposure. Yes, you can get vitamin D production with UV exposure, but you're also.

Potentially getting skin cancer.

Courtney: Yeah.

Dr. Zain: So I'd rather go the safer route.

Courtney: Yeah. Plus, yeah, they just make so many vitamin D like supplements. Now you can take a gummy if you don't wanna swallow a pill. Like it's so easy. I'd Yeah, much rather.

Dr. Zain: And to be honest, like. Just with society nowadays, a lot of people are just indoors more.

They're working from home. Mm-hmm. I don't see kids playing out as much. Mm-hmm. So the amount of vitamin D that you would need mm-hmm. To get from sun exposure is so high that you are putting yourself at risk for skin cancer down the road.

Courtney: Yeah, exactly.

Dr. Zain: Okay. Keeping your wound moist and covered is optimal [00:08:00] for healing.

Hmm.

Courtney: That's the truth. That's the truth.

Dr. Zain: And as a dermatologic surgeon, I am really big on this because. A lot of my patients are almost trying to tell me that they need to air it out for it to heal better, but we know through a lot of studies, um, especially in the wound care literature, that moist wounds heal faster.

Courtney: Yeah. My grandma was under that impression when she got her mo surgery up in New York, um, a couple months ago, and I remember, you know, talking to her after she had it done and I said, okay, well make sure you know, you're keeping it covered. And she goes, well. I just need to air it out so it can dry up and scab up and flake off.

And I'm like, no. And you know, of course it's right in the center of her forehead. Yeah. I'm like, you'll have a worse scar if you do that. You just need to keep it well moisturized. Did she

Dr. Zain: listen to you?

Courtney: No, of course not. Um, and that's okay. Um, it healed up, but she, I mean, you know, she's 90 so I don't think she's too concerned about the

Dr. Zain: scar.[00:09:00]

And there is a difference between moist. And excessively moist. Mm-hmm. Right? Mm-hmm. So you don't want the wound to be like in puddles of like liquid. Mm-hmm. And you know, it needs, you know, it doesn't need to be in a sweltering like moist puddle. Yeah. Like, I don't know how else to describe it. Yeah. So people like think like.

They need to like douse it and it's like dripping. Yeah, it's

Courtney: like oozing. Yeah.

Dr. Zain: That's not what you want. It's nasty. Just a thin layer. Yeah. That's all that's needed. Aquaphor and Vaseline are great. You do not need to do anything more fancy than that because your wounds will heal.

Courtney: Yeah. You do not need Neosporin.

That should have also been on there. Um, yeah.

Dr. Zain: The skin is the largest organ of the body. This is a truth. Truth. Um, by. Sheer weight. Um, it is the largest organ of the body. It has the highest surface area. Um, it is remarkable 'cause it is our [00:10:00] barrier and our safety net from the environment. So it has a lot of different functions.

So people tend to think that, you know, skin really isn't doing much for us, but it really is protecting us. It's regulating metabolism. It's, you know, producing vitamins such as vitamin D. Um, it is also responsible for, you know, just being able to excrete certain, you know, materials that we are, like toxins and waste products too.

Courtney: Yeah. Just getting a picture of how ugly we would all look without our skin. Yeah, just like muscles and meat. Okay. Um, your hair grows back thicker after shaving.

Dr. Zain: So this is a big old lives tale.

Courtney: Mm-hmm. This is such a, I hear this all the time from my laser hair patients, because when they get laser hair, the, the hair needs to be shaved.

So very frequently they'll say, well, if I shave, you know, let's say we're treating the, if I [00:11:00] shave my legs, won't it come back thicker? No, it won't. Um, the reason people think that is because once you shave, then you have that new hair coming in and it's looking thicker from that, um, end of the hair shaft essentially.

Yeah. Um, and so it's, the hair will not come back thicker. Um, yeah. Shave.

Dr. Zain: Yeah. I mean, you have to shave. Otherwise the laser hair removal treatment won't work.

Courtney: Mm-hmm.

Dr. Zain: Um, otherwise the laser, the light energy will focus on the actual hair shaft. Mm-hmm. Instead of at that hair bulb where we really need to target, um, those germinal cells to that produce hair.

Courtney: Yeah. And it can put you at risk of burning, you know? Mm-hmm. With too much heat being, um, on the hair itself and not so much on the follicle. It creates more heat on the skin, which can, you know, put you at risk for burning.

Dr. Zain: So for women, like when they're shaving that her face is. You can pretty much assure them they're not going to get thicker hair there.

Mm-hmm. It's just the caliber of their hair, the density and [00:12:00] just the diameter of that shaft is what we're seeing when you're shaved down. Exactly. It's a little thicker there.

Courtney: Mm-hmm.

Dr. Zain: Um, and, you know, there are benefits to shaving, right. So, um, we know that shaving is a form of exfoliation. Mm-hmm. Um, that's why men tend to.

I tend to have a little bit more youthful looking skin that, um, especially those who shave. So that's something that we know you do. You do a lot of derma planning. Mm-hmm. And that exfoliation does help with cell renewal. Mm-hmm. Helps to exfoliate those dead skin cells. Mm-hmm. And really helps to stimulate, um, some.

You know, uh, you know, collagen production,

Courtney: yeah. It helps your products work better. Um, and I, for women, I mean, it just helps with, um, the appearance. When you apply makeup, I hear that all the time from my patients. That's their favorite part of the dermaplaning. Just being able to have like that smooth, uh, kind of filtered look.

So, yeah. Yeah. Big fan. Okay.

Dr. Zain: Blue light from screens can affect your skin. True.

Courtney: Mm-hmm.

Dr. Zain: So this is kind of crazy because we are [00:13:00] always in front of screens these days, right? Mm-hmm. So from our cell phones to computers to iPads, um, so what does Blue Light do to our skin?

Courtney: it can. You know, have similar, yeah, I say this lightly, but it can have similar effects to like UV in the sense, you know, for example, our, our melasma patients, um, we can actually see like a worsening of their melasma from that chronic blue light use.

Um, so it can damage some of like the, the. Cells within the skin, essentially. Mm-hmm. Um, and so that's why it's so important to wear your sunscreen every day. You know, even when people say, oh, well I don't go outside. Mm-hmm. Well, are you sitting in front of your computer every day? Are you on your phone?

100%.

Dr. Zain: And you know, with blue light, um, you know, there can be benefits to it as well. We use it in dermatology mm-hmm. For certain procedures. However, with that chronic blue light, um, exposure, it can lead to premature aging, it can worsen melasma, um, which is that [00:14:00] hyperpigmentation, that can be one of the stimuli in addition to heat.

Courtney: Mm-hmm.

Dr. Zain: Um, so we often recommend using tinted mineral sunscreens to help protect you from that. Because the iron oxide in those tinted sunscreens actually protect you from blue light and from heat. So that's why I'm a big proponent of using those tinted sunscreens for our melasma patients. And in general it just offers more protection.

Courtney: Yeah, I think a lot of people will be surprised to find that out. 'cause that's just not something we think about day to day.

Dr. Zain: So yeah. And cosmetically, I think it looks really good. It like blends in with your skin. It gives you a little bit of a nice glow. So I like it.

Courtney: Yeah. Big fan. Yeah. Alright. Everyone has mites on their skin.

Gross, nasty. But it's true. Yeah.

Dr. Zain: Um, so our Good Pal, the Dex Mite is one of the most famous mites, but we have mites all over our skin. Um, and these mites usually are just, you know, very. Passive, you know, inhabitants of our skin, but some of them do cause [00:15:00] inflammation, especially in our rosacea patients.

Mm-hmm. So we see dex leading to rosacea and flares. Um, and, you know, mites and themselves are normal. Mm-hmm. It is part of our normal skin flora. But you know, when there's an imbalance, just like with anything like with the east or. Bacteria, we can get problems.

Courtney: Yeah, if you wanna sleep at night, definitely do not Google Dex Mites.

They're kind of ugly.

Dr. Zain: Oh, I think they're adorable. Please.

Courtney: Next you're gonna say scabies. They're cute. Oh, they're cute. I don't want 'em. Yeah.

Dr. Zain: Warm water opens pores and cold water closes them

Courtney: all. Smith.

Dr. Zain: All right, so tell us about pores.

Courtney: This quite, this is such a, also like a old wives tale. I feel like I heard this growing up my whole life.

So you're, you're always supposed to wash with warm water or hot water on your face and then, you know, splash cool water after. That's always what I heard [00:16:00] growing up. But, um, the truth is that the water does not impact the, the temperature of the water does not impact. That. And in fact, when you're using really hot water, you actually risk, um, causing, like skin irritation, dehydration in the skin.

So we actually don't recommend using really hot water, like lukewarm water is typically what we'll recommend, but the, the change in your pores does not, is not affected again by the temperature. Um,

Dr. Zain: pores a natural structure of your skin, right? So that's kind of where we have these openings, um, from the skin, from the dermis, epidermis into the environment, right?

So sweat. Um, and other, you know, like sibo, things like that get excreted pores do not change, you know, their size do not change. Mm-hmm. So, contrary to what people think, oh, I have really enlarged pores. What can I do to improve 'em? It really can't change the size of the pore. Mm-hmm. You can maybe minimize the appearance of it, but it's really not changing the structure.

A lot of it's genetically predetermined. Mm-hmm. So just wanted to put that out there.

Courtney: Yeah. And it's definitely [00:17:00] gonna be more, you know, procedural. It's, it's not gonna be. Hot and cold water that's gonna make that difference in the appearance.

Dr. Zain: And I have a question for you as an aesthetician, why do you use the steamer then?

Courtney: I honestly use it just to help soften the skin when I'm doing extractions. Okay. Um, and I don't know, I think it also just feels nice. Like, it does feel nice. I love the steam. I just think it's very relaxing and especially in like the, um, allergy season months. Mm-hmm. Like when people are a little congested.

Yeah. Or like during like December. Um, I just think it's nice, a nice touch. But yeah, it's not really doing much. I think it's

Dr. Zain: a lot of fluff. It's, it's a nice experience. Um, don't get me wrong, but I don't think it's doing much for your pores or anything like that.

Courtney: Yeah. I throw it on for like two minutes and I'm like, all right, that's enough.

Let's get going. Yeah.

Dr. Zain: All right. Melanomas can sometimes lack pigment. True. And these are the scariest of melanomas in my opinion, because they can look. Very similar to just normal moles [00:18:00] or other benign growths. And it's very subtle differences or symptoms that you have to be really in tune to. Um, you know, every now and again I do see an A Meno melanoma.

These are melanomas that do not have the classic. Pigment with, you know, the irregular borders and the different colors. So it is really important to see a border certified dermatologist who's really skilled at the nuances because an A meno melanoma can go un undetected.

Courtney: Mm-hmm.

Dr. Zain: And. It could be fatal.

Courtney: Yeah. Yeah. Those definitely are the scariest ones. They just, when you see, you know, pictures of them, um, you're just like, gosh, that's so scary. Yeah. It's so scary. Like, what made you biopsy? You know, so. Yeah.

Dr. Zain: And you know, always listen to your patients. Yeah. You know, I always say that they're telling you something, um, clues.

Courtney: Mm-hmm.

Dr. Zain: If it popped up recently, if it's having symptoms. I have a low threshold for just biopsy [00:19:00] because there's something not right. The patient has noticed it, you know? I think it's much better to be safe than sorry.

Courtney: I agree. And I was just about to say, you know, as patients it's so important to advocate for yourself because your gut feelings will tell you.

Mm-hmm. You know, I had, um, an atypical mole on my arm years ago, and actually I worked with a dermatologist and I told her, I said, I really think this mole needs to be biopsied. And she looked at it and was like, no, it's fine. Yeah. And ended up being severely atypical and, you know, you, you just gotta listen to your gut and you really gotta advocate for yourself.

Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah. Darker skin types don't need to wear sunscreen. I hope we all know the answer to this. Um, it's so important and, you know, we've touched on this before, but for so long we only had these, um, cosmetically elegan sunscreens that were really pasty and really, um, you know. Thick and would turn people of color, kinda that grayish color.

And so I think that paired with the stigma of just, oh, well I don't [00:20:00] burn in the sun. Mm-hmm. So I don't need sunscreen really created this, um, adversity to, to sunscreen. But, you know, we're finding, um, more and more each day. I mean, it doesn't matter skin color. Uh, you can. Skin cancer. And then even just from a cosmetic standpoint, um, on worsening of, uh, hyperpigmentation, you know, acne, if you're trying to get those marks, um, to disappear faster.

Mm-hmm. Sunscreen, sunscreen, sunscreen. So we're finding out, you know, more and more that this is so, so true.

Dr. Zain: Yeah, absolutely. So younger Zane, I will admit to not believe that he needed sunscreen until he got sunburned in Greece one year. So, um, you know, I. I was always out in the sun when I was a kid, swimming, playing sports, just being outside.

And I would just tan. I would never burn. Mm-hmm. Um, and that's just what I thought. I mean, I didn't need sunscreen. And then, you know, I was backpacking through Europe, um, when I was in college. And I was on a beach [00:21:00] in Greece. It was really hot. Sun was not to say crazy intense. And I actually burned. And after that moment, then I realized, oh, maybe I do need to wear sunscreen.

And of course, as I went through my medical training and education, um, yeah, I've been wearing sunscreen ever since residency. Um, and, you know, I can't even imagine going without sunscreen. So I always tell my patients, especially, especially with skin of color,

Courtney: mm-hmm.

Dr. Zain: That it is a must. And even if you have darker skin types, you are not immune from developing skin cancer.

Mm-hmm. Um, I have had patients with, you know, type six skin mm-hmm. With skin cancer. Yep. Um, so it does happen to all skin types and, you know, no one is immune.

Courtney: Yeah. A hundred percent

Dr. Zain: sugar and diet can lead to acne breakouts. True. So, whoops. Um, so I think everyone's experienced it at some [00:22:00] point in their life.

Yeah. Especially if you had acne. Um, I definitely notice. My acne, getting aggravated with sugary foods, especially the ones that you shouldn't be having. Mm-hmm. Candy, soda, all that bad stuff.

Courtney: Mm-hmm.

Dr. Zain: Um, but processed foods. Mm-hmm. Fried foods, um, sometimes dairy, red meat, um, all these things can be pro-inflammatory and can lead to.

Breakouts. I mean, how about you? Do you notice that your skin breaks out more with sugar?

Courtney: Yeah, I do. Um, especially like on the forehead or, um, sometimes like I'll get one or two on like the jawline. Um, but I, it's hard 'cause um, I don't know, I don't eat a ton of sugary stuff anymore. Mm-hmm. Um, yeah.

Dr. Zain: Yeah.

Courtney: So,

Dr. Zain: and you know, commonly we used to hear like, oh, chocolate causes.

Yeah. Um, acne. Well, it's not the chocolate itself, it's the sugar in the chocolate. Mm-hmm. So I find that if you do enjoy chocolate like myself, um, I usually pick the darker varieties. Yeah. Because they are lower in sugar [00:23:00] content. Um, it has more antioxidants too. Mm-hmm. Um, so there are benefits to that obviously in moderation.

But, you know, white and milk chocolate have more sugar. Um. More inflammatory components. So something to put out there.

Courtney: You can still enjoy your treats just in moderation. Yes, that's right. All right. Using Neosporin or Antibiotic ointment is the best for surgicals wounds. We just talked. That's so funny.

'cause yeah, we just talked about this earlier and I was about to go on like a Neosporin rampage. Yes. But I was like, we'll just save that. But I'm glad this came up. Um, so.

Wait is the oh is the best. Oh, sorry.

Dr. Zain: I was like, wait a

Courtney: minute.

Dr. Zain: Read that wrong. You confused me.

Courtney: Yeah. So that is a myth. Um, Neosporin. Sucks. No. Um, it's just, you know, so many people, um, actually do have a, um, can develop an allergy to the, uh, what [00:24:00] is it? The Neos Neomycin Neomycin in there and we see it so frequently.

Um. That, you know, and even people will use it automatically for like cuts or wounds. Mm-hmm. And I always say if the cut is not infected mm-hmm. You don't even need an antibiotic. That's where the Aquaphor, the Vaseline comes in. Absolutely. Yeah. So I think the Neosporin is overkill. And if you're getting like a surgical treatment or even a biopsy and you are concerned about, you know, potential, uh, infection, that's when you should be asking your provider for a topical antibiotic.

Um, prescription. We usually use mepi, um, but Neosporin is. Yeah.

Dr. Zain: Yeah. Ambassadors is another common one. Mm-hmm. In that, you can also develop allergies too, so I always just say that if it's not infected, if it's a clean wound mm-hmm. Wash with soap and water disinfect and just put on Aquaphor or Vaseline and you're good to go and just keep it moist.

Courtney: Yeah. I wanna add onto this, the hydrogen peroxide. 'cause a lot of my older patients love hydrogen peroxide and I'm like, you do not need to hydrogen peroxide your wound every single day. It will affect the natural [00:25:00] flora of the wound too. Mm-hmm. And it's just, you don't need, you just don't need to do

Dr. Zain: that.

Yeah. I like, I like the hydrogen peroxide for cleaning up bloody messes. Yeah. You know, cleaning up that blood and kind of initially like cleaning the wound, but after that, but

Courtney: every day is, yeah. No, no, no.

Dr. Zain: It's really harsh. Mm-hmm. Natural and clean skincare products are better for your skin.

What is natural skincare? Ugh. I want you to go on your rampage.

Courtney: Well, you know, it's. Just funny. Um, it's just created again, this whole resurgence of like, I understand people wanting to get back to like, the basics of things and, um, you know, limiting the root

Dr. Zain: cause,

Courtney: the, well, you know, again, back to like the, like cutting out all the extra stuff, right?

Yeah. Like all the extra fluff and process stuff and I, chemicals or whatever. I, I get. That facade. So that [00:26:00] being said, um, natural is just this term that like is a marketing term, you know? Mm-hmm. It comes down to that and it really just means, um. Nothing.

Dr. Zain: Yeah. There is really no standardized definition.

Courtney: Yeah. Yeah. So it's

Dr. Zain: whatever you wanna make it out to be. Yeah. Um, and then people demonize the word chemicals. Yeah. I mean, this entire world,

Courtney: water's a chemical

Dr. Zain: or chemicals Yeah. They're molecules. Right, right. Like, I don't understand where people are trying to create this class of products. It's just more for marketing, like you said.

Yeah.

Courtney: We should be more concerned with the microplastics. Than the cleanser that you're using. Yeah,

Dr. Zain: so I mean, natural does not mean better. Remember, like we always, you know, say that poison ivy is natural. Mm-hmm. Is that

Courtney: better for Yeah. You would not be putting that on your skin. And yeah, it's funny 'cause like for example, aloe breaks me out and I can't use aloe.

Um, so it's just, it's the weirdest thing. But, um, yeah, not that's plant-based. So,

Dr. Zain: and clean skincare. Like

Courtney: again, what is that? What does that mean? Yeah. Nothing. Yeah. Um, marketing [00:27:00] term to essentially make you feel better that you're using something that doesn't have any like additives, but, but by the way, like preservatives and like formaldehydes and things like that.

That's what's protecting the integrity of your skincare and. I want that in my skincare. I don't want my skincare to lose its efficacy or its shape or form, you know, within the week or two weeks. Well, not only

Dr. Zain: that, it prevents like growth of microorganisms. Yep, exactly. Bacteria, viruses, fungi. I mean, I am all about having a healthy microbiome.

Yeah. I don't wanna be adding potential infectious agents to my skin.

Courtney: Yeah.

Dr. Zain: So that's partially why it's there. And you know, I don't want my skincare like, you know, like you said, like. Becoming rancid. Mm-hmm. And, you know, unusable.

Courtney: Yeah.

Dr. Zain: So, yeah, I, the preservatives are there for a reason.

Courtney: Yeah, exactly. Acne is not caused by dirty skin or not cleaning hard enough.

Dr. Zain: Truth, reach the truth. I mean, acne, and I feel bad for a lot of my patients. They come in with their parents and you know, [00:28:00] their parents are like, oh, they're not washing their skin. Parents always

Courtney: say that,

Dr. Zain: and like these kids are often very compliant. They're trying their best and it's not due to having dirty skin.

I mean, there's genetics at. Fault there. There's hormones. Mm-hmm. There's, you know, bacteria, there's so many different factors that are going into it, and just some people tend to have that predisposition developing acne, even if they're cleansing their skin, doing all the right steps. Mm-hmm. So that's why they're here for our help.

Um, but it's not due to being dirty. Yeah.

Courtney: Yeah, still wash your face, obviously. Oh yeah, of course.

Dr. Zain: My mom and dad, my teenage, the teenage boys, you know, sometimes they're questionable, but yeah, it's not because of anything that you're doing wrong, especially if you're cleansing and doing all the right things.

Courtney: Yeah. I love this one. This is my okay. If a frog pees on your skin, you'll develop warts. This is crazy, but people believe that. Oh, sorry. Let's,[00:29:00]

this is crazy. Okay, so kind of like, like essentially growing up in the south, I heard this like. Every week of my life. Like people said this all the time, and, okay, what is a war? A war is a virus, so you can get warts through, um, they are contagious and you can get them very frequently. We see people getting them from the gym.

Um, the pool, so really like hot, like moisture environments are, um, are where you're getting those words from. But frog's pea does not have the virus. In it,

Dr. Zain: what virus causes it?

Courtney: HPV.

Dr. Zain: What is the H and HPV?

Courtney: Human,

Dr. Zain: so does, does it say frog papillo virus?

Courtney: You know, I didn't put two and two together, but yeah, I'm like, maybe the frog could get HPV and then it pees on you and then the war.

I don't know. But no, it's.

Dr. Zain: Yeah, there's

Courtney: no frog papalo it. It's

Dr. Zain: crazy. [00:30:00] Yeah. I dunno what's up with frogs? Like kissing a frog and Yeah. Peeing and all that stuff. But I have never seen so many frogs in my life until I moved to North Carolina. Like literally, I probably have seen maybe like two frogs in my life.

And then here, like I see a frog every other day.

Courtney: Yeah. And I

Dr. Zain: like hopping around, like just chilling in my backyard. And fun

Courtney: fact, frogs can pee. We had to Google that one earlier. They do pee. Oh. Um, yeah. Okay. So

Dr. Zain: interesting,

Courtney: but they won't cause words

Dr. Zain: moving on. Uh, men have thicker and oilier skin than women.

True. So it is true men have typically thicker skin, um,

Courtney: physically, not emotionally.

Dr. Zain: That's probably right. Um, and we do have oilier skin. So this translates into few anatomical differences that we see. Um, so. With oilier skin. That's why men tend to have more youthful looking skin. Mm-hmm. So oil actually can [00:31:00] help with preserving youth, and that's maybe a reason why men tend to age a little slower.

Um, especially, you know, after females go through menopause, there's a dramatic shift as, you know, the estrogen and other hormones. Mm-hmm. Um, you know, change. Their skin is less oil or they dry out. Mm-hmm. Um, men tend to preserve that a little bit more.

Courtney: Mm-hmm. Yeah. And that's why, you know, sometimes with my male patients, I'll tailor their treatments a little bit differently.

Mm-hmm. Especially facials or chemical peels. 'cause um, I know that they can handle certain things, you know, higher percents on glycolic or Yeah. Whatnot. So,

Dr. Zain: yeah, I mean, that is a key difference in how we treat our patients too. Mm-hmm. Um, men and women's skin are different, so we do have to make some alterations to, you know, help them achieve their skincare goals.

Courtney: Yep.

Dr. Zain: Only teenagers get acne. Myth.

Courtney: Myth. Amazing. We see

Dr. Zain: adult acne patients. Yeah. Every day. Mm-hmm. Like every day.

Courtney: And for some people they'll tell us, I never had [00:32:00] acne in high school or growing up. Mm-hmm. But yeah, I'm 40 years old and I'm getting acne now. And, um. It's very common. Yeah, very common. Um, like you were saying earlier, so many things play a part of that acne, whether it's, um, you know, hormones, um, genetics, environmental factors, what you're, you know, eating.

So it, it can, it can affect any age. I mean, I've seen like 60 and 70 year olds with acne and

Dr. Zain: Yeah. I mean, I still break out. Mm-hmm. Um, you know, occasionally, especially with stress or, you know, dietary changes. I mean, we all encounter stress. Stress leads to cortisol increases, which can lead to, you know, hormonal breakouts.

And then especially with women, there's so many different fluctuations that happen. Pregnancy, um, perimenopause, menopause. I mean, we just constantly see these, you know, complex changes happen and they affect your skin. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah. Topical retinoids, thin your skin. Smith

Courtney: all contra [00:33:00] actually. Um, it helps to thicken the skin by building collagen.

So

Dr. Zain: where does this Smith stem from?

Courtney: You know here, here's where I think it stems from. I think it stems from when people use retinoids, especially previously. I mean, now we have so many cosmetically elegant retinoids that are not inducing that inflammation and the irritation. But I think people associated that irritation with like thinning of the skin.

'cause people would get like kind of dry and flaky and they think, oh, it's destroying like my, you know. Layer of my skin. And so I think that's where that comes from.

Dr. Zain: So I think it comes from, you know, the stratum corneum, which is the outer layer of dead skin cells, like at the surface. Retinoids help to.

You know, improve the cell turnover and tend to help with exfoliation. So that layer is actually thinner, but it's not a live layer. Mm-hmm. Your actually epidermis is getting thicker. Mm-hmm. Um, with the retinoids being used, like, because it has a lot of complex interplay on the skin cells, [00:34:00] um, also has some activity with the dermis as well.

So all of those components are becoming more active. The top dead layer is becoming thinner. That's why, you know, we tend to have a little bit more sensitivity to the sun. You don't have those dead skin cells on top there as well.

Courtney: Yeah. It's increasing cellular turnover. Mm-hmm. Um, which is what you want, but it's not thinning the skin.

Yeah.

Dr. Zain: Most skin aging is caused by the sun, not genetics. Truth.

Courtney: Yeah.

Dr. Zain: Yeah. So this is interesting. Um, a lot of people think, oh, you know, I have great skin because my grandma had incredible skin. Same with my parents, but a lot of their skin habits were due to sun protection. Mm-hmm. Measures, right? Mm-hmm. I really think, I would say like 80 to 85% of, you know, the aging that we see is from the sun.

Courtney: I think when I was in aesthetic school, I think there's actually like a study that, that is like a true, um, percentage. I like, I remember it being like 80. It's very high. Yeah. So, [00:35:00] um.

Dr. Zain: And sun damage, like it manifests as like sunspots, wrinkles. Mm-hmm. Um, dispigmentation textured

Courtney: skin. Textured skin. Yeah.

Dr. Zain: You know, all these things play a role, so, um, the sun really does a number on your skin.

That's why your best beauty skincare tip is to use your sunscreen. Mm-hmm. There's nothing that beats it.

Courtney: Yeah. Skin irritation and sensitivity is a sign that your skincare is working.

Dr. Zain: False

Courtney: myth.

Dr. Zain: So

Courtney: if it's burning, it's working. I hate that. Yeah,

Dr. Zain: me too. And it's just telling you that there is an irritant, a chemical irritant that's bothering your skin.

Mm-hmm. And you're becoming sensitive. Does not mean that it is working better. Does not mean that it is causing any benefit to your skin. It could be disrupting your skin barrier, right?

Courtney: Mm-hmm. Yeah.

Dr. Zain: Um, so. My classic example is, you know, the St I Apricot scrub. Oh man, what a [00:36:00] terrible ptst. I mean, I'm guilty.

I used it when I was a teenager. But those harsh little, um, you know, pieces of walnuts Yeah. I think or apricot pit, whatever it was. Um, it actually irritates your skin. Physically irritates it. Mm-hmm. It's jagged and it causes inflammation. So just because you feel that tingling and that you know, irritated feel to it, it does not mean that it is helping your skin.

It can cause micro inflammation.

Courtney: Yeah. And you know, touching back on like about the retinoids, like I said, you know, for a long time everyone, and I still have my older patients who will say this to me, I just think it's so funny they'll say. Well, I used the, the retinoid that you gave me, but I'm not peeling and I'm not getting like rashy.

And I'm like, good. Yeah. Like I don't want you to be getting that because they associate with that, with it's, you know, working and we don't want your skin to be in a chronic state of inflammation. Mm-hmm. Um, [00:37:00] you know. What I will say is in the beginning, sometimes using products, you know, there are times where maybe you have to kind of gradually work up to things.

Yeah. So, you know, retinoids or like glycolic acids. Sometimes when you apply that you'll feel that kind of sensation. Yeah. And that's okay, but you just don't want that to be every single day. If you're having that, that's a red flag. Like stop.

Dr. Zain: And honestly, I would prefer having a retinoid that does not irritate my skin.

Mm-hmm. Does not make me flaky, does not make me look like a mess. Yeah. Because the whole reason is for me to look good. Mm-hmm. Um, reduce the aging process, um, help with my collagen production, and ultimately it's a cosmetic product, right? Mm-hmm. And if it's making me look worse, I think it's counterintuitive, right?

So I want something that my skin can tolerate. I look good and it's something that I can maintain like I hate when I'm like a, you know, like a red flakiness.

Courtney: Yeah.

Dr. Zain: And it's just not a good look. Um, and I don't really want to be irritated.

Courtney: Yeah. Yeah. It's [00:38:00] so funny seeing, seeing patients back and, and them saying that, and I'm like, okay, good.

So we found the right retinoid for you. Mm-hmm. And nowadays there's so many, um, cosmetically elegant retinols or retinoids. That you can get. Um, in our office we have one that's compounded with hyaluronic acid and niacinamide. So, um, you know, it combats that dryness that people may experience. Yeah. Um, but again, you sometimes can have a little bit of irritation in the beginning, so you wanna just make sure that you can mitigate that.

Yeah.

Dr. Zain: Cool.

Courtney: Yeah, that was a lot.

Dr. Zain: Yeah.

Courtney: We like ran through speed room. We

Dr. Zain: did. Yeah. So I thought that was a lot of fun. Yeah. And I feel like it, you know, addressed a lot of common questions we get in the office. Patients are always asking us about these myths or statements that they see on social media, like on TikTok.

Mm-hmm. And I think it's really important to dispel these myths, provide truth and help. Our patients as well as the wider audience with their skin health [00:39:00] journey.

Courtney: Yeah. Like you said, there's just, there's so much, um, misinformation and you know, now that the internet has just grown to what it is. Yeah. I mean, I always say it's such a good and a bad thing.

I mean, you can go on there and all the wrong answers can be on a threat. Mm-hmm. And then you're on another, and it's like, wait, this is the complete opposite. So I think it's really important to, um, listen to, you know, professionals. Um, absolutely. And

Dr. Zain: chat. GPT can't give you all the answers. Everyone's skin is a little different.

Yeah. So that's why I think you need to really go to someone who understands your skin. Understands how skin can differ and how we can treat it, um, and customize it. It's really important. Chat. DPT can't do that for you.

Courtney: No. Unless chat DPT grows into like a human and comes and inspects your skin. I don't wanna hear it.

Yeah.

Dr. Zain: All right. Well that's all. That was a lot of fun. Thanks Courtney, for joining me and if you guys enjoyed this format, please let us know. Uh, please follow like, um, and until next time, skin side. Out. Out

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