The drought that has plagued Europe in recent weeks is beginning to leave restrictions in some of the Spanish communities most affected by the lack of water. In addition to the absence of precipitation and the increasingly common extreme heat waves that our country is going through, there are also the adverse effects that this severe drought on the health of citizens.
The air quality that we breathe is being one of the main problems brought by this wave of high temperatures and low rainfall. However, chronic respiratory diseases that can be caused by prolonged drought are not the only adverse effects that we can experience.
This has been explained by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, which has detailed the possible and numerous implications of droughts for public health.
Quantity and quality of drinking water affected
Increased risks when performing recreational activities
Effects on air quality
Worse living conditions related to energy, air quality, health and hygiene situation
Mental health effects related to economic and job losses
Food and nutrition affected
Increased incidence of diseases and conditions
These health effects they can manifest themselves in the short term in some cases, although the usual thing is that the droughts have an indirect implication on the citizens in the long term. In this way, they can be very difficult to predict or monitor, as is the case with skin problems that some of the people who have the most contact with the particles that the drought leaves in the environment may experience.
How drought affects our skin
The truth is that, being in contact with the outside, our skin can be one of the most affected by drought effects. Thus, the environment in which we live can harm its stability, as is the case of the points where drought is more present.
In this way, in those regions where the lack of water has been more noticeable in the environment, the people’s skin that reside in it can reach flake off and even get to bite. In addition, those patients who previously presented diseases such as atopic dermatitis will be much more affected.
How to combat the effects of drought on the skin
To prevent these effects on the skin from escalating and becoming a real problem for life, there are a series of tips to follow with the intention of preventing this dryness can go further.
Thus, it is advisable to avoid long showers and always rinse your skin with warm water. Also, do not use sponges when lathering your body and use little soap it can also help combat the effects of dryness on the skin. Finally, we must always dry without rubbing and apply a moisturizing cream after washing to improve the quality of our epidermis.