June 19, 2019
In this Q&A session, Dr. Michele Burklund, Puriya’s Chief Science Officer, talks about Tanning Rash and Fungal Infections.
The questions in this session include…
- What is a tanning rash?
- Why does my fungal infection always get worse in the summer?
- What types of fabric should I wear if I have a fungal infection?
- How often should I apply the Wonder Balm?
- What are some ways to support my immune system to decrease the reoccurrence of a fungal infection?
- What makes the Wonder Balm effective against tanning rash or tinea versicolor?
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Right below, you will find the transcript of this video.
Transcript:
(00:04) – Hi everyone, Dr. Michele Burklund here. And I am here with you live for our weekly Q&A session. For those of you who do not know, I am the Chief Science Officer here at Puriya. And every week, we go over a certain condition, whether it’s eczema, pain, arthritis, fungal infections, dandruffs, scalp conditions, many different types of common conditions. And this week, we are going to be talking about fungal infections because it’s getting warm outside, it’s summer and it’s a perfect time and the perfect habitat for fungal infections to really start growing.
(00:44) – I’ll wait a little bit just to make sure everyone is able to catch us live and I’ll give you some announcements, too. Make sure to sign up for our newsletter so you will be informed on the condition we’re gonna be covering in each week. And then also events, different articles and blog posts, you will get. And we’re doing another series called, Living Well, where I interview different people in the natural health area every week.
(01:11) – So you’ll get announcements on the time and the day of those ’cause they change each week. And you’ll also find out what condition we’re talking about here in our Q&A session, too. And also, very soon we’re going to have our new e-book out, it’s getting the final touches right now, we’re super excited about that. And the good thing about our e-book is that it’s very practical. Once you get it, you can integrate a lot of the things you learn right away. Whether it’s part of the kitchen clean out or learning how to go to the grocery store and buy different foods like the Clean 15 and the Dirty Dozen, you’ll find out all of that great information, too.
(01:52) – Okay. So, anybody who is watching now, let us know where you are watching from, we love all your comments. And if you do have a question, feel free to write it on the comments below and we will get back to you as soon as we can if it’s not on this condition. And you can also email us and we will get back to you with that as well.
(02:13) – Let me move on. Most of you guys know that with fungal infections, summer is usually the worst time for many different reasons, because it’s hot, it’s moist, you’re sweating more, and you’re in public places most likely going barefoot, or using different areas like public showers. All these different things increase the risk of getting fungal infections. And last month we’ve talked about athlete’s foot and going barefoot in areas like public pools, showers, locker rooms, all of those things are the perfect breeding ground for athlete’s foot. So we talked about that, and also some basics with athlete’s foot. Wear breathable shoes, breathable fabrics, too, like cotton and no polyester, vinyls, where it just sticks all of the sweat and everything inside your clothes and it doesn’t let your skin breathe.
(03:10) – Okay. First, I am going to jump on the first question, which is very fitting for today. And let me organize my computer just a little bit here. The first question is, “What is a tanning rash?” The interesting thing about this, it’s actually called, tinea versicolor or pityriasis versicolor, and what it is is, it’s a yeast and 90% of the adult population in the world has this yeast on their skin right now. But what happens under different conditions is it starts to overgrow.
(03:50) – Now, you could have this on the winter time, too, you might just have noticed some itching on your skin. But in the summer, you’ll really know if you have tanning rash because those areas don’t actually tan on your skin. A lot of the times, it happens on the shoulders and you’ll go outside in the sun, and then you’ll notice when you come back, in that certain areas didn’t tan, it’s spotted up there and flaky. And what that is is, tinea versicolor and it’s very common, but it usually doesn’t show up or it doesn’t become present and you acknowledge it, until the summer time when you really notice it with the discoloration.
(04:28) – It doesn’t usually bother too many people, it can be itchy at times but the tricky thing is getting rid of it, too. And it can spread. It’s called tanning rash because of that. And also, it can spread in different areas, too. The issue is, it loves warm, moist environments. Not only can you see it more in the sun, it wants to grow more, too, because it loves sweat. Just like fungus and yeast, it likes warm, moist environments. That’s why summertime is the perfect habitat for fungal infections.
(05:04) – Sweating always makes it worse. Clothing that doesn’t breathe, polyester, polyester blends, especially when you’re wearing them in the summer and your skin wants to breathe, and it’s building up all of that moisture. That’s another breeding ground for tanning rash, as well. Also, weakened immune systems, oily skin and even hormonal changes. Sometimes even teenagers are more apt to get it than adults or other people, too.
(05:33) – Okay, next question, “Why does my fungal infection always get worse in the summer?” Well, we already answered that. The simple answer is you sweat more and fungal infections love the moist, hot environments.
(05:51) – This is a great question, we touched on it a little bit, “What types of fabric should I wear if I have a fungal infection?” The key is breathable, natural fabrics like cotton, silk, hemp, bamboo, 100%, so not mixed with synthetic fibers. And a lot of the synthetic fibers are plastic. Of course, plastic isn’t gonna be able to breathe on your skin either. And you’re going to be sweating and it traps that sweat and that heat inside and encourages the fungus growth. Cotton, silk, hemp, bamboo, all of those things are great. Wool can be good, too. It’s a natural fiber but it also can be itchy, so I left that one out on purpose.
(06:36) – Also, change your clothing if it becomes wet during the day. That’s another thing, even if it is a natural fiber and you’ve been sweating a lot or working out, you need to change your clothes, so it doesn’t build up that moisture on your body, too. Another thing is to wash your clothing and your bedding regularly to prevent the spread of infection as well. And that’s another way it can be contagious too, sharing towel, sharing bedding, sharing clothing. So, all of these things, you just have to be more aware of right now.
(07:09) – And this is a question we get quite often. It is, “How often should I apply the Wonder Balm?” The Wonder Balm for those of you who don’t know, is our anti fungal balm. And it has a lot of great essential oils that are very powerful against different fungi, bacteria, yeast. And so we usually recommend, with the Wonder Balm, to apply it twice a day. Now, the thing is everybody’s different. It could be a mild infection, it could be very severe. Adapt to that situation based on your needs, too.
(07:44) – I always talk about these fungal infections but I think it’s so important. And I used to counsel patients a lot on this in my clinic. The tricky part about fungal infections is that when you stop seeing the rash, it doesn’t mean it’s completely gone, and that’s how it can just come back so quickly, too. It could be gone on a visual level but it’s not completely gone and when you stop using the cream too early, that’s when it can come back. Use it for at least two weeks after you have not seen any more signs of the rash. And then you know that you’re giving it that extra push and making sure that you’re eradicating all of it. Please do that because you worked so hard to get rid of it, you’re so close, you see that it’s gone, and then it comes back. And prevention and also using it for a couple of weeks after, is very important for that.
(08:41) – This is a great question, too. As a naturopathic doctor, I always think it’s important to address the foundations of health and all the root causes along with the symptoms. And this question is, “What are some ways to support my immune system to decrease the reoccurrence of a fungal infection?” A lot of people who are severely immuno compromised or have other underlying conditions can be more predisposed to fungal infections. And so some basics are, to eat whole foods. And we just had an interview with Liana who wrote, “The Earth Foods: Diet and Cookbook.” And I recommend all of you guys to check that out because the entire book and her entire interview was about eating foods closest to its natural form. And I always like to tell my patients, “If it takes too long to open up, it’s probably too processed to eat.” So just remember that, if you’re trying to get through all the packaging and it’s taking forever, maybe it’s a sign that you shouldn’t be eating it. And you can have an apple or something easy to process, too that’s natural.
(09:51) – So balancing your diet. I’m sure most of you guys know by now, all the immense research out there linking balanced gut flora and immune health. Eat fermented foods, focus on a good probiotic, do lots of great things like that to balance out your gut flora.
(10:10) – Vitamin D. Keeping your vitamin D in an optimal rate even for summer, I think is very important. And I recommend sunscreen. I think it’s great as long as it’s a mineral-based sunscreen, but when you wear sunscreen, you’re not absorbing vitamin D. So it’s that balance. It’s that balance of protecting your skin using great sunscreen and then making sure you have an adequate level of vitamin D as well to support your immune health. So, it’s definitely that balance.
(10:40) – Also, another important thing is to drink more water. Use it as your main hydration source. Throw out sugary drinks, throw out processed drinks, and just keep it simple. I think that’s the whole motto for building and supporting your immune system is, keeping it simple, eliminating processed foods, focusing on foods closest to their source, and drinking more water, and moving your body. Moving your body can also have cooling effects on your immune system and your stress. That’s another one.
(11:13) – I think we all know and I talked about this so many times, how stress is related to your immune system and it can actually lower your immune system. And it’s been proven over and over again that we need to figure out ways to manage stress, whether that’s going for a walk, doing meditation, relaxation, or Tai Chi, all of these things are great. Basic things, eating natural foods, drinking more water, moving your body, learning to rest, getting adequate sleep can have profound effects on your health and decrease your risk of getting fungal infections in the future. So, very simple things but they can have amazing results, too.
(12:00) – Okay, next question is, “What makes the Wonder Balm effective against tanning rash or tinea versicolor?” Well, first off we formulated it against all the common yeast, and fungi, and bacteria. And the specific essential oil, tea tree oil, is particularly effective against Malassezia, which is the main species involved in tanning rash. We formulated it so it would have a broad spectrum, antimicrobial, anti fungal activity, and then we also know that it’s very effective against tanning rash because of the tea tree oil, too. And I personally love tea tree oil because it’s such a powerful essential oil. The essential oil comes from a tree that’s native to Australia and it’s been used as traditional medicine for the Aborigines for centuries. And there’s so many great therapeutic uses from studies that show it kills bacteria, fungal infections and yeast.
(13:00) – So in our formulation, we blended it with essential oils like eucalyptus, lavender, and then we mixed it with nourishing oils, like olive oil and macadamia nut to have this perfect combination that’s really effective with these powerful essential oils and then nourishing and soothing to your skin, too. I think it’s a brilliant formulation to really get in and be effective against fungal infections and especially tanning rash because it has great concentrated dosages, but at the same time there’s that balance where it can help soothe your skin as well. So with that, I want to remind all of you that if you are using the Wonder Balm for the first time, be sure to patch test a certain area, just a small area on your skin, to see if there’s any irritation before you do a full application because everybody’s different, and it’s just a good way to see how your body responds to the cream because there are essential oils in it.
(13:58) – And with all of that said, I want to remind everyone that we have a 180 day money back guarantee. So for any reason, if the Wonder Balm did not work, no questions asked, you can return it. There’s no risk in trying it. It’s an only benefit to you because all these great essential oils which are sourced and they’re amazing ingredients, they’re high quality, and I think we did an amazing job putting together the formulation with all the different mechanisms of action.
(14:30) – So let me check for a second to see if we have any questions. Okay, if we don’t have any questions… I want to remind all of you guys to sign up for our newsletter and any day now, very soon, we are going to be releasing our e-book and you will be sent a copy of that and you will get more announcements next week. We have an interview with Dr. Bethany Tennant on sports medicine. She’s an amazing physician doing great things with sports medicine and working with different athletes on so many different things. We’re gonna talk to her about a lot of great techniques and ways to help soothe the muscle soreness and a lot about our training. I’m very excited about that. And if there are no questions, then get outside, enjoy nature, wear natural fabrics, drink more water, and most importantly, have fun and relax. And I will see you next week. Take care.