A Cautionary Tale

Hello all
I’d been traveling for a few months and part of my “stay healthy travel kit” was a bottle of hand sanitizer which I used regularly before eating. Some restaurants, notably in Mexico City, waiters routinely offered its guests a dollop of this lotion from a large bottle.

I’d been congratulating myself on my continued good health when suddenly my hands erupted in several ugly looking sores. The skin on my hands was red and raw in several places, mainly by the joints and down my index fingers.

Naturally I was concerned I'd picked up a skin disease somewhere in my travels. Thankfully, a quick visit to a medical specialist confirmed it was simply a case of washing my hands too often which had depleted the natural oils in my skin. Huh!!

I'd been using the hand sanitizer too often without a corresponding increase in applying hand cream. Using this and other alcohol based washing products had stripped the natural oils from my skin.

For the past three days I've been trying to nourish my hands to restore the balance but they are still a little raw.

The solution for future travels?......... I’ll continue using this hand gel but add in a regular and generous dose of intensive nourishing hand cream!