Keratosis Pilaris or Chicken Skin — a harmless skin condition
Keratosis Pilaris is a pretty common skin condition that generally affects women more often than men. Although, many teen age girls and women suffer from this issue, they are hardly familiar of its medical terminology. It’s commonly known as chicken skin too as the visual bumps on skin — red, black or white— look similar to plucked chicken. I personally hate to call it chicken skin though.
I had KP from a very early age but I never talked about it to anyone in my family—one of the disadvantages of having no elder sister. As I grew up, KP naturally disappeared from my upper arms’ surface but it was still in its pristine form across my thigh area. It used to leave the affected area so dry, rough and bumpy, specially after shower, that there was no way I could keep the skin condition unnoticed. At one point, during the last year, it was bothering me so much that I desperately started looking for a permanent solution. I even went to see a dermatologist but unfortunately nothing seemed to work for me.
Later on this year, I started doing some study on this skin condition and that is when I came across of its clinical term for the very first time. I also went through lots of articles and YouTube videos on KP and was glad to learn that it’s an innocuous skin disease which naturally fades away before 30. Many suggested it as a non curable skin condition too. Irrespective of the fact, I was reluctant to wait till my 30 and badly wanted to get rid of the condition or at least mitigate the roughness of the bumpy area. Before getting into my solution, let me give you a brief on what causes KP.
What causes KP?
“Keratosis Pilaris mainly results from the buildup of keratin — a hard protein that protects skin from harmful substances and infection. The keratin forms a scaly plug that blocks the opening of the hair follicle and causes dead and bumpy skin” (1). As per my searching, I gradually began to cotton on that, the best way to treat KP is to exfoliate and moisturize.
1. Exfoliation
Exfoliation is a process which opens pores and removes dead skin. Coconut oil is one of the most well-recommended and efficacious ingredients to treat KP as it contains Lauric Acid — acid that helps to break up Keratin. Hence for exfoliation, I prepared a homemade scrubber using coconut oil, sugar and lemon.
The amount of the ingredients mainly depends on how big the surface of the affected area is. I use nearly two table spoons of sugar, one slice of lemon — one fourth of the half cut lemon — and one spoon of coconut oil. I apply it regularly while taking shower and message the whole area for at least 5–10 minutes. Believe me, once I am done with this and rinse the area with water, my skin feels so soft and smooth that for a moment I forget that I ever had KP. Getting rid of dead skins is gruesomely satisfying.
2. Moisturization
Now, to avoid the skin from drying out, moisturizer plays a crucial role. It’s recommended to apply the moisturizer right after taking bath when the skin is still damp. I have tried different body butters, Shea and Raspberry for example, but those didn’t work on my KP as good as Palmer’s cocoa butter formula did.
TRUST me, for KP, this is one of the most ineffable solution I have ever come across in my life. It leaves the skin in such an amazing texture that there is no way I can resist myself from getting attached to it. Personally I love its fragrance too which smells exactly like any freshly baked chocolate muffin.
One thing I must say that KP is by nature very stubborn and sophisticated to handle. Some nights before going to bed, when I didn’t have much idea about KP, I used to get happy after applying lotion as it felt like it was getting better but the very next day when I used to wake up, I realized it actually got worse instead. You may buy extravagant branded chemical products with the hope to get rid of KP but you will see zero improvement if you don’t maintain the routine properly and by routine, I mean to check on the bumps. To cure KP, you have to be as adamant as it has been with your skin and you have to stick to its treatment with patience.
I have been following this treatment regularly for like a month now and the result surprised me to its peak. My skin is as smooth as nowhere I could think of it. I am neither a beauty expert, nor a blogger. I am not trying to promote any particular product too. There are lots of solutions all over the internet — articles offering scrubbers, body wash and lotions — but, this is the most economical as well as salutary solution I could come up with for myself. I wrote this article because I don’t find many people, specially in Bangladesh, talking about KP but I believe there are many teen age girls and women who are bothered about this skin condition as much I was once. I would be very happy if at least one of you gets benefited by this article.
