Why do I have dry skin around or on my nose tip, crease, or even around my mouth? Is it my nose ring, skin cancer, eczema, seborrheic dermatitis, psoriasis, cold or vitamin deficiency that causes this problem. Get the causes of dry, red, itchy and flaking skin on the nose as well as treatments to get rid of this problem.
How severe can it be?
Table of content
While some people may suffer from mild dryness, others will have extremely or really cases (severe or very dry one). In some instances, the dryness can result in peeling. If you have the problem of drying face, you are not alone. Here is what a few people are saying about dry skin around their nose
I have had a red area on both sides of my nose that is itchy and peels. It has gotten better and it is barely visible now but still peels. Before it was very red but now it’s just slightly pink and goes from the side of my nose to the top of my mouth on both sides. Trazda Medhelp.org
Since winter (and heck even during summer) noticed that the skin around my nose gets so dry, and no matter how much I exfoliate and moisturize, when I apply any type of concealer or powder. It cakes/flakes like crazy and I hate it. The rest of my face though is so soft/supple from the exfoliating and moisturizing – it is just the area around the nose 🙁 Khristine T. – beautylish.com
Where to expect the dry skin or patch
The dry skin around nose area could be on your whole nose, on the tip, nasal bridge, or beside, even just near. Furthermore, one can also it on the crease, corner, inside especially on nostrils, on the side, etc.
You may have dry skin on the nose only or it could also be on your mouth (especially mouth corner), cheeks, and face, on the forehead, between and/or on eyebrows or even your chin and lip areas, especially the on your upper lip.
Depending on the cause, it could be flakey (flaking), sore, itchy, peeling, red, scaly, and crusty. At times redness can happen i.e. you could dry red flaky skin around this area.
Causes including dry, red, peeling or flaky one
What causes this problem? Well, if you have, a dry, flaky, scaly, crusty, chapped or cracked skin around this area, there are many possible causes. Some the common explanations include the following:
1. Seborrheic Dermatitis
One of the possible cause, especially if dry, red, itchy, flaky is seborrheic dermatitis. According to webmd.com, although common on the scalp, “seborrheic dermatitis on your face, especially around your nose, on your eyelids, or behind your ears.”
Doctor Cynthia Bailey note that one can end up with itchy red skin with a greasy scale or what some say as having scaly, dry oily skin around nose. A better way of describing it is by what usnews.com states, you will have “flaky, white or yellowish scales that form on oily parts of the body, such as the scalp, the inside of the external ear, or on the eyebrows, eyelids, creases, the lips, or along skin folds near the middle of the body”
For patients who often complain of white flaky, scaly, dry skin on nose won’t that go away, won’t heal, easily, or keeps on going and coming because it can be a lifelong problem that clears on its own and flares up again.
Seborrheic dermatitis can be managed by washing your face soap and water, outdoors and outdoor exercise could help make the rash since the sun may stop yeast that may grow and inflame your skin.
Finally, try treatments including products containing antifungals, corticosteroid lotions, and sulfur products. Take note that harsh soaps and products that containing vitamin C, Retin A or glycolic acid (anti-aging agents) may irritate seborrhea making it redder.
2. Atopic Dermatitis (eczema around nose)
The second possible cause of this dryness is atopic dermatitis. Although the cause is not clear, expect it to be itchy, dry and very easily irritated and inflamed.
According to peoriaearnosethroat.com, the “scratching causes the dry skin to become red and irritated (inflamed). Infection often occurs. Tiny bumps that look like little blisters may appear and ooze fluid or crust over”.
The itchiness, dryness, scratching, and inflammation which when they happen for a long time can cause a rough thickened hardened skin.
Just like in the case of seborrheic dermatitis, the American Academy of Dermatology notes the fact that you will have ‘dry and scaly patches.’
Treatment is by dermatologists giving medicines and therapies that will stop itching, reduce inflammation and redness, get rid of any infections, reduce the formation of new lesions as well as make the scaly lesions lose.
3. Psoriasis
The other possible cause, especially if red and flaky is psoriasis. This is an autoimmune illness that makes you have “plaques of red skin, often covered with loose, silver-colored scales; these lesions may be itchy and painful, and they sometimes crack and bleed.” This plague is due to the abnormal and excessive buildup of skin cells This disorder affects various body parts including the nose sides, face, elbow, knees, and hands.
It can be treated with topical creams or ointments, phototherapy and systematic) both injection and oral). Discuss with your dermatologist on the best treatment.
4. Rosacea
This inflammatory disease is another possible cause. It has other symptoms such as raised red patches, increased sensitivity that may be painful, itchy, sting or be burning, visible blood vessels, pustules and papules, a thickened skin and flushing.
Treatment is by dealing with its various symptoms such as inflammation where antibiotics may be used, use of oral isotretinoin as well as topical solutions such as metronidazole, Azelaic acid or ivermectin creams in case of papules and pustules.
5. Skin cancer (actinic keratosis)
Prolonged exposure to sun may cause rough, scaly patches on your face especially, around your nose, lips, ears, the back of your hands, on your scalp and neck.
According to skincancer.org, these are “scaly, crusty growths (lesions) caused by damage from the sun’s ultraviolet” with most of them being red but might become pink or have a flesh-tone. If untreated, they can develop into squamous cell carcinoma, which is the second most common type of skin cancer.
Treatment options include creams and gels, such as “5-fluorouracil cream, imiquimod cream, diclofenac gel and ingenol mebutate gel” [nhs.uk], cryotherapy, scraping, excision, laser resurfacing, dermabrasion, photodynamic therapy and so on. Your doctor will recommend the ideal to deal with your dry patch on the nose that could lead to skin cancer.
6. Contact Dermatitis
This issue might be due to contact dermatitis, which “is a type of eczema that causes the skin to become red, blistered, dry, scaly and cracked” [nhs.uk]. Your skin encountering some allergens such as soaps, fragrances, rubber, bleach, some deodorants, etc. often causes it. Treatments are by avoiding allergens, use good moisturizers to ensure your skin doesn’t dry up as well as trying oral and topical corticosteroids to reduce symptoms caused by contact dermatitis.
7. Dry skin around a nose piercing
If you this happens and you have a piercing, it is possible your piercing is healing or it has been exposed to harsh cleansers or weather (cold or windy conditions). Allergic reaction to some piercing jewelry can also cause this problem.
Ignoring dryness may rise changes of infection. Try using bacitracin ointment since salt soaks might not get rid of this problem. In case of allergic reaction to piercing jewelry, try type that is known to cause no allergic reactions such as stainless steel and titanium.
8. Periorificial dermatitis or Perioral dermatitis
If you have papules around your nostril, mouth, and eyes, it might be perioral dermatitis. This problem is common in women whose age ranges between 15 and 45 years. It is often triggered by topical steroids, nasal steroids, cosmetic creams, sunscreen, fluorinated toothpaste, makeup, not washing your face and hormonal changes.
As DermNet New Zealand notes, “dry and flaky skin surface” is possible. To deal with it, discontinue any cosmetic or topical steroids you are using, use warm water alone to wash your face once you have a dry rash and go for the gel or liquid sunscreens.
Furthermore, erythromycin, erythromycin, Azelaic acid, pimecrolimus, and metronidazole are some of the topical treatments while oral therapy often requires tetracycline, oral erythromycin, and low doses of isotretinoin when other antibiotics do not work.
9. Cold
When someone has a cold, he or she tends to constantly blow and wipe his or her nose. This causes friction that can cause dry skin patches.
10. From glasses
Prolonged use of glasses can result in a rough, dark (black) dry skin around the area where the glasses rest, commonly on the nasal bridge. Try the various ways on to remove the marks on the nose due to glasses together with the what we will discuss while looking at how to treat this problem.
11. Vitamin deficiency
Deficiency of vitamin A, Vitamin B6, and biotin can at times lead to a dry facial skin including the one on your nose.
For instance, according to liverdoctor.com, deficiency in vitamin B6 can result in “irritability, insomnia, weakness, confusion, red scaly and greasy dermatitis of the skin around the nose, eyes, and mouth, acne-like rash especially on the forehead, sore tongue, and loss of appetite, weight loss, cracking at the corners of the mouth, anemia, low blood sugar, pre-menstrual syndrome, and nerve damage”
12. Excessive exposure to sun and wind
Another common reason is excessive exposure to sun and wind. According to livestrong.com, this two “strip the moisture out of the skin, leaving it dry and irritated”. It is advisable to ensure you use heavy moisturizers during cold season too especially on the sides of your nose to ensure it does not dry out. Furthermore, cold weather, very dry and windy weather conditions are known to cause dryness around the face, nose, and mouth.
13. Other possible causes
- Alcoholism – dehydrates the body raising chances one having this problem
- Tobacco smoking – has substances such as nicotine and tar which may reduce skin moisture
- Dry heat – According to beautysight.org, dry heat could result “dry patches of skin around your nose and other areas of the body”
- Some medications: Some topical medications such as those for acne such especially antibiotics and tretinoin are known to result in an irritated dry skin that may scaly or flakey.
- Pregnancy – according to whattoexpect.com, “hormonal changes rob skin of oil and elasticity in some women, which leads to that dreaded dryness”. This can include the nose.
How to get rid or treat it
While looking at the causes, we mentioned some treatments, which apply to specific causes. We are going now to look at general ways on to get rid of this problem. To begin with, you need to prevent any further exposure to what could be causing the problem especially irritants and try the following home remedies:
1. Use a humidifier
To help reduce dryness including inside your nose, consider running a humidifier. This will raise the humidity in your house and ensure you do not lose much moisture and natural skin oil. This will be particularly important to people living in extremely harsh weather conditions.
2. Get good moisturizers
Go for the commercial moisturizing lotions and gels that are free of alcohols, fragrances, retinoids, or alpha-hydroxyl acids and apply them immediately after you shower or wash your face. They will help in retaining your body moisture.
3. Aquaphor Healing Ointment Dry, Cracked and Irritated Skin Protectant
If you have an extremely dry, cracked and irritated skin on this area, consider going for this products. However, if you are acne prone or your skin is very oily, this product might cause clogging of pores and worsen your acne breakout. Vaseline and other petroleum-based oils may also be helpful if you do not have an acne prone or an oily skin type.
4. Natural oils and products to moisturize
Some good natural oils for to help moisturize your nose include sesame oil, coconut oil, raw organic honey, almond oil which you can mix with aloe vera gel. Continue moisturizing until the problem gets resolved.
5. Remove dead skin on nose by exfoliation
Dead skin and dust deposits can worsen this problem. Ensure you regularly exfoliate using gentle scrubbers at least twice a day.
6. Avoid harmful face masks
Before you use any mask on your face, ensure it is not what makes your skin drier. Always use a good face mask such as the one from that has milk, cucumber, and yogurt. This will help to ensure it remains well moisturized. Furthermore, you can also try a mask made from a mixture of almond oil and a few drops of olive oil. Apply it on your nose for about 10 minutes before you wash it off.
7. Drink lots of water
To help make your body remain dehydrated, ensure you take at least 8 glasses of water daily.
8. Good face care habits and remedies
To help reduce this problem, you should consider the below habits.
- Avoid hot water while showering since it strips away all the essential oil on your skin which is important in keep moisture in place. Instead, go for warm water.
- Avoid harsh cleaning products and for those with sensitive skins, they should for hypoallergenic products i.e. moisturizers and soaps without any fragrances.
- In cases, itchiness, avoid the temptation of scatch it and get products that can help reduce itchiness and inflammation
- Rise your face well to get rid of any soap that might remain as it can cause skin drying
- Avoid rubbing your face when drying it. Instead, gently part it.
- Avoid sunscreens containing alcohol since they tend to dry the skin. Go for those which are based on either olive oil or aloe vera.
- In case of inflammation, try pressing ice cubes on the affected area.
On nose and mouth
Dry skin around mouth and nose can be due to a number of the causes we have seen. Common ones include seborrheic dermatitis, eczema, contact dermatitis, perioral dermatitis, vitamin deficiency, alcoholism, tobacco smoking, dry heat and harsh weather. If you can still figure out what causes your dryness around nose and mouth, see your doctor or dermatologists for further evaluation.
On nose crease or side
Having this problem on nose side or creases can be due to any of the causes we have mentioned. This is a question of where it happens rather than what causes it. There are no unique causes for this particular location. However, however, seborrheic dermatitis tends to cause dry skin on nose crease. Any other condition can also be a cause.
Dry and red
The red dry can be a result of most of the conditions we have discussed. It is not therefore easy to try identifying the possible by looking at redness. However, some of the notable cause and at times around your mouth include the following:
- Excessive exposure to sun and wind
- Seborrheic Dermatitis
- Dermatitis (eczema)
- Psoriasis
- Rosacea
- Skin cancer (actinic keratosis)
- Contact Dermatitis
Note that the dry red patches can be due to other skin problems and conditions, which we have not mentioned especially if it gets irritated or inflamed. Besides redness, sometimes it can be itchy, scaly, be peeling or sore. Furthermore, this can also happen be on face, on side of nose, around mouth, and on other parts of your face and body.
Peeling
In case of peeling, this could have been trigged by it being dry especially when it is flaky. Other conditions such as sunburn, allergic reactions, some skin disorders including the ones we have mentioned, certain medications such as retinoids, infections, etc. can cause peeling. The peeling could happen on the side, one skin under nose, or on some spots.
Inside nose
If you have a dry and sore nose in the inside, this is something else. We will discuss dry nose separately where we will look at possible causes, moisturizes to use for extremely dry, cracked, and/or painful nose inside. For now, we were focusing on dry nose skin on the outside.
Dry and flaky
What causes dry flaky skin around nose and or mouth? From what we have seen, you should be able to deduce easily some of the causes. For the sake of mentioning them again, the common conditions include:
- Eczema
- seborrheic dermatitis
- Psoriasis
- Skin cancer (actinic keratosis)
- Periorificial dermatitis,
- contact dermatitis
- some medications
Excessive irritation especially when your nose is itchy can also cause crusting as well as white scaly flakes. To try guess which specific one could be affecting you, you should consider other symptoms you experience and what could have triggered it too.
Besides being flaking, depending on the cause, the skin could also be red, itchy, sore, It is possible to have the flaking on your eyebrows, around mouth, on the side of nose (on nose creases), upper lips
When to see a dermatologist?
If your dry skin on nose won’t go away and remains persistent i.e. a constant dry nose skin, it is advisable you see a doctor to confirm the possible cause.
Ignoring it might worsen leading to soreness, bleeding and even infections. You should also consider seeing your doctor in case red bumps pus discharge, swelling, boils or excessive soreness of the affected area.
No one wants a dry cracked, flaking, scaly, itchy or chapped skin around nose. So, ensure have good nose skincare routines by adhering to what we have covered and any other helpful content you may get.
References and cited work
- https://www.aad.org/public/diseases/eczema/atopic-dermatitis
- http://health.usnews.com/health-news/family-health/allergy-and-asthma/articles/2009/05/19/got-a-skin-rash-how-to-tell-eczema-from-seborrheic-dermatitis
- https://www.drbaileyskincare.com/info/blog/dermatologists-tips-for-treating-facial-seborrheic-dermatitis
- http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Eczema-(contact-dermatitis)/Pages/Introduction.aspx
- http://www.dermnetnz.org/topics/periorificial-dermatitis/
- https://www.liverdoctor.com/vitamin-and-mineral-deficiency/
- http://www.livestrong.com/article/295868-red-dry-skin-on-the-nose/
- http://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/psoriasis/understanding-psoriasis-basics#1
- http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/solar-keratosis/Pages/Introduction.aspx
- https://www.beautylish.com/t/vuvxy/tips-for-dry-skin-around-nose
- : http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Dermatology/Red–itchy–dry-skin-around-nose-/show/1579081
- http://www.whattoexpect.com/pregnancy/whose-body/skin-dry.aspx