How Diabetes Affects Your Skin: Dermatological Issues with Dr. Tanya Nino
Download MP3People living with diabetes often focus on managing blood sugars, medications, and diet — but skin health is an equally important and often overlooked part of the picture. In this episode, Dr. Steve Edelman sits down with Dr. Tanya Nino, a board-certified dermatologist, to explore the skin conditions commonly seen in people with diabetes. From everyday concerns like dry, itchy skin to more serious fungal infections and rare complications like necrobiosis lipoidica, Dr. Nino offers clear explanations, helpful tips, and guidance on when to seek medical care. This episode is packed with practical advice to help people living with diabetes better protect and care for their skin.
Key Topics:
- Dry skin in people with diabetes often results from impaired barrier function and poor circulation, increasing the risk of cracks, infection, and delayed healing.
- Yeast infections in skin folds are more common when high blood sugar and trapped moisture allow Candida to thrive, particularly under the breasts, groin, or abdomen.
- Fungal infections like athlete’s foot and nail fungus are harder to treat in diabetes and can lead to serious foot complications if not managed early.
- Chronic itching and the itch-scratch cycle are common with dry diabetic skin and can worsen inflammation and skin damage without proper care.
- Dark skin patches (acanthosis nigricans) may signal insulin resistance and are often seen on the neck or underarms in people with type 2 diabetes.
- Shin spots (diabetic dermopathy) are harmless but visible signs of microvascular damage from long-term diabetes, often triggered by minor trauma.
- Skin tags in high-friction areas are linked to insulin resistance and may be an early physical marker of metabolic syndrome or type 2 diabetes.
- Necrobiosis lipoidica, a rare condition in type 1 diabetes, causes fragile reddish plaques on the shins that can ulcerate and require dermatologic care.
- Skin care for people with diabetes is essential to prevent infections, detect warning signs early, and protect overall health.
