DR Jeff Foster is The Sun on Sunday’s resident doctor and is here to help YOU.
Dr Jeff, 43, splits his time between working as a GP in Leamington Spa, Warks, and running his clinic, H3 Health, which is the first of its kind in the UK to look at hormonal issues for both men and women.
Dr Jeff Foster is The Sun on Sunday’s new resident doctor and is here to help you
See h3health.co.uk and email at [email protected].
Q) I WANT to get mosquito repellent and bite creams for a family holiday to Spain but there are so many to choose from.
What should I be buying, and is DEET dangerous for kids?
Deborah Morgan, Derby
A) Provided you have your core NHS vaccines up to date (including measles, mumps and rubella), there are no specific additional vaccinations required to travel to Spain.
As a result, infection risk is about minimising the impact of insect bites and irritation, rather than the risk of serious insect-spread diseases such as malaria.
The insect repellent diethyltoluamide, or DEET, has been around since the 1940s and was originally invented for use in World War Two.
Although the original use and formula has altered over the years, it is still used by millions of people worldwide each year.
Generally, DEET is considered safe for children over two months old, but it is important to remember it is a bug repellent not a bug killer and can still cause rashes and irritation.
Overall, there isn’t a best insect repellent, only the one that works best for you and your family (for example, kids may not tolerate certain types or like the smell of DEET), so the best thing is to experiment with a few brands before you go and see what works for you.
Q) I’M a 69-year-old woman and I have a patch of funny skin on my cheek.
I went to my GP and they gave me a gel to put on it, which I’ve used for months and all it does is burn the skin around it, not the lesion itself.
What should I do?
Deborah Graham Margate, Kent
A) Actinic keratoses (also called solar keratoses) are the most common skin condition caused by sun damage.
They are usually rough, scaly or irregular patches of skin that typically occur on the head and face and although most are harmless, there is a small risk they may eventually turn cancerous if left untreated.
Solar keratoses may disappear on their own in some cases and we often advise patients to use moisturisers as well as high factor sunscreens to protect the skin and prevent any further damage.
In more significant cases, treatments might involve liquid nitrogen to freeze off the lesions or the use of specific gels or creams that can also cause an itch or rash themselves, and some actually cause localised irritation.
The best thing is to get the lesions reviewed by a dermatologist to see if it’s the side effects of the medication and if an alternative might be better.