Liquid bandage helps readers get rid of skin tags

December 20, 2007 at 2:00a.m.

Q. I’m wondering if you have any suggestions for removing skin tags. The dermatologist has lopped off some of them, but I’m hoping for a less-expensive solution.

A. Several readers have reported success in making their skin tags shrivel up and disappear by keeping them bandaged. This is difficult to do with adhesive bandages, but liquid bandage makes it easier and seems to work better.

One reader wrote: “After reading your column about skin tags and the use of New-Skin Liquid Bandage, I decided to try it. I had dozens of tags, some large but mostly small in my underarm area. I used New-Skin consistently for six months or better, and now all of them are gone. Most of them fell off on their own, and I saved hundreds of dollars in doctor bills. It takes patience, but it worked for me.” Other brands of liquid bandage may be equally useful.

Q. After listening to your radio show and reading about the anti-inflammatory effects of turmeric, I called a local health-food store to get some. I had been having lower-back pain and hip pain chronically off and on (mostly on) within the past 10 months, and I figured, Why not try it? I bought the brand Curamin from EuroPharma Inc.

We were just starting on a trip to Italy, and I was very nervous about the effects of the flight on my back. I started taking the pills a day before we left and have continued, reducing the dose to a couple of pills a week. My pain has mostly disappeared. I have also been drinking pineapple juice, so maybe the combination has more of an effect, but I am convinced that Curamin is working for me.

A. We can’t address the specific product Curamin. It may contain other natural compounds in addition to curcumin, the active ingredient in turmeric.

More than 150 scientific articles have been published investigating the anti-inflammatory effects of curcumin. Indian researchers recently confirmed this activity through molecular biology (International Immunopharmacology, Dec. 15, 2007).

Q. I read again in today’s column about the bar-of-soap cure for leg cramps. I think there is a huge psychological component to these cramps. If the soap cure works, it is just superstition.

Anyone can learn to control leg cramps as I did. The trick is to avoid fighting them. If I simply accept them and tell them to do their worst, I can relax, and they go away quickly. They hardly ever occur now that I feel I can control them.

I think the bar of soap offers people the same feeling of control. While I suppose that’s good for them, it would be much better if they learned to do it without resorting to folklore.

A. You may be able to ease cramps mentally, but most people find nighttime leg cramps beyond their control. Although there is no science to support soap under the bottom sheet, we now have hundreds of testimonials to support its effectiveness.

X In their column, Joe and Teresa Graedon answer letters from readers. Write to them in care of The Vindicator or e-mail them via their Web site: www.PeoplesPharmacy.com.