THE INTRINSIC CARBOHYDRATE METABOLISM OF THE SKIN

Abstract

During recent years, association of a high carbohydrate intake with various disorders of the skin has gained wide clinical acceptance. The evidence for such an association is found in (1) a somewhat higher incidence of skin disorders in diabetic patients¹ and (2) blood sugar studies indicating some degree of hyperglycemia in many patients with skin diseases. These blood sugar studies are not strikingly conclusive, and on the basis of the large series of Schamberg and Brown² this evidence would seem to be open to question. Should it be accepted, there is still no adequate demonstration of any mechanism by which disturbance of carbohydrate metabolism may produce pathologic changes in the skin, although Usher³ has shown that an increase in the sugar content of the sweat may lead to more favorable conditions for the growth of bacteria and fungi. Attempts at an explanation of such a mechanism have