PURA News - April 2021
Purdue Retiree Directory (coming soon)
COVID-19 Info From United Health Care (for PURCare and PURA Medicare Advantage plan members)
Reminders:
Retiree Presence on Campus During COVID-19 Situation
Purposeful Living in Retirement: 4/21/21, Topic, Speaker, Registration Information, No Cost to Attend
Purdue Day of Giving: April 28
PURA’s Upcoming Events:
Link to Calendar
PURA Business:
Norm’s Notes: Proposed By-Laws Changes, Slate of Officers for 2021-22
PURA Newsletter Changes on the Horizon
PURA Program Committee Looking for New Members
Articles:
PURA’s Student Scholars Speak Out, Part 3
Confessions of a Book Addict: Echoes of War
Mailbox in a Cornfield?
Notable Historic April Events
PURA Tech Bytes: You Want Me To Fax This To You?!?!
Road Trip! Hoosier Hill, Highest Point in Indiana
True Tales of an Entomologist
Benefits/Health:
What is the Most Common Arthritis?
Campus Services News:
Contact Email for PURA
How to Subscribe to Purdue Today
COVID-19 Info From United Health Care (for PURCare and PURA Medicare Advantage plan members)
April, 2020
This is a time of concern and uncertainty for us all. Hoping to allay some of the stress and concern, UnitedHealthcare (UHC) has informed PURA that their top priority is the well-being of their health plan members and the safety of those who deliver healthcare.
UnitedHealthcare is aligned with guidance issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) and is taking actions to insure that those affected by COVID-19, including Purdue retirees covered by PURCare and the PURA Medicare Advantage plan, have the support and resources they need. For updated information, please visit https://www.uhc.com/health-and-wellness/health-topics/covid-19
In summary, the following is of significant interest:
UHC has waived all member cost sharing-including copays, coinsurance and deductibles for approved diagnostic testing for COVID-19 for all commercial insured, Medicaid and Medicare members who may be affected by COVID-19.
UHC will cover a provider visit for COVID-19 in the same way it covers other provider visits based on health benefits plan. Where available, UHC, is encouraging a Virtual Visit with a provider.
You have probably heard this many times already, but the following is the most important information:
STAY INFORMED
Those at highest risk are older adults and those with serious health conditions. Protect yourself:
* Wash hands often with soap and water for 20 seconds.
* Avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands
* Avoid close contact with others--especially with those who are sick.
* Clean and disinfect things that you touch often.
* Cough or sneeze into a tissue or your sleeve. Place used tissues into trash.
* If you feel sick, stay home.
We hope that this information will be helpful to you. We encourage you to visit the above web link frequently for updated information. Be careful and stay well!
Retiree Presence on Campus During COVID-19 Situation
Bill Bell, Purdue Vice President for Human Relations, addressed the question of whether retirees should visit campus at the September 14 virtual PURA Kickoff meeting.
While there are no formal restrictions around retirees visiting campus, keep in mind that one of the overall objectives of Protect Purdue is to de-densify the number of people present on campus.
Given that many retirees are considered a “vulnerable” population due to age or pre-existing medical conditions, if you don’t have pressing business, it’s advisable to avoid campus.
For up-to-the-minute information about specific programs or services visit: https://protect.purdue.edu (particularly the Campus Visitors link).
Purdue Day of Giving
Support the PURA student scholarship endowments on Purdue Day of Giving, April 28, 2021. Dollar for dollar matching money is still available for the PURA Student Scholarship Endowment and the PURA Purdue Opportunity Award in Honor of Martin and Patty Jischke.
Currently the endowments are assisting 19 students. Your continuing contributions will allow PURA to support even more students in the fall of 2021.
A dedicated online link to contribute to the two PURA endowments will be emailed to you prior to April 28.
If you prefer to mail a donation, write a check payable to the Purdue for Life Foundation, with either the PURA Student Scholarship Endowment or PURA POA Endowment in Honor of Martin C. and Patty Jischke noted in the memo line. Send the check to: Purdue for Life Foundation, 403 W. Wood Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2007. You also may call 1-800-319-2199.
And for those of you over 70 ½ years of age, gifts from your IRA are not taxable income and qualify for your required minimum distribution (RMD). To learn more about the IRA Rollover opportunities, or to make an IRA Rollover charitable contribution, please contact the Office of Planned Giving, 765-494-8657
Purposeful Living in Retirement: April 21, 2021
Presentation: “Drugs in the Pipeline for Treating Human Disease”, by Dr. Philip Low, Presidential Scholar for Drug Discovery and Ralph C. Corley Distinguished Professor of Chemistry at Purdue University
Dr. Low is an outstanding, internationally recognized scientist and speaker whose lab specializes in “targeted therapeutics”. His lab designs the techniques needed to identify specific ways to interrupt disease processes. During this presentation, Dr. Low will address therapies to treat cancers, viral diseases, fibrotic diseases, autoimmune diseases, bone fractures, and more. By targeting the specific area through which the disease process is set to replicate, the therapies help prevent side effects associated with many disease treatments. Dr. Low has devoted over 45 years to developing novel drugs for treatment of human diseases in characterizing the structure, function and pathologies of the human red blood cell.
What is different about the PLIR this year?
* The conference will take place on April 21, 2021 from 1 to 2 p.m. ET.
* The format for this year’s virtual PLIR conference will offer one single presentation.
* The presentation will be offered online. A link will be provided via email in advance of the presentation.
* Your video will not be on screen.
* You will have the opportunity to submit questions through a chat function during the presentation.
* There will not be a printed mailing this year. Invitations will be emailed on March 30; you may forward to other guests if you so desire.
* There is NO CHARGE for the presentation, however registration will be required to attend (see below).
How Do You Register?
Registration for this FREE session will open on March 30, 2021 at 8:00 a.m. ET. An invitation will be sent via email on March 30, 2021 from the Purdue University Retirees Association, pura@purdue.edu. You may also visit the Purdue for Life Events Portal page directly to register, by visiting connect.purdue.edu/s/events.
Norm's Notes
PURA Business
Proposed By-Laws Changes
The Purdue Retirees Executive Board continually monitors our business functions and makes recommendations as appropriate. In this case, they are recommending some enhancements to our By-Laws to be sure they are supporting the PURA organization.
Their recommendations are:
- A clarification of duties for the secretary – The secretary will now become responsible for changing/updating the PURA officers listed on the BIG 10 site at the University of Michigan each July. The Secretary shall serve a three-year term with a maximum uninterrupted term of six years.
- Handling PURA business in unusual times – The PURA Executive Board shall intervene and support any PURA activity due to extraordinary events/circumstances either natural or man-made for the purpose of keeping the PURA family safe and healthy. (Example, our recent/current experience with the COVID-19 pandemic.)
- Adding a new standing committee – a Media Communications Committee will be established and responsible for working with other PURA committees to effectively deliver content through electronic means on platforms such as but not limited to, the PURA Website, Email, Zoom, Facebook and Twitter.
Proposed Slate of Officers
The PURA nominating committee has proposed the following slate of officers to take office on July 1, 2021:
President – Bill Bennett
President-Elect – Jerry Day
Secretary – Judy Ware
Treasurer – Lucia Anderson
Historian – Sue Hume Graham
Past President – Norman Long
All PURA members will have the opportunity via email and a software program known as Qualtrics, to cast their vote for each of the proposed By-Law changes and for the proposed slate of officers.
Information on this new procedure and how it works will be forthcoming via email a few days prior to the Annual PURA meeting scheduled for April 5, 2021.
Your Feedback Is Welcomed
As has been our policy, we welcome your thoughts, comments and feedback regarding the PURA organization, our Zoom calls and ideas to further enhance the program for the PURA family.
Until next time…
With kindest regards and best wishes,
Dr. Norman D. Long
PURA President
PURA Newsletter Changes On The Horizon
By Norm Long and Scott Ksander
The University Development Office has offered PURA the opportunity to reach more Purdue retirees, now and after the COVID isolation ends. To achieve this effectively, the UDO now maintains a data base of nearly 6,000 people believed to be official Purdue Retirees. UDO’s offer will enable the PURA newsletter to be routinely emailed to all members, be ADA compliant with color and visual enhancements, and offer the ability to easily enlarge the content.
It will provide much stronger security and freedom from spam, and it will appear in a new format, much like Purdue Today. The UDO proposal is to help us send email and the newsletter to this expanded list, and in doing so, try to reconnect with retirees who might have fallen through the cracks and/or confirm those retirees who really do not want to be on the PURA mailing list.
The PURA Executive Board has undertaken review and careful consideration of this new format and design changes with the plan to move slowly, carefully and in a prudent manner. The new opportunity will afford receipt of email, handling of bad email addresses, feedback, and again, ADA compliance.
Our anticipation is to reach 4,500+ members, compared to the 3,200 members we’re currently able to reach. It also guarantees PURA members that they will not be flooded with junk mail, solicitations and/or extraneous materials.
The PURA Executive Board would appreciate your thoughts and feedback once you have seen, read, and thought about these enhancements. Your comments should be directed to pura@purdue.edu.
Thank you for your consideration.
PURA Program Committee 2021-22 Is Looking for New Members
The PURA Program Committee brainstorms, plans and coordinates monthly speaker presentations for PURA members, at mid-day on the first Monday of each month, except the month of September when the annual Kickoff Luncheon/Virtual Event is normally held.
Due to normal attrition, this committee needs to recruit new members each year -- starting their terms during the annual PURA “Transition” meeting in early June. We need to add several new members for the 2021-22 year. Purdue retirees and spouses are eligible for membership on this or any other PURA committee.
PURA’s Transition meeting this year is scheduled on June 2, 2021, and will be held via Zoom. The Program Committee will hold its primary annual planning session as part of that meeting. During this meeting, the committee will put together a list of potential speakers for the coming program year.
After the annual planning meeting, committee communication is via e-mail, telephone, and personal contact at the monthly lunch-time meetings. Each committee member is assigned to confirm and coordinate at least one monthly meeting per year. Typically, speakers are Purdue faculty or administrators, or community leaders with expertise in a variety of subjects or organizations.
Based on my personal experience serving on this committee, it is a great starting place to become involved in the leadership of PURA. Anyone interested in joining or learning more about this committee, please contact Jerry Day, Program Committee Chair at jljlday@outlook.com or 765-714-7918.
Articles:
PURA’s Student Scholars Speak Out: Part III: Dear PURA Members...
My name is Cameron Gregson and I currently am a senior here at Purdue University. I am majoring in Accounting and acquiring a concentration in Data Analytics! I will be graduating from undergraduate studies here in May 2021. After finishing undergrad, I will be staying at Purdue for a master’s degree! I was just recently accepted, and will be rolling into the master’s in accounting one-year program. Without the generosity of donors like you, the pursuit of my education would not be possible, so I am writing you to give you a sincere thank you for your generosity.
The scholarship you have provided me with is truly one of the few reasons I am able to attend Purdue. Being a first-generation college student, the road to getting where I am today has not always been easy, and I have had to spend a lot of time working hard to open doors of opportunities for myself. Because of your kindness, you played a role in opening these doors with me. During my time at Purdue, I have spent a lot of time becoming involved across different organizations. I have served on the executive board of three different organizations on Purdue’s campus, which is something I am very proud of. These organizations include: Beta Alpha Psi business fraternity, Theta Chi social fraternity, and the Interfraternity Council. I would not have the time to be as involved as I am if I did not have this funding for college. I have been fortunate because of donors like you to not have to work a near full-time job and attend school at the same time. Because of this, I have been able to gain numerous leadership skills as well as just make myself a more well-rounded individual, overall.
After I finish up my master’s degree at Purdue, I am planning to go and work in public accounting. I plan to sit for the Certified Public Accountant exam the summer following completion of my degree. For this coming summer, I have accepted an internship with EY to work in their assurance practice here in Indianapolis. I am hoping that this internship will go well, and that I will be able to become a full-time employee there eventually. I am not quite sure where I see myself working in the long term, but I am confident that public accounting will be a good start for me and really allow me to gauge which direction I see my career path heading.
I want to thank you again. I have found a lot of success in my time at Purdue, and am proud of these accomplishments, but none of them are possible without your generosity and kindness. There is no doubt in my mind that once I am financially able, I would like to pay it forward and help students just like you have done for me.
With thanks,
Cameron Gregson
PURA Student Scholarship
Senior, Krannert School of Management, from Greenwood, Indiana
My name is Hannah Thomas and I am a senior at Purdue University. I am studying Construction Management through the Polytechnic Institute. I am expected to graduate in May 2021 with a bachelor’s in Construction Management and a minor in Technology Leadership Integration. I am writing you to thank you for your generosity and support through the PURA Student scholarship.
This scholarship means the world to me because it allows me to focus on my schoolwork. The funding allows me to focus on my senior year without the financial burden of college. I have been able to focus on my senior capstone project and continue to intern for Sterling Construction. The funding also allows me to focus on getting LEED or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certified.
After I graduate, I will be moving to North Carolina to continue to work for Sterling Construction. I will be working as Project Engineer on multi-family apartments. My dream is to work my way up to Project Manager for Sterling Construction and eventually start my own construction consulting business. I have grown up in the construction industry and it was always my dream to grow and learn as much as I can in the industry. Thank you again for allowing me to have this amazing opportunity.
Kindest Regards,
Hannah Thomas
PURA Student Scholarship
Senior, Purdue Polytechnic Institute, from North Manchester, Indiana
My name is Karen Barillas and I am currently a student at Purdue University. I am a Junior studying Elementary Education. Fingers crossed; I am supposed to graduate in 2021. My purpose of writing this letter is to thank you for your generosity through the scholarship that I received.
This scholarship is extremely important to me because it has helped me a lot with my expenses. I do not live on campus and I travel back and forth (50 minutes) to and from school every day that I have classes. During my extracurricular time I like to help out on food drives and around my community. This funding will allow me to work more on assignments while meeting all of the expenses that come with school. After I graduate from Purdue, I plan to move to Hawaii and teach there.
Thank you again for the scholarship! It is very much appreciated.
Kindest regards,
Karen Barillas
PURA Student Scholarship
Junior, College of Education, from Goodland, Indiana
Thank you for this scholarship, which has been very helpful in reducing the overall financial load of attending Purdue University. My name is Joshua Priest, and I am studying for a Bachelor’s of Science in Computer Science, anticipating graduation by 2023. Your support toward accomplishing this goal is greatly appreciated.
I am so thankful for this scholarship because it, along with money I have saved, allowed me to take classes these past two semesters. You have helped me meet all of my educational expenses while living here. Every dollar gifted is helpful!
Later on at Purdue, I plan to have every requirement for my major met within the next four semesters, so that way I will be able to get into the workforce more quickly. During breaks or semesters with a lighter workload, I hope to fill that time with an internship somewhere for work experience. I intend to find a career in software development or a similar field after graduation, so then I would be able to quickly earn back the money put toward college and become a productive member of society.
I am grateful for your contribution in financial aid, and I wish you every blessing.
Sincerely,
Joshua Priest
PURA Student Scholarship
Sophomore, College of Science, from Indianapolis, Indiana
Mailbox in a Cornfield?
This mysterious mailbox is near Brookston, Indiana. It is not near any house or building and appears to be in good repair. Does the mail arrive by train? Who picks up this mail? Someone who arrives by train?
Top of Page
Confessions of a Book Addict: Echoes War, By Jo Thomas
World War II is an interest of mine because as a young child I was caught up in the posters, patriotic songs, and movies with dancing sailors. We took our fat drippings to the butcher shop, squeezed a plastic bag of margarine until it turned yellow, planted a large Victory Garden and canned all summer. I received a nickel for filling a yard-high mesh bag with milkweed pods. I saw the blue star on a window and saw it turn gold. I couldn’t reconcile that a young man who rode on my school bus just a year before was gone forever. I listened to H. V. Keltenborn on the news from London, never realizing that much of it was propaganda to keep American spirits up. I don’t believe I ever wondered about the people who lived in occupied countries or who were bombed. I now read to minimize that gap.
Author Susan Wiggs is noted for her treatment of family chemistry. In the Apple Orchard and its sequel The Bee Keeper’s Ball, Wiggs features family secrets, a bit of mystery and a back story of Danish resistance. Later, I found criticism that they were poorly researched. Well, I enjoyed the stories and the delicious recipes included.
In another book, the woman didn’t like her two daughters. She was not the caring person mothers were expected to be. The most gentle thing she had done during their lives was to tell them a fairy tale with no ending. Also, she created strange arrangements in the garden in the dead of winter which puzzled the girls. As he was dying, their father told his daughters to ask for the end of the fairy tale. The book is Winter Garden by Kristen Hannah.
Also authored by Kristen Hannah is The Nightingale, named by the Wall Street Journal as “Best Book of the Year.” Often the efforts of women in war time are overlooked. This is the story of two sisters each embarking on their own fight for survival and freedom in German occupied France. The book is inspiring, poignant and painful. Many PURA members have read it and relish it. Ask around.
PURA Tech Bytes:
You Want Me to Fax This To You!?!!?!
By Scott Ksander
Every now and then you get involved with someone that wants you to fax them some information. Faxing has been around for a long time. The inventor, Alexander Bain, received British patent #9745 for this technology on May 27, 1843. AT&T did some major upgrades in 1924 and Western Union offered the first “desktop fax” in 1948. Computers started including “fax board” in 1985. As digital phone lines became popular, many fax machines stopped working properly. As landlines disappeared, faxing did also.
So, if you must send a fax and do not want to make a trip to FedEx Office (aka Kinko’s), do you have any options?
For businesses, there are online fax services that allow for sending and receiving faxes. These are offered on a subscription model that starts at about $5/month and moves up based on volume. Fax.Plus, starting at $4.99 per month, is currently the top rated service in this class. There are, however, two “free” fax services, faxzero.com and hellofax.com. They are bare bones but can be handy. FaxZero, for example, lets you send up to five faxes per day with each fax having a maximum of 3 pages plus a cover sheet with email confirmation. If you need more capability, FaxZero has an “Almost Free Fax” option for $1.99 per fax up to 25 pages. HelloFax has similar capabilities.
The “pros” for these services are: limited free faxing to US and Canada, international faxing for a fee, and a simple interface. The “cons” are: no fax receiving, paid faxing options can get expensive, and no mobile app or email-to-fax capability.
The bottom line is if you really need to send a fax (but not receive), and do not want to travel or pay, these services are a reasonable option despite the lack of higher-end features and mobile apps.
Road Trip! Hoosier Hill, By Karen Lembcke
Did you know that Hoosier Hill is the highest natural point in the state of Indiana? When I decided to visit the highest point in Indiana, I was quite interested to see what this would look like, as I have not visited the high points in any other state. My first thought was that it would probably be more in the southern part of Indiana where the terrain is not as flat as it is in the northern part. But that turned out to be a misconception. It is located directly east of Carmel and approximately 10 miles from the Ohio border in the township of Franklin, Wayne County; it is northeast of Fountain City and west of the town of Bethel, on Elliot Road near the County Line Road. Fortunately, I did observe signs that were helpful in directing me to the site.
Hoosier Hill is actually located on private property in a farmland area abutted by a forested area. According to Wikipedia, “In 2005, an Eagle Scout candidate named Kyle Cummings (Troop 820 from Lakeside Park, Kentucky), in cooperation with the property owner, built a trail, sign and picnic area at the high point.”1
When driving to Hoosier Hill I was elated when the road I was on had a slight elevation to it. It did give me a “good feeling” of ascending to the highest point in Indiana.
As you can see in the pictures that follow, there is a permanent marker on the stone along with a sign and a mailbox. A notebook is kept inside where visitors can write their name and hometown. It is always amazing to see the interests of people from other states and countries visiting this “famous landmark”. There is a picnic table and bench on which to relax along with a trail, which I did not utilize so I am unable to provide any further information on the hiking conditions.
Now, you might ask where the lowest elevation of Indiana is located. It is located near Vernon at 320 feet above sea level.
The highest point in the United States is: Denali, Alaska at 20,310 feet. In the contiguous U.S., the top ten is as follows:
Mount Whitney, CA - 14,505
Mount Elbert, CO – 14,440
Mount Rainier, WA – 14,417
Kings Peak, UT - 13,534
Wheeler Peak, NM -- 13,167
Boundary Peak, NV -- 13,147
Granite Peak, MT - 12,807
Borah Peak, ID -12,668
Humphreys Peak, AZ - 12,637
"Kyle Cummings Eagle Project Transforms Indiana's Hoosier Hill". HighPointers.org. Archived from the original on 2010-11-02. Retrieved
2008-12-17
True Tales of an Entomologist – by Tom Turpin: Sexing Mosquitos
Editor’s Note: This is the second installment of Tom Turpin’s colorful experiences, which appear in his self-published Memoirs.
Good Things About Insects
My standard introduction to the “Bug in a Bag” program is to ask the audience if they know anything about insects.
Almost always – and the age of the audience doesn’t matter-– the first responses are usually negative. Things such as: they bite, they sting, they eat your plants, and they’re ugly. At this point I often pretend to be disappointed that no one has mentioned any good things about insects. I ask if anyone in the audience knows anything positive about insects.
Generally I hear they make honey or they are pollinators. However, in a presentation to a College Mentors for Kids program at Wabash College, when I asked the audience for good things about insects not a single one of the 5th grade kids responded. I said “Not a single one of you can think of anything good about insects!” No hands waved in the air signaling intent to provide an answer.
Finally a kid sitting near the back of the stair-stepped auditorium – coincidentally wearing an Indiana University t-shirt – had his hand about half way up. I saw him and said “You - you in the IU t-shirt, do you know something good about insects?” He said, “Yes sir, I do!” I said, “Well tell the other students something good about insects.” Without hesitation he responded, “You can chase your sister with them!” First time I had heard that as a positive thing about insects.
Notable Historic April Events
April 7, 1949—Rodgers and Hammerstein debut their hit musical "South Pacific" on Broadway.
April 8, 1974—Hank Aaron of the Atlanta Braves hits his 715th career home run, becoming the career home run all-time champion, surpassing Babe Ruth’s long-held record.
April 12, 1961—Colonel Yuri Gagarin of the Soviet Union becomes the first man in space.
April 12, 1981—First U.S. space shuttle, Columbia, launches.
April 13, 1936—Work on the Boulder Dam is completed.
April 14, 1828—The first dictionary of American-style English was published by Noah Webster as the American Dictionary of the English Language.
April 15, 1912—The ”unsinkable” luxury liner, Titanic, sunk after hitting an iceberg, about 400 miles off the coast of Newfoundland. The ship was on its maiden voyage with 2,228 passengers and crew members on board; over half of them perished.
April 18, 1923—The first baseball game is played at Yankee Stadium in New York City
April 19, 1897—The world’s oldest annual marathon is run in Boston, Massachusetts, for the first time.
April 24, 1800—The Library of Congress is established in Washington, D.C. It is America's oldest federal cultural institution and the world's largest library. Among the 145 million items in its collections are more than 33 million books, 3 million recordings, 12.5 million photographs, 5.3 million maps, 6 million pieces of sheet music and 63 million manuscripts. About 10,000 new items are added each day.
April 24, 1990—Space Shuttle Discovery launches the Hubble Space Telescope into orbit.
April 25, 1956—Elvis Presley has his first number one hit with "Heartbreak Hotel"
April 25, 1955—The St. Lawrence Seaway opened to ocean vessels seeking passage from Montreal to U.S. ports on the Great Lakes.
April 30, 1789—George Washington inaugurated as the first president of the United States
April 30,1939, April 22, 1964, and April 21, 1965—The New York World's Fairs open.
- 44 million people attended the 1939 event, which was dubbed “Dawn of a New Day,” and allowed visitors to take a look at “the world of tomorrow.” World War II began four months later, affecting attendance and many exhibits, particularly those of countries under the Axis powers’ occupation. The fair closed in 1940.
- The later fair, which 51 million people attended, was open from April-October in 1964 and 1965. The theme of “Peace Through Understanding” highlighted the aspired international flavor of the exposition. Baby Boomers may remember that this is the venue in which Disney’s trademarked robotic animation premiered in the exhibit "Pepsi-Cola Presents Walt Disney's 'It's a Small World'—a Salute to UNICEF and the World's Children" at the Pepsi-Cola pavilion: Animated dolls and animals from around the world danced to a catchy song while attendees experienced a boat ride around the world. The theme song was written by the Sherman Brothers. (Ed. Note:...and a powerful earworm was born! Source: Wikipedia.)
Benefits/Health:
What is the Most Common Arthritis?
Chris Rearick, MSN, RN
Purdue Nursing Center for Family Health
Have you noticed your skin getting drier as you age? Xerosis cutis is a fancy medical term for dry skin. This dry flaky skin may begin to develop as early as 40 years old. Due to factors out of our control, our skin becomes more prone to drying.
The epidermis, which is the outermost layer of our skin, is the body’s barrier protecting us from the environment. As we age, the skin’s collagen and elastin production decrease and makes the epidermis less elastic. This adds to the inability of our skin to be able to hold onto water molecules. Hyaluronic acid (HA) is a sugar molecule in our skin, joints and other body fluids which keeps our skin hydrated and plump. HA binds with water molecules but the older we get the less HA we make, so less moisture is retained in our skin. Now add conditions such as environmental exposure, diuretics, cardiovascular disease, renal insufficiency, thyroid issues and diabetes to the mix, and dry skin can worsen.
Treating dry skin is as simple as adding a thick cream or moisturizer within two to three minutes after bathing. Bathing should be limited to short showers or baths in warm water versus hot water. It also helps to pat skin dry versus rubbing skin with a towel. Soaps should be mild, and scrubbing should be limited. Fragrance free soap and moisturizers are best.
Thicker moisturizers are better than lotions. Though many lotions tend to have a higher water content they will not help the skin keep in moisture. Moisturizing emollients such as CeraVe cream or AmLactin XL cream/lotion are known to hold moisture into the skin and can be purchased at almost any retail store. These emollients also contain alpha-hydroxy acids which help break down those thickened dry skin cells. I have used AmLactin for years and personally love it.
Keep moisturizers close and use frequently. Applying cocoa butter to your feet and hands before bed can help keep your nail beds, palms of your hands and soles of your feet less dry. After applying the cocoa butter, you may find it less messy to wear socks on your feet. When you wake up the oiliness will be gone and softness should remain through the day.
It is always important to follow up with your healthcare provider. In severe cases of dry skin, dermatitis may develop, and a steroid cream may be needed short-term. Severely dry skin can be a sign of other underlying health conditions.
Time for a wellness screening?
Feel free to contact Chris at crearick@purdue.edu to schedule a wellness screening at your convenience. You may also call 496-0308 and leave a message for her.
Suggestions for Future Articles?
Please feel free to email Chris with any additional questions or suggestions for future health columns. Chris Rearick, crearick@purdue.edu or, you may call Chris at (765) 496-0308 and leave a message for her.
Campus Services News:
Contact Email for PURA
To streamline ongoing communications and service from Purdue Human Resources, a new email account has been set up. All PURA-related communications from HR will now come from pura@purdue.edu – which will show up as “PURA Admin” in your email inboxes.
If you have questions or comments going forward, please send them to this email address instead of jacksonh@purdue.edu.
How to Subscribe to Purdue Today
Retirees may signup online to receive Purdue Today emails. Visit this web site: https://www.purdue.edu/newsroom/purduetoday/subscribe-to-purdue-today.html.
The form asks for first and last name, University affiliation and email address. Once the form is submitted, you will receive an email from Purdue Today (purduetoday@purdue.edu) asking you to confirm the subscription.
Some mail servers may identify Purdue Today as spam and filter the confirmation email — and subsequent Purdue Today emails — into a "junk" or "promotions" folder. To avoid this, add purduetoday@purdue.edu to your email application's contacts list.
Questions about Purdue Today should be directed to Valerie O'Brien at purduetoday@purdue.edu or 765-494-9573.
