Summer is in full swing and as patients spend more time outdoors, bug bites and other skin irritants will find a way to disrupt the fun.

Bug bites cause skin inflammation, showing in redness and swelling, and trigger the urge to scratch the skin. At an event hosted by Cortizone-10 on Wednesday in New York City, senior director of research and innovation Remona Gopaul explained the dangers of scratching itchy skin.

“When you get an itch, pause for a bit because itching damages the skin. When you itch the skin, you’re breaking it allowing more pollen, irritants to get in,” Gopaul said.

Dermatologists can help patients alleviate the need to scratch their skin by reminding them to keep anti-itch products easily accessible.  

Elyse Love, MD, often sees patients who have scratched at their skin and later see an enhanced breakout.

To be proactive, Dr. Love encourages her patients to carry an anti-itch cream with them in the summer because it’s a way to treat bug bites and other skin irritants, like eczema, in real time.

“A lot of times if you stop the itch early, then you don’t lead to the bigger rash and bigger incident,” Dr. Love said.