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If you wake up one day and discover that you have a skin tag on your body, you might be worried about what it is, and if it’s a sign you need to be worried about your skin health.
Thankfully, you don’t need to be too concerned with skin tags as they are often harmless (with some exceptions).
Here’s everything you need to know about skin tags.
What Are Skin Tags?
Skin tags are simply collections of blood, fat, and skin cells that grow on your body. Most people have several skin tags on their bodies, and they often show up on areas of skin where there is some friction such as the neck, underarms, torso, and eyelids. For the most part, they are harmless. But for some people, they can be eyesores and some even find them embarrassing.
Again, most of the time skin tags are harmless and aren’t signs of cancer or any other skin problem. Still, some skin issues can disguise themselves as skin tags, so always get any skin tag checked out that is bleeding, irritated, or is changing color and size.
Skin tags are also different from warts and moles, and while you can often tell apart moles and skin tags on site, warts are a bit harder. While warts tend to have a rough texture, skin tags are smooth.
Can I Remove My Skin Tags? Do I Need To?
While most skin tags are harmless, some people try to remove them because they are unsightly, irritating/itching, or are in a prime spot to get caught on clothing or jewelry. Skin tags can be removed if you want to go through the procedure. All you have to do is find a skin tag removal in London service (or wherever you live!).
Dermatologists can remove your skin tags in several easy ways. For a larger skin tag, they may need to remove the skin tag surgically, use cryotherapy to freeze the tag until it can be removed, or burn the tag off using heat or electricity. Smaller skin tags can be “strangled” with a string, causing them to fall off.
Can I Remove A Skin Tag Myself?
Since having a skin tag removed is a cosmetic procedure, it often isn’t covered by insurance so you might be tempted to remove the skin tag yourself. However, while there are plenty of processes and procedures and over-the-counter medications that you can use to remove the skin tag, you don’t want to remove the skin tags yourself.
For starters, most home remedies aren’t a one-and-done procedure, and you need to keep on applying the treatment for a few days or weeks in order to remove the skin tag. Additionally, most of them aren’t fully tested and there isn’t one remedy that will always work.
So while you can remove a skin tag on your own, you should really see a dermatologist and have it done right.
When Do I Need To Worry About Skin Tags?
Most of the time skin tags are harmless and benign, and you don’t need to worry about them. In fact, most skin tags are going to remain the same throughout your life. However, if you find a skin tag on your skin that is growing in size, changing in color, or that is turning irritated and even bleeding or causing you some pain, you need to have it checked out. The earlier you get the skin tag checked out, the earlier you can catch any problems with your skin.
Let A Skin Tag Be Another Blemish On Your Body
While you might decide that you want to have your skin tag removed — and there are certainly legitimate reasons for having one removed — if it isn’t bothering you, why not leave it where it is? The average person has a least a few skin tags on their body and more are going to probably show up, so why not accept the blemish on your body?
Moles, freckles, dimples, and more are all things that make you, you. So if you don’t need to worry about them, then why not leave them be?
