New Delhi, Nov 20 (IANS): With the air quality worsening in the Delhi-NCR region, health experts on Wednesday revealed that doctors have observed 30 per cent jump in skin related problems here.

Toxic high pollution in the Delhi-NCR is not only taking a toll on people's health but is also adversely affecting their skin, causing allergies, rashes and premature ageing, thereby forcing them to seek medical treatments.

According to VK Sharma, Professor and Head, Department of Dermatology, AIIMS in New Delhi, exposure to pollution leads to early ageing of skin, pigmentation, skin irritation and other skin related problems.

Due to high pollution level, patients suffering from skin allergy experience aggravation.

"It is proven by research that high level of PM 2.5 present in the air leads to inflammation of skin. Due to high levels of pollution in Delhi, the number of patients with skin problems has gone up," Sharma said.

As the capital is turning into a gas chamber, along with respiratory, heart and other health problems, skin related problems are also rising.

With winters around the corner, the situation is only getting worse, forcing people to seek medical help.

"While our skin is meant to work as a protective layer and ward off environmental hazards, the current levels of pollution is way too much for it to endure, resulting in various skin problems and premature ageing," said Dr Ajaya Kashyap, Medical Director, KAS Medical Centre and MedSpa in New Delhi.

"In last few days, we received a record number of patients with skin related issues and also for anti-ageing treatments, we see almost 30 per cent increase in number of patients," Kashyap stressed.

According to experts, since Delhi's pollution is characterised by extremely high levels of Particulate Matter (PM), reaching up to even 999 in some days, while the permissible level is 60 micrograms, it is even worse for the skin.