Psoriasis: Why it Gets Worse in Winter and Fall

From iuhealth.org

Fall: It brings beautifully coloured leaves, cooler, crisper air, festive holidays and all too often, itchy skin. Why? Experts say the season’s drier air and lower levels of the sun’s ultraviolet rays can worsen inflammatory skin conditions like psoriasis (since ultraviolet light hinder the rapid growth of skin cells--a characteristic of the condition). The dry heat blared in most buildings during colder months can also sap the body of its natural stores of moisture, leading to dry, itching, cracked skin.
Wondering what you can do? Here, William A. Wooden, MD, FACS a plastic surgeon at Indiana University Health offers some helpful insights on psoriasis.
“Normally our skin grows all the time and sheds effectively but with people who have psoriasis it doesn’t shed fast enough and therefore gets thicker and scalier,” says Dr. Wooden. This is also once again a systemic condition that tends to run in families…meaning it’s not contagious and if your mom, dad, or siblings have had it, your risk could be higher.

Symptoms:  Like eczema, this can be a lifelong condition where the immune system basically sends off faulty information to the skin’s cells that force them to grow too quickly, says Dr. Wooden. The result can be the formation of plaque-like growths that may appear scaly and are often quite itchy. Common places for plaque formations include knees, elbows, lower back, and scalp.
Treatment: It is very important to keep tabs on when a patient’s psoriasis flares up. Oftentimes things like stress, illness, or new medications may trigger symptoms. Sadly, there is no cure, but Dr. Wooden says there are a variety of treatments that may offer patients relief including laser options, steroids and anti-inflammatories. “Patients with psoriasis should work with a doctor to find the right treatment plan for them,” says Dr. Wooden, who reiterates that there isn’t one perfect solution so some trial and error may be involved.
Prevention: “Patients also need to be attuned to the balance of the body,” says Dr. Wooden, who says that psoriatic flare-ups are often an indication that something else is off internally.

http://iuhealth.org/news-hub/detail/psoriasis-why-it-gets-worse-in-winter-and-fall/#.WcVbdoWcFYc

Are Your Emotions the Key to Your Skin Problems?

From preen.inquirer.net

The way we have expressions like “laugh lines” or “frown lines” already indicate that emotions affect our skin’s behaviour. Psychodermatology is “therapy for you skin” and looks into the “different ways of dealing with the connection between the mind and the skin,” according to The Cut. In simpler terms, your breakouts might just be an indication of stress and not that you need some salicylic acid.

Before you revamp your skin routine or book a vacation in the ruse of “getting your skin back to its youthful state,” we’ve compiled a few facts of this growing science. Keep an eye on it, we say, it might just be the treatment you need.

#1 You can’t use it to replace your derma appointments just yet 

In the United States, there are only half a dozen clinics that practice pscychodermatology. For everyday skin problems, it’s still best to see your dermatologist first. Clinical therapist Matt Traube tells The Cut that psychodermatology steps in only if you didn’t get the results you were hoping for from your derma.

#2 It is first employed in severe skin conditions

Though the science is relatively young, it is still routed in old observations. The relationship between psychology and skin concerns manifests in habits such as hair-pulling, skin picking, and delusions involving insects crawling all over the skin. It is also linked as to why peeling a scar can be satisfying for some even if it’s painful. These are commonly called body-focused repetitive behaviours, the explanations of which are slowly being uncovered.

#3 Stress plays a big factor 

Pyschodermatology finds that stress is a main factor for skin conditions. Medical research on people with psoriasis confirms that stress is a contributing factor in making things worst. “A couple of recent studies have corroborated this, with one finding that most people with psoriasis named emotional stress—not diet, not the weather, not medications or infections—as the number one trigger for their symptoms.” How exactly? There are suspicions that it’s about how our hormones, which also regulate our skin’s condition, behave differently under stress.
Other than this, I bet you are familiar with how stress can make you form habits that are damaging to the skin. Late nights spent at your job cause under-eye bags, dry skin, and acne. So perhaps the next time you decide to revamp your skincare routine, all you might need to do is clock in a few hours of sleep or spend some time away from the stressful situation.

#4 Immune cells might be the culprit at times

Hormones are the first suspect when it comes to situations like these but psychodermatology is trying to find out how immune cells might be in on it as well. When stressed, our immune system compensates through cells. These cells then can make your skin do certain things. “Take something called Langerhans cells, for instance, which are in the upper layers of the skin, and act as a go-between for the nervous system and the immune system. In psoriasis patients, those scaly skin patches that are symptomatic of the condition tend to form when Langerhans cells leave the upper layer of the skin — and research has suggested that stress may be involved in causing this movement of those cells.”

#5 The cure might be in your brain already

Given these hints, there is a suggestion that your mind might just be your best cure next to your trusted serum. Think about this situation: You’re stressed because of a pimple on your cheek that you feel people are staring at or feel disgusted by (although that is usually not the case). The stress causes the imperfection to get worst, making you more stressed, then a cycle is born. Try to then think of the opposite. As Matt told The Cut, “If we can somehow get in the middle of that and work with those thoughts that are not necessarily always accurate, like this idea that everyone is somehow staring at them and their skin imperfection, we can reduce the stress, and we can reduce flare-ups.”

http://preen.inquirer.net/55308/are-your-emotions-the-key-to-your-skin-problems