How Can You Protect Your Skin From Psoriasis This Winter Season?

From thehealthsite.com

World Psoriasis Day 2022: Psoriasis is a common skin disorder affecting adults and children. The condition can cause your skin cells to form silvery, rough red patches with white scales that can be itchy and vary in size. It commonly affects the joints, scalp, and lower back. The occurrence of psoriasis is quite common during winters as the cold winds, low humidity, wet weather and less sunlight can drain the moisture out of our skin and make it dry and itchy. Recent reports highlight that the disease affects approximately 2-4% of the population resulting in more than 10 million cases in India annually. The disease affects men more than women and can occur across all age groups. However, due to certain stigmas, psoriasis is often misunderstood, and patients tend to hide the disease by wearing long sleeve clothes, high collars and long pants to hide their skin lesions.

What Are The Signs Of Psoriasis, And How Can You Manage It?

The signs and symptoms of psoriasis include -

1. Red patches on the skin surface
2. Soreness, burning and itching
3. Large scaling spots
4. Dry, cracked skin that bleeds
5. Thickened, pitted or ridged nails
6. Swollen and stiff joints

People with psoriasis can use emollients to help hydrate their skin by forming a greasy layer over the skin surface, preventing water loss and retaining moisture. The most commonly used emollients are white soft paraffin and liquid paraffin, which can be applied immediately after the bath and between the treatment periods for the best effect.

Additionally, people can use these winter psoriasis treatment strategies to prevent themselves.

1. Use a moisturising soap while bathing
2. Apply fragrance-free products to avoid allergic reactions
3. Take short warm baths instead of long showers in hot water
4. Use a humidifier while staying indoors to keep the air moist and prevent dryness
5. Wear a layer of cotton clothes or multiple cotton clothes to avoid irritation and flare-ups caused by fabrics
6. Use a scarf/hat along with gloves to protect the exposed areas of the skin while stepping out

Natural sunlight can help reduce the symptoms of psoriasis. Saltwater dips and sunbathing have long been known to help reduce the symptoms of psoriasis. This is also called balneotherapy. In addition, simple Vitamin D-based creams and coal tar shampoos can help reduce the severity of the disease. The more severe disease would require a more aggressive approach, always keeping in mind to treat the patient, not the disease.

https://www.thehealthsite.com/beauty/skin-care/how-can-you-protect-your-skin-from-psoriasis-this-winter-season-919895/

Is There a Connection Between Social Anxiety and Psoriasis?

By Susan Navarez

When psoriasis appears, it may trigger feeling of embarrassment, anxiousness and depression in a person. It causes massive resentment in the sufferer, forcing him to isolate himself from the society. The patient begins to feel the pangs of stress and anxiety with the onset of psoriasis and having to avoid the society.

Diagnosis of psoriasis is invariably followed by psychological issues. According to a study published in the International journal of Molecular sciences, 46% of the psoriasis patients were diagnosed with social anxiety while 38% of them were diagnosed with depression.

Although scientists aren't fully aware of the connection between psoriasis and social anxiety, some studies have shown a strong connection between mental health and psoriasis. Psoriasis, which is a common inflammatory and proliferative disease of the skin, is genetically determined. And studies have found that psychological stress can exacerbate the disease.

There is strong clinical proof that stress plays a pivotal role on the onset and exacerbation of psoriasis.  Research conducted on psoriatic patients says 60% of the patients affirmed that stress was a causal factor for their psoriasis.

Psoriasis acts as a double-edged sword. It can lead to stress itself, and in turn, stress can worsen psoriasis. Most Psoriatic patients said that they faced stress and anxiety due to social stigma associated with it and the cosmetic disfigurement resulting from it. It then precipitates their psoriasis.

Another study showed that a person's age during the onset of psoriasis can contribute majorly towards mental health problems such as social anxiety and depression. The study revealed that people developing psoriasis before the age of 18 years experienced social anxiety in context to stigmatization. However, people developing psoriasis after 18 years of age experienced social anxiety in context to the disease affecting their appearance, which in turn, affected their self-worthiness.

How Social Anxiety and Psoriasis Are Interlinked

Social anxiety, also known as social phobia, is a chronic form of anxiety in which social interaction causes overwhelming fear and anxiousness. A person suffering from psoriasis and co-occurring social anxiety tends to avoid social gathering, family or friends due to feeling of embarrassment and shame.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, the signs of social anxiety can include:

. Avoiding social gathering

. Fear of being judged

. Feeling of dreaded fear

. Feeling conscious and embarrassed in front of people

. Physical symptoms including accelerated heartbeat, trembling and blushing

. Avoiding eye contact

. Speaking in a very feeble voice

. Fear of interaction with people

According to National Psoriasis Foundation, prolonged stress can lead to severity of psoriasis symptoms and increase the itchiness.

A person enduring psoriasis might find it embarrassing to go to public gatherings due to visible scar. They have the fear about being ridicule by people. By avoiding social gathering for prolonged period of time, the person might develop symptoms of self-isolation, social phobia and depression. This creates a vicious cycle of mental stress and anxiety and can snowball into a bigger issue if not intervened at the right time. It spirals into bouts of mental anxiety until becoming a full-blown psychological case.

Research suggests that psoriasis is an independent disease that occurs on its own, but it has the potential to develop anxiety. Anxiety, in turn, can exacerbate symptoms of psoriasis. The APA defines anxiety as persistent and excessive worries that refuses to go away despite no stressor causing the worry.

How To Manage Emotional Health and When to seek help

People grappling with psoriasis are often actually avoided by people or discriminated in the society. Therefore, educating society about the disease and its psychological consequences on the patients is important. There are therapies that go a long way to deal with it. Intervention programs such as group therapy and family counselling evidently help people suffering from psoriasis in building a supportive network of family and friends and provide motivation.

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is another effective therapy to deal with co-occurring psoriasis and mental health issues. It helps to develop positive attitude and better thinking process. CBT also focuses on bringing a change in the behavioural pattern of the patient.

https://ezinearticles.com/?Is-There-a-Connection-Between-Social-Anxiety-and-Psoriasis?&id=10521492 

On World Psoriasis Day, know 6 myths and facts about this condition

From healthshots.com

World Psoriasis Day: If you think this skin disease is contagious then you’re wrong. Here are 6 such myths about psoriasis.

Psoriasis is a chronic autoimmune inflammatory condition of skin, which causes it to become silvery with white scales and reddish plaques. Along with impacting the skin, it affects individuals mentally and emotionally. This World Psoriasis Day, which is celebrated every year on October 29, it is essential to know the facts and break through the established wrongs tied to it. Come, let’s learn some popular myths about psoriasis.

Myths about psoriasis

People with psoriasis go through isolation, anxiety and are likely to have depression. Therefore, it is important for everyone to know the right facts about this condition and spread awareness as much as possible.

6 myths and facts associated with psoriasis:

Myth #1: Psoriasis is contagious

Since psoriasis is very visible, people think it is communicable. It is an absolutely non-contagious disease. It is an autoimmune disorder in which the regeneration of skin cells is accelerated at a very higher pace than usual. Any kind of physical contact with a person who has the condition, by no means will lead you to get psoriasis.

Myth #2: Poor hygiene leads to psoriasis

Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease and hygiene has no role in it. It is neither the cause nor could it elevate the disorder.

Myth #3: It is only a skin condition

Though it often manifests as red itchy patches on the skin, it could even affect nails, mouth, joints, etc, and cause several medical conditions such as psoriatic arthritis. The risk of developing heart disease, vision issues, heart conditions, etc also increases.

Myth #4: It is an adult condition

Genetics is one of the causes of the condition. So, psoriasis affects children as well with as high as a 50 percent chance if both parents have the disorder.

Myth #5: It only manifests as one type

Five types of psoriasis exist, depending on the aetiology namely plaque, inverse, guttate, pustular, and erythrodermic.

Myth #6: There is no treatment

There isn’t any permanent cure for psoriasis yet but there exist effective treatments that can improve the severity of signs and symptoms and lowers the risk of developing other health conditions.

How to manage psoriasis?

Regular treatment is the key to managing psoriasis. Therefore, seeing a doctor is necessary and the best solution will be prescribed by your healthcare provider according to the severity of the disease as it is different for everyone.

Additionally, give extra moisturizer to the skin, don’t allow skin to dry, expose body to sunlight, do regular exercise to make joints stronger, reduce stress levels, and quit smoking and drinking alcohol to ease psoriasis.

https://www.healthshots.com/beauty/skin-care/world-psoriasis-day-6-common-myths-about-psoriasis/

Psoriasis Patients Who Meditate May Ease Symptoms, Improve QOL

From journalstar.com

FRIDAY, Oct. 21, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Meditation may help patients manage psoriasis, according to a review published online Sept. 14 in Dermatology and Therapy.

Erin Bartholomew, from University of California, San Francisco, and colleagues conducted a systematic literature review to assess the role of mindfulness and meditation in treating psoriasis symptoms, severity, and quality of life.

Based on six identified randomized controlled trials with a pooled 356 patients with psoriasis, the researchers found that five demonstrated improvement in the self-administered Psoriasis Area and Severity Index after eight or 12 weeks of guided meditation. Mental health benefits were seen among psoriasis patients following guided meditation in one randomized controlled trial and one nonrandomized trial.

“Overall, these results suggest the possibility that meditation can be used as a tool to improve both psoriasis severity and patient quality of life in the short term,” the authors write.

https://journalstar.com/lifestyles/health-med-fit/psoriasis-patients-who-meditate-may-ease-symptoms-improve-qol/article_2258b008-fbcd-5f50-8a9c-93fcf0294d1b.html

How to tell the difference between eczema and psoriasis and get the right treatment

From insider.com

• Eczema is a common skin condition that can cause swelling and thick, scaly skin.
• Psoriasis is less common than eczema and causes a dry, itchy rash with scaly patches of skin.
• Treatment for mild cases of both conditions is similar but more severe cases require unique care.

Eczema and psoriasis are common inflammatory skin conditions. They both can cause itchy rashes and appear on the same parts of the body — to an untrained eye they are easy to mix up.

Treatments for mild and moderate cases of these conditions are similar, but severe cases may require more specific medications.

Here are the causes, symptoms, and treatment of eczema and psoriasis and what makes them different.

What is eczema?

Eczema, aka atopic dermatitis, is a common skin condition affecting up to 10% of people in the US.

Its tell-tale symptoms include a dry, itchy rash that can range from minor patches to severe flare ups that cause intense itching and sometimes pain due to scratching.

"Eczema is most commonly seen in kids — 95% of cases by 5 years of age — and much less in adults," says Anar Mikailov, MD, a dermatologist and the founder of KP Away.

Eczema is associated with allergic conditions like asthma, hay fever, and food allergies. More than half of children under age 13 with eczema will go on to develop these other conditions.

You are more likely to have eczema if members of your family also have asthma or environmental allergies. Black children tend to develop it more frequently than white or Asian children — 19% vs. 16% and 8%, respectively.

Causes

The exact cause of eczema is difficult to pinpoint as there are multiple factors that influence it:

Genetics

The latest research shows that there is a genetic basis to eczema. Certain gene variations contribute to an impaired skin barrier, which causes skin cells to lose moisture and develop gaps between them, triggering dry, irritated, and itchy skin.

Immune system

When you have an impaired skin barrier your skin is more vulnerable to environmental irritants. Your immune system sees these irritants as dangerous and responds with inflammation, which creates itching and a rash.

 Environment

Flare ups of eczema symptoms can be caused by many different environmental irritants. Some of the more common triggers include:

• Household cleaning and bath products
• Cosmetic products with artificial scents
• Dust and pollen
• Pet dander
• Cigarette smoke
• Climatic factors — change in seasons or extreme weather

Other factors that may increase the risk of developing eczema include where you live. It is more common if you live:

• In a city
• In high-income country like the US
• Around weather that is cold and damp 

Stress

High levels of stress impact the immune system and skin and increase the inflammatory response that causes eczema.

Symptoms

The main symptom of eczema is itching, which can be very intense and is often worse at night. 

"The itch starts before the rash, and it shows up in symmetric areas on your body. In kids, symmetric rash with itching occurs near the elbows, knees, around the eyes, forehead, and nose," says Mikailov.

 Eczema can also cause:

• A discoloured rash — on light coloured skin it will be red, on darker skin it can look darker brown, purple, or grey
• Thickened and scaly skin due to frequent scratching
• Swelling
• Oozing or crusting areas of skin 

Treatment 

"Treatment of mild eczema starts with avoiding environmental triggers, frequent applications of proper moisturisers, and topical anti-inflammatory medications. In severe cases, oral medications and injections can be very effective, with rapid results in days to weeks," says Jeffrey Hsu, MD, a dermatologist and founder of Oak Dermatology.

Hsu says that although often effective, these medications are not cures — eczema is a chronic condition and occasional flares are to be expected if not properly managed by a dermatologist.

What is psoriasis?

Psoriasis causes a dry, itchy rash characterized by scaly patches of skin. It is fairly common, affecting about 3% of adults in the US — or almost eight million people. 

Psoriasis is a chronic, incurable condition that tends to have intermittent flare ups with worsening symptoms.

"Unlike eczema, psoriasis can be seen in childhood as often as adulthood, and affects men and women equally," says Mikailov.

Causes

Psoriasis is an autoimmune condition — the body's defence system sees normal, healthy cells as dangerous and release antibodies to attack them — so the cause of psoriasis is a mechanism similar to other autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and Hashimoto's thyroiditis.

In the case of psoriasis, T-cells from the immune system attack healthy skin cells. This causes the body to accelerate the creation of new skin cells — these new cells build up on the surface of the skin, creating psoriasis' distinctive scaly appearance.

Psoriasis tends to run in families, and has some common triggers, both for its first incidence as well as flare ups once it's established. Common triggers include:

• Stress
• Infections — of the skin and especially strep throat
• Injury to the skin, like scrapes or cuts
• Weather, especially when it's cold and dry
• Tobacco use
• Heavy alcohol use
• Illness

Psoriasis can affect people in different ways. Minor cases might be just a few spots of flaky scaling skin, while some cases can affect large portions of the body. The most common places psoriasis appears are the scalp and face, elbows, knees, feet, and the low back.

Symptoms

In addition to a scaly rash, symptoms of psoriasis include:

• Dry and cracked skin that can itch and bleed when scratched
• Pitted or cracked nails
• Burning or sore skin
• Joint pain

About one in four people with psoriasis will develop a condition called psoriatic arthritis, which usually occurs years after psoriasis on the skin begins. Psoriatic arthritis shares similarities with rheumatoid arthritis — both cause joint pain, swelling, and, in some cases, deformity of joints.

 People with psoriasis are more likely to develop other conditions such as:

• Cardiovascular disease
• Type 2 diabetes
• High blood pressure
• Depression
• Inflammatory bowel disease or other autoimmune conditions

Treatment

"Treatment for psoriasis involves corticosteroid creams, vitamin D cream, phototherapy, and sometimes injection or ingested medicine. Fortunately, due to the new medicines, psoriasis can be essentially cured," says Mikailov.

You can expect to see improvement in one to two months with injection medicine. Creams and phototherapy can require two to three months before improvement, says Mikailov.

Eczema vs. psoriasis

"These two common conditions can look similar to the untrained eye — they both appear to be red scaly rashes initially, and in mild cases, the treatments can be very similar," says Hsu. 

Both conditions are caused by immune system dysfunction. In eczema the immune system is overactive, whereas in psoriasis the immune system attacks healthy cells — so in severe cases medications for each will differ, says Hsu.

Psoriasis, being an autoimmune condition, has more complications than eczema. "While some cases of eczema can be severe, causing much discomfort and itch, psoriasis tends to have more serious and wide ranging multi-systemic consequences, including arthritis, heart disease, and diabetes," says Hsu.

The main differentiation between eczema and psoriasis is itching: Eczema is always itchy, sometimes intensely so, but itching with psoriasis is more mild and tends to be accompanied by a burning or stinging sensation.

Here are some differences between the two:

Here are some differences between the two:

Eczema	Psoriasis
Very common —10% in US have it	Less common — 3% of people in US have it
Immune system overreacting causing inflammation and rashes	Immune system attacking healthy skin cells causes rashes
Most common in children	Can occur in children or adults
Associated with asthma, allergies, and environmental sensitivity	Associated with psoriatic arthritis and can cause other health problems
Very itchy	Mild itching, burning, or stinging
Most often appears on back of knee, inside elbows, or on face	Appears most often on scalp and face, elbows, knees, feet, and low back

Insider's takeaway

Eczema and psoriasis are both common skin conditions that can be hard to tell apart. However, they can usually be treated similarly with topical medications. 

For moderate and severe cases, a trained dermatologist will be able to differentiate the two and give you the best recommendations for treatment.

https://www.insider.com/guides/health/conditions-symptoms/eczema-vs-psoriasis

6 Facts About Inflammation and Psoriasis

From healthline.com

• Inflammation is thought to play a role in the development of psoriasis, as well as other conditions like arthritis, heart disease, and depression.
• In some cases, treating the underlying inflammation may help manage both psoriasis and the risk of related inflammatory conditions.
• Many people with psoriasis find that switching to an anti-inflammatory diet can help with psoriasis management, though research is mixed.

Inflammation can be a symptom of an overactive immune system. It’s thought to play a role in the development of psoriasis.

People who live with psoriasis may have other health conditions connected to inflammation. Reducing inflammation throughout the body can help relieve psoriasis symptoms and improve overall health.

If you’re living with psoriasis, here are some key facts about inflammation and how it may affect you, plus steps you can take to boost your well-being.

Inflammation can cause systemic issues in the body

Normally, the body naturally uses inflammation to help heal itself. Acute inflammation happens in response to injury. If you stub your toe, it becomes red and swollen as the body sends a rush of white blood cells to protect the area.

With an overactive immune system, inflammation attacks both injured cells and healthy ones. This is known as chronic inflammation, which can contribute to many health issues like arthritis, heart disease, and psoriasis.

Inflammation is thought to play a role in psoriasis

Psoriasis is a skin disease that causes itchy plaques or scaly bumps to develop on the skin. It can affect any area of your body, but these plaques commonly pop up on elbows, knees, and scalp.

Normally, your body grows and sheds new skin cells in a month. With psoriasis, the underlying inflammatory response speeds up skin cell growth. As a result, the body produces new skin cells every few days. These cells then build up on the skin’s surface and turn into psoriasis plaques and scaly bumps.

Cytokines are the body’s agents that cause this immune response. If psoriasis is poorly controlled, the body’s levels of inflammatory cytokines go up. The inflammatory response is often easy to spot with skin plaques.

But there’s more going on under the surface. These cytokines also work systematically throughout the body and can affect your organs, muscles, and tendons. This is most pronounced in moderate to severe psoriasis but also occurs in mild psoriasis.

Because inflammation affects many parts of the body, people with psoriasis may also experience other inflammation-related health conditions.

Inflammation may link psoriasis and depression

If you experience psoriasis along with anxiety or depression, you’re not alone. It’s thought that 43 percent of people with psoriasis also have anxiety. An estimated 20 to 30 percent of people with psoriasis are thought to be affected by depression (and that rate may even be as high as 62 percent).

There are a number of reasons why this correlation exists. One academic paper noted that there may be a close connection between depression and inflammation. Depression and negative experiences can trigger a stress response in the body, which increases inflammation. The inflammation can then exacerbate symptoms of depression.

The paper further noted that people with depression have higher levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines by 30 percent in comparison to those who don’t experience depression.

Treatment may help both psoriasis and related eye inflammation

About 7 to 20 percentTrusted Source of people with psoriasis also experience uveitis, an inflammatory eye condition. Both conditions are related to the same type of inflammatory cytokines.

Many doctors treat uveitis with corticosteroid eye drops or oral corticosteroids. Advanced cases may also be treated with immunosuppressive drugs.

Trusted SourceSome research argues that targeted biologic therapies intended for psoriasis may help improve both conditions. An expert writing for the Arthritis Foundation notes that while possible, it has not been proven that controlling the underlying disease helps prevent uveitis.

The link between psoriasis and lung disease is more complicated than inflammation alone

People with psoriasis may have a greater risk of asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), sarcoidosis, interstitial lung disease, and lung cancer.

But the connection between psoriasis and lung conditions isn’t as simple as underlying inflammation. On average, people with psoriasis have more risk factors that independently contribute to respiratory issues, such as smoking, having obesity, and being sedentary.

Some of the drugs used to treat psoriasis may also have respiratory side effects. Immunosuppressant medications can increase your risk of respiratory infections.

One small study also found that 2 percentTrusted Source of people with psoriasis taking biologic treatment over a 9-year period developed a serious lung disease known as interstitial pneumonia (IP), though it’s unclear if the biologic treatment played a role in the development of IP.

Work with your doctor to consider your risk of lung disease and balance the benefits of psoriasis treatment with the risks of respiratory side effects.

An anti-inflammatory diet may help

Though research is mixed, many people with psoriasis have found that making changes to their diet has helped with psoriasis management.

While more research is needed, if you’re looking to make changes to your diet, a good place to start is by avoiding inflammatory foods and eating more anti-inflammatory foodsTrusted Source.

Foods to eat

Typical foods that are part of an anti-inflammatory diet include:

• green leafy vegetables
• nuts
• olive oil
• tomatoes
• fatty fish
• fruit

Foods to avoid

Examples of inflammatory foods to skip when following an anti-inflammatory diet include:

• refined carbohydrates, like white bread
• fried foods
• sweetened beverages, like soda
• red meat and processed meat
• margarine and shortening

Though evidence is limited to support an exact diet for psoriasis, eating a balanced diet is important for your overall health.

As an added bonus, you may experience benefits to your psoriasis as well as any underlying inflammatory-related conditions when following an anti-inflammatory diet.

The takeaway

Inflammation is thought to play a role in psoriasis. Due to the systemic nature of inflammation in the body, people with psoriasis may also experience a number of inflammatory-related health conditions.

Taking steps to reduce inflammation, such as through diet, can limit its effects on your body. It may also help reduce symptoms of psoriasis and related health conditions.

https://www.healthline.com/health/psoriasis/facts-about-inflammation?slot_pos=article_1&utm_source=Sailthru%20Email&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=psoriasis&utm_content=2022-10-18&apid=39239719&rvid=058431b717dcfa59c0cdd27cd0a9313769e8b3dd4ad59d88efd0ded7ddb4774e