LifeCare Chiropractic

The Best Chiropractic Care in Mesa, Arizona

Psoriasis

Psoriasis in Children May Be Triggered by Respiratory Infections – (11-06-00)

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Psoriasis in Children May Be Triggered by Respiratory Infections

In every other healing art in the world, EXCEPT Western medicine dermatology, skin conditions are related to the gastrointestinal tract. The skin is one of the routes by which the body exudes toxins. Could it be possible that these children who develop psoriasis from respiratory infections were all prescribed strong antibiotics that killed off the normal, healthy flora and affected the function of the GI tract?

(October 6, 2000 MedscapeWire) Although children often contract illnesses such as colds, strep throat, and tonsillitis, it is not well known that these infections are known to trigger psoriasis in some children. In fact, about 20,000 children are diagnosed with psoriasis annually, and many of the cases are attributed to upper respiratory infections. Although these common respiratory infections may trigger psoriasis, they are not the cause. The exact cause of psoriasis is unknown, but research has found that heredity plays a role. For example, if one parent has psoriasis, the chance of a child having it is about 10%. If both parents have psoriasis, the chance increases to 50%. One in three people report a family history of psoriasis, but there is no pattern to the inheritance. Children with no apparent family history of the disease can develop psoriasis.

Natural Cures for Psoriasis Starts Here

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I don’t write much about psoriasis, although it is not uncommon for me to see these patients in my office.  Severe cases can be embarrassing and keep these patients from living a full life.

One thing that I do find surprising, however, is that diet has never been discussed with any of the psoriasis patients I have come across, and they are usually doubtful that dietary changes could have an impact.

Treatment is all topical stuff, and if that doesn’t work, it’s onto the biologicals like Humera, Enbrel and Remicade, high powered and expensive drugs that inhibit the action of an inflammatory keystone in our bodies called TNF-alpha.

But diet?

The first time I began to see the links was when I saw that being prediabetic, an inflammatory state, led to increases in TNF-alpha levels.  Then came these high powered drugs to lower levels of TNF-alpha and you can begin to see the connection.  Dietary changes that will pull you back from diabetes are very likely to have an impact on psoriatic plaques.  Sure enough, my psoriasis patients all have prediabetic tendencies, making me think the link may be stronger than we think.

Lest those psoriasis patients out there think I’m making all this up, I present this particular study, looking at the addition of a 6-month reduced calorie diet (20 kcal/kg/ideal body weight/day–so someone who should weigh 200 lbs would take in 1800 calories / day)  high in omega-3 fatty acids (average 2.6 grams / day) and low in omega-6 fatty acids (a pattern known to be anti-inflammatory) in 44 obese patients with mild-to-severe plaque-type psoriasis who were already being treated with immuno-suppressive drugs. Here’s what they found:

  1. Psoriasis Area Score Index, itch scores and Dermatological Life Quality Index all improved.
  2. In addition, there was also a decrease in body weight, waist circumference, triglycerides and total cholesterol.

Overall, in just 6 short months, there were changes all across the board in these psoriasis patients from increasing their intake of healthier fats and decreasing the intake of less desirable, omega-6 fats.  Given how much of an impact a skin condition like psoriasis can social life, this seems like a pretty good thing.

 

Troglitazone May Be Useful in Treating Psoriasis – (06-28-00)

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Troglitazone May Be Useful in Treating Psoriasis

A diabetic drug treating a skin disease? Not so hard to swallow if you really understand how each system of the body interacts. Western medicine has divided itself into specialities based on organ systems, but that’s not how the body works, so many specialists cannot grasp a gastrointestinal problem causing a neurological, dermatological or even cardiovascular problem. Of course, don’t forget that trolitazone was pulled off the market recently because of liver damage.

Arch Dermatol 2000;136:609-616 Troglitazone, an insulin-sensitizing agent, may also be useful in treating psoriasis, according to findings published in the May issue of the Archives of Dermatology. In studying the mechanism, the investigators found that PPAR-gamma was indeed expressed in human keratinocytes, and that troglitazone inhibited the growth of both normal and psoriatic keratinocytes. However, the drug did not affect the growth of human dermal fibroblasts. After treating organ cultures of human psoriatic skin with troglitazone, the skin became “qualitatively near normal,” the researchers report.

TNF-ALPHA IS BETTER FOR BONE HEALING AND FIGHTING CANCER – (09-24-03)

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Impaired Fracture Healing in the Absence of TNF-alpha Signaling: The Role of TNF-alpha in Endochondral Cartilage Resorption

It is quite common for drugs to be developed and marketed that affect certain biochemical pathways before we fully understand these pathways. This is evidenced by the withdrawal of many medications after they are approved by the FDA. Of particular concern for me is the new drugs that block TNF-alpha being used for rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s and psoriasis.

While I understand that many patients with these conditions are suffering with their symptoms, I know that many of these patients have not exhausted (or, in many cases, even attempted) natural approaches. TNF-alpha is now known to be an integral component of bone healing and formation, fighting off cancer and fighting off infections. Blocking this messenger may yield more long term problems than it solves.

Impaired Fracture Healing in the Absence of TNF- Signaling: The Role of TNF- in Endochondral Cartilage Resorption.

Read entire article here