GIVE IT A TRY

As medical science has not yet managed to find a cure for psoriasis, many people have looked to nature for a cure – and while they are not always effective, some people do benefit from natural treatments.

Always remember that the best way to heal your psoriasis is with diet, avoiding toxins and stress. However, there is no harm in adding to your healing arsenal by trying some additional natural therapies – you never know, they may help you.

There are many different natural treatments that you can try which have proved to be effective for different people at different times in alleviating, reducing or removing the plaques and lesions that are the most common external indication of psoriasis.

While focusing on your diet should always be your priority when attempting to heal psoriasis, there is no harm in experimenting with natural treatings in addition to following a clean diet.

DOES NATURE HAVE THE ANSWERS?

Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to know exactly what is going to be effective for any particular individual so to a large extent, finding what works for you is likely to be a process of trial and error.
That being said, there are plenty of options that you can try to see if they alleviate or calm your condition, so all of the following alternatives are worthy of consideration.

ACUPUNCTURE FOR PSORIASIS

With its grounding in the medical practices of ancient China, acupuncture is a system of dealing with pain and treating illnesses by the application of needles to certain parts of the body.
However, these needles are usually not inserted into the body at the point where the complaint or problem is most apparent, because the thinking behind acupuncture is that the body contains a network of ‘highways’ along which signals travel.

Consequently, it is most common for acupuncture needles to be inserted into the ‘highway’ at a point in the body far distant from the site of the complaint as a way of diverting signals to the places where they are supposed to go, or taking them away from the places where they are not.

However, whilst acupuncture has been used for many centuries to deal with a wide range of medical complaints and conditions, it has never been recognized as a treatment for psoriasis in China, primarily because in most Asian countries, psoriasis is a extremely rare (it is on the other hand most common in Scandinavia).

Nevertheless, Western acupuncture practitioners believe that acupuncture can be a very effective treatment for psoriasis, although there is little clinical evidence to support these assertions and what is effective in treating one person’s psoriasis will vary wildly from what works best for someone else.

Although it might take a few acupuncture sessions before you see any positive, visible results the ‘upside’ of treating a condition with acupuncture is that there no possible side-effects.

Furthermore, even if you have a fear of needles, there are many acupuncturists who now use the application of electric currents using probes rather than needles who are likely to be every bit as effective as the traditional needle brandishing acupuncturist!

YOU TRULY ARE WHAT YOU EAT!

Whilst the headline might be something of a cliché, it is never less entirely true that each and every human being on the face of the planet is made up of everything that they have ever eaten or drunk in their life.
It therefore follows that in the same way as your psoriasis is a part and parcel of you, so is your diet. It is therefore not unreasonable to assume that one has some effect on the other.
Trying to consume a diet that is going to help to keep your psoriasis under control is all about maintaining a well-balanced diet that is going to support your general well-being, whilst avoiding foodstuffs that could possibly exacerbate your situation.

For example, according to leading dermatologist Janet Prystowsky, there are many studies that support the idea that psoriasis has a tendency to cause certain nutritional deficiencies in sufferers.
Consequently, anyone who suffers from psoriasis should focus attention on replacing these missing nutrients by adding additional proteins To their diet.

Moreover, taking on board more water and iron will not necessarily help to banish psoriasis but it will improve your well-being overall which is important, because the stronger you are, the less likely it is that you’re going to suffer outbreaks of psoriatic lesions.

What is perhaps less well-known is that some doctors have noted that the skin of psoriasis sufferers often improves when they on a well controlled weight-loss diet, whereas sufferers who are putting on additional weight are likely to see an increase in outbreaks of psoriasis.

Again, there is plenty of good sense in this, because we have already established that stress and anxiety are likely to increase outbreaks of psoriasis, whereas the opposite is also true.

Working on the assumption that someone who is on a well controlled weight-loss diet is losing weight voluntarily, it naturally follows that they are happier as they are shedding the pounds, which could have some bearing on their improved condition.

The National Psoriasis Foundation suggests that they have had many reports from members that removing or at least reducing certain 22 foodstuffs in their diet has led to significant skin improvements.

Amongst the foods or ingredients listed that you should avoid are caffeine, alcohol, white flour, purified sugar and all products containing gluten. Further tips for a diet that does not encourage the outbreak of psoriasis include:

• Consume only easily digestible food, and avoid overly spicy foodstuffs;
• Do not include too much salty, acidic or sour food in your diet;
• Include plenty of oily fish that is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, or failing this, take cod liver oil, lecithin or linseed oil supplements.

ALOE:
There are approximately 500 different species of aloe currently known, but the one that is most commonly used and best-known is aloe vera. The secretion from the leaves of this particular plant have long since been used as a treatment for burns and minor skin damage, but in 1996, a study published in the ‘Tropical Medicine and International Health’ journal suggested for the first time that aloe vera could also be very effective in the treatment of psoriasis.

During this study, carried out over a period of 16 weeks, it was established that using a cream containing aloe vera indicated a significant clearing of psoriasis lesions in 25 out of 30 test individuals, compared to only 2 individuals in the control group.

On the other hand, it must be said that a more recent study suggests that using commercial aloe vera may not be quite as effective as suggested but given that there is no likelihood of adverse side-effects from applying aloe vera to your plaques, it is definitely something that is worth trying as a topical treatment for psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.

An alternative or additional way of using aloe vera to help in your fight against psoriasis is to drink the juice of the plant.

Whilst some proponents of aloe vera would recommend growing your own plants from which you can expect this juice, they are notoriously difficult to grow successfully, so it is probably better to buy pre-prepared juice to drink.
The benefits of doing so are widespread, with many of these benefits being directly applicable to the psoriasis or psoriatic arthritis sufferer.

For example, for the arthritis sufferer, it is known that aloe vera contains 12 completely natural substances that have been shown to counteract inflammation without any adverse side effects.
Moreover, aloe vera juice contains many vital vitamins and nutrients which will contribute to your all-round well-being, plus it has the ability to help your skin regenerate and repair itself in the quickest time possible.

APPLE CIDER VINEGAR:
Again according to the National Psoriasis Foundation, many individual members report that using apple cider vinegar has led to significant improvements in their psoriasis. These members suggest that they add the vinegar to their bath, applied directly to psoriatic nails and even applied directly to the affected areas of the skin using cotton wool balls or buds.

Alternatively, you can try to attack your psoriasis and/or psoriatic arthritis internally by adding apple cider vinegar to your diet. Whilst many people would find that drinking apple cider vinegar neat is hard going – it is very sour or bitter – you can add it to warm water with 24 honey to sweeten the potion before drinking it.

Do this at least twice a day, and you are attacking your psoriasis related problem from the inside in the most effective way possible.

The effectiveness of apple cider vinegar should not be particularly surprising because vinegar has been used throughout history as a healing solution, and the medicinal benefits of apple cider vinegar have been well known for a long time.

CAPSAICIN:
Derived from cayenne peppers, capsaicin when applied to the skin has been shown in some studies to reduce redness, minimize scaling and to get rid of itching as well. This is believed to happen because capsaicin interrupts the activity of a molecule that affects how your brain recognizes itching and pain known as substance P.

It is for this reason that many over-the-counter arthritis pain relief products contain capsaicin, and certainly in various tests with different groups of psoriasis suffering individuals, a topical application of 0.025% cream to effected skin areas definitely reduced scaling, redness and itching.

On the downside, some individuals did report a short lived burning sensation but if you are willing to risk this happening to you, then applying a very weak capsaicin solution to your lesions could bring some much sought relief.

TEA TREE OIL:
Tea tree oil is extracted from the Melaleuca Alternifolia tree that is native to Australia, and has been used in surgery and dentistry for nearly 100 years. Tea tree oil is widely known for its antiseptic and antibacterial qualities, and has been traditionally used for headaches, toothache, colds, rheumatism, muscle pains and skin complaints.

However, it would be singularly unwise to try to treat your toothache with tea tree oil because it is toxic if ingested.

Also, it has not really been established at what level or concentration of tea tree oil it is most effective, so if you do decide to use it, you should do so with a degree of caution.

Tea tree oil is not only disinfecting and soothing, it also has the ability to penetrate deep under the skin, well below the upper epidermal level. This is particularly important for a psoriasis sufferer, because it means that the antifungal, disinfecting and healing qualities of the oil go deep under the skin, helping to regulate the production of psoriatic plaques in the earliest stages.

Although it is extremely unlikely that you will come to any real harm using tea tree oil, you should desist from using it if any skin discomfort is felt.

MILK THISTLE:
Milk thistle has been shown to inhibits the production of T-cells, so whilst no specific tests have been done as to how to effective milk thistle will be as a treatment for psoriasis, the fact that it can halt the growth of the cells that cause it suggests that it is worth trying.

You can purchase milk thistle products at the health store or pharmacy in liquid or tablet form, and there are no adverse side-effects apart from minor gastrointestinal disturbances when you first start taking the supplement.

OREGANO OIL:
Oregano is a commonly used spice in cooking which has antibacterial and antifungal qualities which can be helpful in keeping some of the infections that might be associated with psoriasis at bay. Oregano can be safely ingested in almost any form, and many people report that taking a daily ‘dose’ of oregano has significantly helped to keep their psoriasis under control.

TURMERIC:
Turmeric is a popular ingredient of Indian curries, and whilst you can once again buy this particular spice in food supplement form, it is easier and far cheaper to mix the spice into your food (no more than one teaspoonful is necessary). Turmeric has been shown to help reduce inflammation in every part of the body, including on the skin, as well as alleviating the pain and swelling associated with arthritis.

SHARK CARTILAGE:
Studies over the past few years indicate that shark cartilage extract can help to delay the formation of new blood and skin cells which are both believed to play a significant role in the development and growth of psoriatic lesions. Shark cartilage is also believed to have highly effective anti-inflammatory qualities as well.

One particular form of shark cartilage AE-941 (known by the brand name Neovastat) has shown significant promise as a treatment for psoriasis but it is still not widely approved for general usage, because the long-term effects of usage are not known, and in the short term, it has been seen to prompt nausea and vomiting.