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Psoriasis treatment
I would like to inquire about treatment options for psoriasis. I am aware of a person who has been to numerous doctors regarding her condition, but none of them were able to provide a proper diagnosis until her most recent visit. She has been dealing with psoriasis in her scalp since she was 7 years old, so it has been a significant amount of time. Currently, she is in her 20s. But now she is experiencing more in her body.She was told by her doctors that if she maintains a plant-based diet, she can potentially heal her psoriasis. Is this information accurate? Are there any other ways she can help herself in managing the condition? Additionally, are there any specific treatments or tests that she should consider? I would greatly appreciate any information you could provide on this matter.
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3 Replies
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Hey ,
Excellent question! I regret to hear she had to see so many doctors. Often part of the health journey becomes eliminating options, which can take unfortunately a while. As a result: the last doctor is always right!
Getting to the true root cause of her unique case will help get her some relief. Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease. T-cells attack the body’s skin cells. This attack causes the body to make new skin cells more often. The extra skin cells pile up on the surface of the skin, and you see psoriasis.
With an autoimmune disease, we often see increased gut permeability (aka leaky gut). Often gut healing plays an incredibly important role.
It is well understood that poor bile function plays a role in many cases of psoriasis as well. Bile helps break down LPS or Lipopolysaccharides – which are ‘body parts’ of bacteria living in the gut that can cause problems in the body when they enter circulation.
Here are some key things to focus on:
Nutrient Deficiencies
The immune system needs nutrients like vitamin B12, folate, zinc, copper, vitamin D and vitamin A. With gut problems absorption of these nutrients can be impaired. Bile, which helps to bring balance to the gut microbiome through the regulation of the pH degree in the gut, is also needed for the absorption of fat-soluble nutrient vitamin A.Getting her serum levels of vitamin D checked and bringing it up to 70 ng/ml if necessary is what I focus on with my clients.
Dysbiosis
Often some form of disbalance in the gut microbiome plays a role. Clostridia, yeast overgrowth, a parasite, or simply an insufficiency of or imbalance in indigenous gut bacteria can cause some malabsorption of nutrients or damage to the gut lining. GI maps is a test that can provide you with insight into what type of disbalance is at play.Bile flow
As I mentioned earlier, bile flow can be impaired in people with psoriasis. In the library of B Better you can find some excellent tips on how to improve bile flow (just click here). A liver enzyme panel can help examine if some biliary congestion might be at play. Testing for lab values like ALT, AST, GGT, alkaline phosphatase and bilirubin can help determine if this might be at play in her case.Leaky Gut
If the gut lining is damaged (which we see often in auto-immune patients) helping to repair the gut lining becomes part of the healing journey as well. Zinc carnosine, l-glutamine, Vitamin D, glycine, quercetin, and/or mucilaginous herbs are all nutrients that can help. GI Relief from Thorne and DGL Plus from Pure Encapsulations are blends without L-glutamine (in some people L glutamine can cause some problems like anxiety). GI Revive from Designs for Health is a nice blend with L-glutamine you could try. For additional tips, I recommend you watch this video explaining gut healing strategies.Stress
Stress is also an important player in auto-immune disease. Stress can lower digestive enzyme secretion and stress impacts immune function. Just remember that stress can be emotional, but there are many other stressors like for example surgeries, a major car accident or other physical trauma, other autoimmune activation, pathogenic microbes, toxicity, and chronic viral infection.Toxin build-ups
Toxin build-up can be caused by toxin exposure or poor detoxification abilities. In people with exposure to mercury for example (which you can find in amalgam teeth fillings) we often see candida overgrowth since candida can scavenge mercury and provide some protection against this heavy metal.Food sensitivities/Gluten & Dairy
Last on the list, but maybe one of the first things to do are avoiding food sensitivities. Food sensitivities cause the immune system to be busy as well and cause inflammation in the body.In people with leaky gut or people who experience auto-immune disease, I often recommend avoiding gluten & dairy in total. In the first period, if she has it in her, I would recommend going even grain free. Just temporary.
Can a plant-based diet be part of the cure?
Sure! Why not? Keep in mind that a plant-based diet often provides us with lots of copper which can prevent zinc to be absorbed and cause low zinc in the body.In these diets, we often remove a lot of ‘junk’ where part of the magic comes from. Clean plant-based diets are full of nutrients and can help as well.
Just keep in mind that some of these root causes might not be addressed by plant-based diets. No amount of vegetables will reduce stress and increase vitamin D. In the case of yeast/mold/parasites in the gut a plant-based diet might not be enough as well.
I hope this provides you with some information on where to start!
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I have shared all the information you provided with the person. They found it very interesting and it was helpful for me to understand the issue as well. I have requested the person to send me their recent test results, so you can provide further guidance.
Regarding the diet, you mentioned that a plant-based approach would be beneficial. Does that mean excluding all animal products, or are they allowed to consume some animal products?
Thank you for all the valuable information and guidance.
[SHAMSA…IRON PROFILE,HbA1c,Mg,ZINC,FREE TFT.pdf][SHAMSA….VIT D.pdf][shamsa blood reports.pdf][3849c4d5-1ff1-4ea2-927d-384bc3bf7623.jpeg][72eaa4bf-1990-4ba0-80e0-5e892dca4bb8.jpeg] -
Hey ,
I can’t for sure know why her doctors recommended a plant-based diet. They could have their own thought process which I can’t speak to. In my opinion, meat can fit. The most important factor is to keep the diet free from additives, toxins, gluten & dairy, and food sensitivities and full of nutrients. If this person is on a vegan diet for example this diet should still meet those requirements.
I do believe going dairy free would be important.
The labs you have attached are helpful. Here are some things about her unique case that stand out:
Important Nutrients
She is low on folate and her labs show clues for a low vitamin B6 as well. I don’t know if she is or has been using oral contraceptives, but the need for B vitamins goes up with the use of oral contraceptives, especially vitamin B6. I would also recommend getting her serum vitamin B12 above 600.After supplementing for a while with B6, I would retest her liver enzymes as well. They are low, which is common with a B6 deficiency. This could mask a struggling liver.
Her globulins are on the lower side as well. Globulins are a group of molecules which can have different roles in the body. For example, Globulins can bind to hormones. Examples are Sex Hormone Binding Globulin (or SHBG), Thyroxine Binding globulin (TBG) and Cortisol Binding Globulin (CBG).
Globulins also contain Immunoglobulins, which are antibodies produced by the immune system. She might either be using them a lot or struggling to make them. Getting enough serum vitamin D, vitamin B12, folate, zinc and vitamin A is important to produce white blood cells. Make sure these nutrients are in her diet.
Her vitamin D levels aren’t really low, but with auto-immune diseases, we see often that a little higher levels can temporarily bring relief to flares. Here is a handout about vitamin D supplementation if you’re interested.
Keep in mind that for the final conversion of vitamin D, magnesium is required. Serum magnesium is reflective of the amount of magnesium that has been in her diet for the last couple of days. This is why we usually recommend RBC Magnesium as a test since it is reflective of the amount of magnesium that has been in her diet for the last couple of months. We like to see magnesium levels in the upper third of the reference range. If she was consuming her regular diet before the measurement, she might need more magnesium.
Gut Healing
I know I mentioned this in my previous reply, but I can’t stress this enough. She would probably benefit from getting more insight into gut health. There is a good chance a leaky gut is at play. This can be caused by stress, elevations in zonulin (which occur when we eat products that contain gluten) or some form of dysbiosis. If she had ever removed her gallbladder, this is something important to know as wellJoint Pain?
There are definitely some auto immune issues going on. Does she also complain about joint pain? In this case, proteolytic enzymes like Intenzyme Forte from Biotic Research can help to bring some relief. Let me know if you want to know how to use the enzymes if she needs them. There is a protocol she could use. This handout might be helpful as well.
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