Smoking affects nearly every organ in the body and puts your overall health at risk. It damages your heart, your lungs, your bones, even your fertility. What does it do to the largest organ in the body – your skin? Smoking is related to the development of several skin disorders and if you already have… Continue reading Smoking Is Harmful to Your Skin
Tag: psoriasis
Psoriasis and Your Weight
When it comes to treating the skin ailment known as psoriasis, no one treatment plan works for everyone. Now research suggests that a treatment program may also be helped by what you eat. Weight loss can help because both psoriasis and being overweight increase inflammation in your body. When you reduce inflammation, it can lead… Continue reading Psoriasis and Your Weight
Telemedicine and Your Skin Health
As coronavirus cases continue to rise, people are sheltering in place to slow its spread. However, many people still need care from a board-certified dermatologist. To keep patients safe and conserve personal protective equipment — such as masks, gowns, and gloves — many dermatologists are seeing patients virtually through telemedicine. Here’s an overview from the… Continue reading Telemedicine and Your Skin Health
Can Psoriasis Affect More Than Your Skin?
Studies show that psoriasis, a skin disease with red, scaly and itchy patches, increases the risk of developing other medical conditions. Be sure to tell your dermatologist if you have any of the signs or symptoms. According to a news release from the American Academy of Dermatology (www.aad.org), here are some signs that may indicate… Continue reading Can Psoriasis Affect More Than Your Skin?
Tips on Five Common Rash-Causing Skin Conditions
None of us remembers our first case of contact dermatitis – diaper rash, that is. But it likely wasn’t our last rash. Life is full of triggers that can cause rashes. Some may be so common and transitory that we don’t consider them medical problems. Others, though, may be very serious. It’s important to be… Continue reading Tips on Five Common Rash-Causing Skin Conditions
Study Links Psoriasis Treatment and Improvement in Heart Artery Disease
Treating the inflammatory skin disease psoriasis with biologic drugs can reduce the early plaque buildup that clogs arteries and leads to heart attacks and strokes, researchers say. Their findings highlight how immunotherapies that treat inflammatory conditions might play a role in the reduction of cardiovascular disease risks. The study, funded by the National Heart, Lung,… Continue reading Study Links Psoriasis Treatment and Improvement in Heart Artery Disease
Tattoos May Be Cool, but Could Prove Hazardous to Skin and General Health
Tattoos may seem cool but turning skin into a canvas for artwork, messages and permanent cosmetic designs poses health risks, some of which can prove serious. That’s my word of caution. The tattooing process penetrates the outer and inner layers of skin, paving the way for possible allergic skin reactions, local and systemic infections, rashes,… Continue reading Tattoos May Be Cool, but Could Prove Hazardous to Skin and General Health
Stigma and Myths about Psoriasis Are Pervasive in the U.S.
The autoimmune disorder psoriasis is surprisingly stigmatized today among people in the U.S., according to researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. The study, which involved both psychologists and dermatologists, was published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. Investigators found that the stigma associated with the condition… Continue reading Stigma and Myths about Psoriasis Are Pervasive in the U.S.
How to Apply Scalp Medications
According to physicians from the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD), scalp conditions, such as alopecia areata (patchy hair loss), psoriasis and seborrheic dermatitis, are very common. Researchers estimate that at least half of the people who have plaque psoriasis have it on their scalp. Fortunately, patients can improve their conditions using topical medications prescribed by… Continue reading How to Apply Scalp Medications
What You Need to Know about Psoriasis
Unlike beauty, psoriasis is more than skin deep. In fact, recent research links the inflammatory skin disorder, in its more serious forms, to greater incidence of early death. Authors of that research report that patients with 10 percent or more of their body covered by psoriasis are at double risk of dying. That finding is… Continue reading What You Need to Know about Psoriasis
Mislabeled Moisturizers Create Problems for Skin Disorder Sufferers
A Northwestern Medicine study found that moisturizers marked “fragrance free” or “hypoallergenic” were not, and products labeled as “dermatologist-recommended” often came with a higher price tag. The study was published September 6th 2017 in JAMA Dermatology. The inaccurate claims and higher prices make it difficult for those with skin disorders such as eczema and psoriasis… Continue reading Mislabeled Moisturizers Create Problems for Skin Disorder Sufferers
Lasers and The Fight against Skin Disorders
Light therapy for skin disorders is not new. For example, ancient Egyptians combined heliotherapy (sunlight) with ingested extracts from a weed that grew in the Nile Delta to treat vitiligo, which causes splotchy white patches to appear on the skin and can turn hair prematurely gray. More recently, studies have confirmed the effectiveness of phototherapy… Continue reading Lasers and The Fight against Skin Disorders
Itchy Skin? Dermatologists Share Tips for Relief
Everyone gets an itch once in a while. Usually it only lasts for a short time and is often caused by annoyances like a mosquito bite or scratchy fabric. However, if an itch lasts for more than six weeks, say dermatologists from the American Academy of Dermatology, it is considered a chronic itch and is… Continue reading Itchy Skin? Dermatologists Share Tips for Relief
Psoriasis and Weight Loss
People who have psoriasis symptoms can improve the symptoms and their quality of life by losing weight, according to European researchers. The finding, published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, stem from a study conducted by Herlev and Gentofte Hospital, in collaboration with the University of Copenhagen’s Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports and… Continue reading Psoriasis and Weight Loss
New Psoriasis Drug Is More Effective Than Current Treatment
A phase II clinical trial led by Northwestern Medicine investigators shows that a new psoriasis drug called guselkumab has greater efficacy than the current standard of care for the chronic skin condition. In the study, published in July 2015 in the New England Journal of Medicine, investigators compared guselkumab to adalimumab, the most common medication… Continue reading New Psoriasis Drug Is More Effective Than Current Treatment
Stress and Your Skin
If you’ve ever had a pimple form just before an important event, you might wonder if stress was the cause. But while many people make the same connection, experts from the American Academy of Dermatologists (AAD) say that proving the relationship between stress and inflammatory conditions such as acne, psoriasis and rosacea can be hard.… Continue reading Stress and Your Skin
New Hope for Psoriasis Patients
A human antibody may help people who are suffering from psoriasis, an autoimmune illness that affects skin. Many patients showed significant recovery after just a single dose, and by the end of the trial, conducted at Rockefeller University and seven other centers, nearly all the patients showed dramatic, if not complete, improvement in their symptoms,… Continue reading New Hope for Psoriasis Patients
The Molecule that Fights Psoriasis
Researchers have discovered how IL-4 can fight psoriasis on a molecular level. Scientists have known that Interleukin 4, also known as IL-4, an endogenous signal molecule, inhibits the inflammation that is characteristic of psoriasis. But until now, it wasn’t clear exactly how that happened. Inflammation defends the body against invaders. But sometimes poorly directed immune… Continue reading The Molecule that Fights Psoriasis