Most people suffering from Psoriasis are usually under tremendous stress as they are often very irritated and frustrated with their chronic skin condition. Therefore it is always recommended to have such people go for counseling (emotion support), and cognitive therapy and have focused medical attention on them. They are always very sensitive to people avoiding them because of their conditions hence it is very challenging for them to make new friends, let alone applying for a job.

What Exactly Is Psoriasis?

Psoriasis is a chronic skin disease that is non-contagious which is affecting millions of people in the US. For people suffering from Psoriasis, the skin cells renewal speed are abnormal. It will only take 3 days for new skin cells to emerge onto their skin surface while it will take about 30 days for a normal person. With this abnormal acceleration of new skin cells, plaques which form pink, red patches which are typically covered with silvery white scales. Smoking and excessive consumption of alcohol are known to worsen the disease.

This type of disease is more commonly found in adult than in children and both men and women are equally susceptible to this disease.

What Causes Psoriasis? Can It Be Cured?

o    Till today, the exact cause is still unknown to mankind although it has been noted that most of the time; this incurable disease can be triggered by certain conditions listed below:

Ø  Strep infection (which may trigger guttate kind of psoriasis)

Ø  Sunburn

Ø  Skin Injury

Ø  Medications

Ø  Stress

o   This disease tends to run in the family and it usually emerges during teen years or middle age. The risk is definitely higher if both the parents have this disease.

o   Obesity, stress, smoking, high blood pressure, certain drugs like Quinidine (a heart medication) and Inderal (high blood pressure mediation) are known to worsen the condition. Some people have been known to go for year without any outbreak and out of sudden it will just flare up once certain triggering conditions are met.

o   Medication, infections and anxiety are also known to trigger a very rare condition call the Pustular Psoriasis. Another skin disorder called Inverse Psoriasis can be triggered by friction and sweating.

o   Most people have the impression that injury to the skin is associated with Plaque Psoriasis. Well, that is incorrect. It is actually the infection that was people go in contact with during the injury that will led to trigger the psoriasis.

o   Recent studies has also revealed that psoriasis is caused by a reaction in the immune system and it is believe that it is the T cells (a type of white blood cell) that trigger the skin disease which will result in having the skin cell growing at an excessive rate.

Psoriasis Treatment– Is It The Same For Everyone?

What is considered effective for one person may not work well for another since every one of us is different biologically; not everyone will have the exact same reaction to psoriasis treatments. Psoriasis treatments usually involve trial and error and depending on the size, type and severity of the disease, different kind of treatments will need to be applied. An effective one can usually be found only after going through various types of treatments.

There are typically 3 kinds of Psoriasis treatments:

o   Systemic – this type of treatment is usually for people with very severe case of Psoriasis as the medication shot used is the strongest and it has to be administered by doctors. This form of treatment is not recommended as there are many potential side effects that come with it, always seek to clarify this with the doctor before getting such treatment.

o   Topical – this form of treatment involves application of creams and ointments to the affected area to reduce swelling and to suppress the immune system as well as to help decelerate skin cell turnover.

o   Phototherapy – this type of light therapy (making use of ultraviolet-B light) is known to help relieve sufferers of psoriasis symptoms.

o   Oral drugs like Methotrexate and Cyclosporine are used to help inhibit cell growth and to lessen inflammation of the skin.