Additional ideas about diet & psoriasis
Chinese medicine
Chinese herbal formulas (also called "traditional Chinese medicine") have been used in the United States for many years, yet there is still relatively little clinical experience with any individual formula. Multiple herbs are combined in different formulations for each individual.
Some people report that Chinese medicine has an effect on their psoriasis. Unfortunately, Chinese medicine has not undergone the rigorous scrutiny of controlled clinical studies to prove its effectiveness in treating psoriasis. The individual formulations make this kind of testing difficult.
Several successful Chinese medicine preparations were noted in an article in the November 1998 Archives of Dermatology. But the authors warned of potentially dangerous side effects from some formulas, as well as the reported contamination of some of these unregulated products. Until better safeguards are in place, people should use caution with traditional Chinese medicine.
Several resources are available to anyone interested in Chinese medicine as a form of treatment. For more information, see alternative medicine regimens. You can also contact the Institute for Traditional Medicine and Preventive Health Care, a research and educational organization, at 503.233.4907, or the American Association of Oriental Medicine at 866.455.7999.
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Medication and diet
Some of the medications and treatments used for psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis can create nutritional problems, including vitamin, mineral and protein deficiencies. Psoriasis patients taking methotrexate should be aware that the medication can inhibit folic acid, an important B vitamin. The amount of folic acid in your diet can be increased by eating broccoli and green leafy vegetables, dried beans and peas, grapefruit and orange juice, cantaloupe, liver and other organ meats, and fortified cereals.
Consult with your doctor about interactions between different medications, between medications and dietary supplements (see the information on St. John's wort) and between medications and food. For example, grapefruit juice can increase the level of cyclosporine absorbed in a patient's system.
Updated October 2005
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