How I Cured My Psoriasis By Diet

[alan540]

Hi All

I was diagnosed with Palmar Plantar Psoriasis 12 months ago and had no luck with the various topical steroid creams and emollients that my GP and Consultant Dermatologist prescribed over that time.

After a particularly bad flare-up I took to my bed because of the pain and discomfort and decided to do some research on the internet. I figured I had nothing to lose as the conventional treatments were not helping me at all. At best they were holding the symptoms at bay (barely) and I was using more and more of the steroids in an attempt to clear my skin, what little there was left of it. So, paper thin skin on hands and feet and multiple lesions filled with pus. Not good.

On doing a lot of reading on forums like this and other psoriasis related sites I came to the conclusion that diet may well play a big part in causing this thing. It seemed that many people reported improvements after removing certain foods from their diets, they called them "trigger foods".

They appeared to be :

gluten

dairy

sugar

I was doubtful about embarking on such a diet as I have never had any food intolerances before, so was obviously skeptical that doing so would help, however, I had no other ideas because I had tried many different supplements over the previous 12 months which had helped a little but only for a short time and the psoriasis just returned to its normal aggressive self.

After 2 weeks of removing all wheat/barley/milk/cheese/sugar/starchy veg from my diet I noticed a big improvement. My hands were much less inflamed and some of the lesions has gone. Wow! Fast forward another 2 weeks and yet more improvement.

However, there was still a low "baseline" activity - small flareups (no-where near as bad as before) that happened every few days. This made me return to the internet and I read that there was a link to psoriasis and "leaky gut syndrome" possibly caused by a candida overgrowth. Think good bacteria in the gut being crowded out by bad bacteria/yeast. Apparently candida can change from a yeast like form to an invasive fungal type form which can cause leaky gut. When this happens stuff that you have eaten can get into your bloodstream causing an immune response. I guess this could explain why certain foods can cause a problem.

OK, so I modified my diet to an anti-candida diet. This is basically the same as above but with bells and whistles to avoid any sort of sugar or starch that might feed the candida. Again I was a bit skeptical, but thought I had nothing to lose.

After another 2 weeks I saw my hands improve immensely and the low level outbreaks were less often and smaller and smaller.

I'm now 6 weeks into this diet and I'm pleased to say my psoriasis is 99% gone. Unbelievable!

12 months of increasing discomfort, intense itching, flaking skin, sores, pain and all the other symptoms you'll be familiar with.... GONE.

I wanted to share my experience on here and I hope it may help someone else.

6 weeks ago I really thought that I was going to have to live with this thing for the rest of my life. I had resigned myself to not being able to work anymore. I was pretty fed up with the whole thing.

My skin still needs to thicken up a bit (I still have no fingerprints, but under a magnifying glass I can see faint outlines returning!) but the worst is definitely behind me.

Hopefully some of you will find this helpful. It may not be a cure for everyone suffering from this but it did cure it for me.

People seem to be reticent about saying "cure" when talking about psoriasis. I do not believe this to be true. I believe it is a gut problem and that it will take time (months) for my gut to return to normal. As such I intend sticking to this diet for 6 months to allow nature to take its course. Then I will reintroduce foods to my diet in small amounts, one at a time for two weeks, and monitor the effects.

I also found that keeping a food diary was very useful in pinpointing foods that aggravate the condition.

I would like to add that both my GP and Consultant stated that psoriasis is not related to diet. I have found the exact opposite to be true.

Also, a pleasant side effect has been losing over 1 and a half stone in this six week period, so I'm also feeling better in myself (and clothes) as well as psoriasis free.

Here are some before and after pictures :

Before

             

After

             



Good luck!

---

Edit by Fred: Made images work.

[Fred]

Hello Alan you have got the images wrong, I'll see if I can sort them for you.

to Psoriasis Club by the way.

[alan540]

Thanks Fred. I kinda thought the pictures were wrong in the preview but wasn't sure! If you need the links just email or PM me and I can let you have them.

Thank you for the kind welcome. Keep up the good work, I really appreciate this website.

[alan540]

Hey! Pictures! Thanks again Fred.

[Fred]

Hey! Pictures! Thanks again Fred.

You're welcome, I've sent you a PM.

[jiml]

Hi Alan and welcome   to the site

I'm very interested in your ideas and certainly the pictures show a marked improvement in the condition, I wish you every success and hope you will keep this thread updated with your progress as it will be useful to follow,

Can you advise what you do eat as it seems you have cut so much out, it would be interesting to know what an average days meals would be

I'm glad it works for you, and I'm sure there is a link with diet, but unfortunately I have no willpower so it's not for me and my tablets work well


Enjoy yourself on the site and feel free to join in the fun in the off topic section .....looking forward to reading more from you

[alan540]

Hi Jim

I will keep this thread updated, but I am hoping that after 6 months on this diet I will be able to start reintroducing foods one by one. So probably not many updates until then (I hope.)

It is quite a restrictive diet, but not as bad as I first thought.

Foods that I can eat :

VEGETABLES
Artichokes
Asparagus
Avocado
Broccoli
Brussels sprouts
Cabbage
Celery
Cucumber
Eggplant
Garlic (raw)
Kale
Olives
Onions
Rutabaga
Spinach
Tomatoes
Zucchini

MEAT & EGGS
Beef
Chicken
Lamb
Turkey
Eggs

FISH
Anchovies
Herring
Sardines
Wild salmon

NUTS AND SEEDS
Almonds
Coconut meat
Flax Seed
Hazelnuts
Pecans
Sunflower Seeds
Walnuts

LIVE YOGURT CULTURES
Probiotic yogurt
Kefir

OILS
Virgin Coconut Oil
Olive Oil
Butter

SEASONING
Black Pepper
Sea Salt
Lemon Juice
Apple Cider Vinegar (Organic, Raw, Unfiltered)

HERBS AND SPICES
Basil
Black Pepper
Cinnamon
Cloves
Dill
Garlic
Ginger
Oregano
Paprika
Rosemary
Thyme
Turmeric

So a typical meal is : Roast Chicken/Brocolli/Leeks with gravy made from butter and the meat juices (no thickener such as corn flour) and salt and pepper.

Basically, meat or fish done how you like it with plenty of non-starchy vegetables from the list.

Pork is out, but I do sneak in a bit of bacon as a treat especially with fried or boiled eggs at breakfast.

Desert can be natural yoghurt with berries and nuts.

After a while it's surprising how your tastebuds become more sensitive. Even walnuts or almonds taste sweet to me now, but pleasantly so.

I had a sip of diet cola recently and left the rest because of the overpowering sweetness.

Snacks can be nuts or vegetables.

It takes a bit of getting used to but it has cured my psoriasis so I will stick with it until the 5 months is up and then start experimenting.

Things I miss :

Cheese on toast
Crusty Sourdough Bread
Beer
Cakes
Biscuits
Crisps

But... I would rather miss these things and have healthy hands and feet.

Hopefully, in 6 months I will be able to start enjoying some of these things again in moderation.

That's the plan!

Alan

[jiml]

That's a good list of foods you can eat and it can be possible to have good tasty meals ...it's surprised me pleasantly, it is certainly not as difficult as I first thought. Thank you for so much detail ...as I say I will follow your progress with great interest

I can see no reason not to try some of the ideas you have used here in conjunction with the tablets I am on ...the worst that can happen is I will lose weight .....

[alan540]

I hope you find it useful. Be patient, and don't expect to see much change until a week or two has passed. I have been very strict in following this diet. I've got more imaginative with food from the list and yes you sure will find the weight just falls off. What has surprised me is that I don't feel anywhere near as hungry as I used to. A meal now satisfies me for several hours without the need to snack in between meals. I do carry a bag of nuts in my coat pocket for when I'm out and feel hungry.

All in all I think it's a small sacrifice to make until my gut repairs itself. I can now walk without pain and use my hands again without fingertips splitting and bleeding and generally feel like my old self again. My hands are toughening up each day and the horrible swelling has almost completely gone. I feel so sorry for people that have suffered from this for years on end. Also, it's good not to have to use steroids and antihistamines and emollients. My doctor told me that whatever I was doing carry on with it if it works for me. I will!

I realise this might not be suitable or even work for some people, but it does no harm to try a change of diet, and a friend of mine has told me that it's a healthy atheletes diet, so I intend to stick with it.

[dyorke]

Hello  Fellow Palmar Plantar sufferer - I find your information very interesting.
[I have just had my Acitretin dose increased from 25mg/day (been on it for 1 month) to 35mg/day]
I am seeing progress albeit slow  - this is not a fast acting drug

I am going to give your diet a go and see if it can help me....  
Hope you continue to see improvements
 
Tink x