Beat Psoriasis Like Kim Kardashian!
In last week's episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians, Kim revealed to us her one beauty flaw. After seeing flaky red patches on her legs, she finally went to the dermatologist and realized that those itchy and irritated spots went skin deep—it was psoriasis! Turns out, you can't fight genetics—even if you're a celebrity.
"Psoriasis is actually an incurable auto-immune disease," says dermatologist Dr. Marta Rendon. "But the good news is, it's very controllable." According to recent reports, over 7.5 million in the United States suffer from psoriasis. Its mostly genetically inherited (like Kim's case), but can also be triggered from stress, diet, and lifestyle.
Many people have a hard time distinguishing psoriasis from another ugly skin malady, eczema. "Psoriasis has a red base on the skin with a thick silver scale on top. In eczema, your patches are more scaly and itchy," Dr Rendon explains. "Psoriasis typically affects areas where muscles meet and flex—knees and elbows are very common, as well as the scalp."
Psoriasis is definitely annoying, but it's very controllable if you establish the right treatment program. "Typically, I recommend topical creams with steroids, vitamin A, or vitamin D derivatives. Otherwise, there's a new light laser phototherapy that uses localized beams of light to attack irritated areas. This puts the psoriasis in remission until a next flare-up."
If you're not willing to go fully pharmaceutical to treat your skin, there are a myriad of homeopathic treatments. Bath oils, oatmeal, dead sea salt, and products with natural salicylic acid all help exfoliate and heal the delicate skin. Over the counter dandruff shampoos can also help scalp psoriasis (and Dr. Rendon recommends using it as body wash too!) As always, avoid alcohol and cigarettes, which can irritate skin and trigger a rash.
Remember Beauties, no one (not even Kim Kardashian!) is perfect. We've all got our skin and beauty hangups to deal with! Are you ready to fight yours?
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Martins C.
hello,kim i really love dey way ur hair look and ur lip ad i love ur hair too,everyday i watch ur show,i love all ur sisters.nice smile u got there
Kiwi N.
@Astrid D.
Sweetheart, it cannot be easily controlled.
Yes, of course, if you eat healthy, don't smoke, have as little stress as possible the flare-ups can be less. But there is absolutely no guarantee (plus sometimes you can't influence the stress thing. My father got cancer 3 years ago and passed away 9 months later. I still have the spots from when I flared up when he got diagnosed... it's a long time this time). It's really different for every single person.
Sometimes it's even just the change from summer weather to winter weather. Can't do nothing about that.
And trust me, all those creams often simply don't work, or won't get it all gone, or it just comes back completely a few weeks later.
Don't think to mild about this. It's a serious thing that lots of people (also completely healthy ones) struggle with.
I had my first flare-up of psoriasis when I was 18... That's often the age it shows up.
I don't mean to sound mean :-) Just want to let you (and other people reading this) to know that it's often a serious thing that's not easily treated.
Astrid D.
My dad has this and I seem to be prone to having drier and more sensitive skin. I am always scared of flaring up and getting diagnosed with it, but I also know it is something that can be controlled and even unnoticeable if you take care of yourself
Krishna B.
I have psoriasis too so I understood Kim's reaction when she first found out she had it. It totally sucks, especially when you have it on your face like I do! It takes a lot of exfoliation and concealer to make it less noticeable. But like Kiwi says, the sun is the best treatment for me, and when I can't get some real sunlight (which is always the case in SF, lol) I hit the tanning bed! Thanks so much for the article and educating people about psoriasis!
Wafi A.
I have eczema. It's cleared up a lot, but I also have very sensitive skin and I'm super careful with what I put on my body.
Kayla r.
I completely understand what she's going through, I have eczema all over my body & my skin is very sensitive so I have to becareful with what lotions, perfumes & soaps I use because I'll break out in a rash if I use something that doesn't suit my skin. Eczema is genetic so like Kim at first I blamed my mom & I told her thanks for giving it to me just like how Kim did lol (joke) now I just have to eat healthy & take certain vitamins for my skin & becareful what I put on it.
Kiwi N.
I have psoriasis too. My legs looks just like hers.
I'm glad I only have it on my arms and legs. I would be devestated if I would have it across my face.
What really helped me was when I went to Turkey for a week. Sun and sea water is magic when you have psoriasis. It completely disappeared (indeed until the next flare-up months later ;-))