The autoimmune condition psoriasis results in your immune system mistakenly attacking healthy skin cells, leading to an interruption in normal cell turnover. Autoimmune conditions and food allergies might be linked in certain individuals and if you happen to be one of them, avoiding certain foods might help your condition. If you think you have an allergy to a certain item see your doctor, who can provide the appropriate testing.
Food Allergies and Autoimmune Conditions
When you have a food allergy, the body sees this normally harmless substance as a dangerous foreign invader. This triggers inflammation, which normally serves an important purpose of alerting the body that something is off. In this instance, however, this needless inflammation, which can become prolonged and frequent, may worsen psoriasis and other autoimmune conditions. Dr. Mark Hyman, a physician who advocates for the role of nutrition in promoting health, explains on his website, that the faulty immune response that results from consuming the food can also lead to a simultaneous attack on the healthy tissue, which in the case of psoriasis, is your skin cells.
Research on Psoriasis and Gluten
Gluten, a type of protein found in wheat and numerous other grains, has been implicated in contributing to various conditions, particularly autoimmune diseases. Researchers from the University Hospital in Uppsala, Sweden, wanted to test the effects of a gluten-free diet on psoriasis patients after examining previous research, which uncovered that 16 percent of individuals with this condition tested positive for antibodies – substances that the immune system produces in response to foods and other normally harmless agents – that indicate a gluten intolerance. Their study, published in a 2003 issue of ‘’Acta Dermato-Venereologica,’’ found that eliminating gluten from the diet for three months -- the only treatment in the test group -- resulted in ‘’significant clinical improvement.’’ A review of the role of gluten and various skin diseases, published in the January 2006 issue of ‘’The European Journal of Dermatology,’’ also reports gluten intolerance might play a role in psoriasis and numerous other skin conditions.
Considerations for a Gluten-Free Diet
Experimenting with a gluten-free diet does not seem to pose any health concerns. Cut out wheat, spelt, triticale, semolina, graham flour, rye, farina, barley, bulgur, durham, kamut and matzo. You can safely include tapioca, rice, corn, amaranth, arrowroot, buckwheat, polenta and quinoa. Unless you know for sure a product is gluten-free, it is best to avoid eating cookies, cakes, pastas, crackers and the like, processed lunch meats, sauces, salad dressings and soups you come across.
Other Common Food Allergens
Mayoclinic.com reports that eight types of foods account for 90 percent of food allergies. Besides gluten-containing foods, the remaining include milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish and soy. You might have allergies to less common foods as well. While you might associate allergies with very obvious physical symptoms like swelling or difficulty breathing, they can manifest in many ways. If you have psoriasis, Hyman recommends getting the IgG food allergy test to check for these not-so-obvious allergies.
Elimination Diet
Another way to determine if certain foods affect your symptoms is trying an elimination diet. This diet involves cutting out the most common allergens mentioned earlier as well as any other foods you believe worsen your psoriasis for a set amount of time and reintroducing them into the diet one at a time every few days or so. During this period, you also need to keep track of your symptoms to see if adding back certain foods coincides with a flare-up. To do this diet properly, it is best to work with a healthcare professional experienced in conducting this diet.
References
- DrHyman.com: How to Stop Attacking Yourself: 9 Steps to Heal Autoimmune Disease
- ''European Journal of Dermatology''; Gluten Intolerance and Skin Diseases; P.Humbert, et al.; January 2006
- ''Acta Dermato-Venereologica''; Gluten-Free Diet in Psoriasis Patients with Antibodies to Gliadin Results in Decreased Expression of Tissue Transglutaminase and Fewer Ki67+ Cells in the Dermis; G.Michaelsson, et al.; 2003
- Mayoclinic.com; Food Allergies; January 2011
