Taking care of your skin with psoriasis

The skin is the largest and one of the most important organs in the body in terms of size, function and sheer versatility. Just look at what it can do!

It keeps the outside out and the inside in and allows us to feel pleasure, warmth, pain.
It turns energy from sunlight into crucially important vitamin D.
It is the largest detoxification organ in the body, through sweating and shedding skin cells.
It’s a key part of our immune system acting both as a barrier and triggering immune responses.

So given all that it does, it is worth looking after but with psoriasis that is not so straight forward.

Psoriasis is different for each person and for some its impact can be significant and disruptive to every-day life. So, taking care of your skin is very important.

Here are some tips that might help you to take general care of your skin.

Hydration

For the skin to function properly as a barrier it needs adequate hydration – we lose water continuously through the skin. Someone with skin in good condition can lose up to 750ml of water every 24 hours!

Drinking plenty of water to maintain hydration makes good sense. It’s recommended we drink at least 6-8 glasses of water a day, around 1.2-1.5 litres.

Smoking

If you smoke, it can affect the way you look and how quickly you appear to age. First, smoking disrupts collagen production which supports skin strength and elasticity.

Smoking also reduces blood flow to your skin, so your skin gets fewer nutrients, less oxygen and often looks dull and grey as a result. Finally, it is thought that smoking can impair skin wound healing. Even more reasons to try to give up!

Take a look at our article on ‘Going smokeless‘ for more support.

Diet

Losing weight has been found to improve psoriasis in some people who are overweight. This could be because fat cells in some overweight people are another source of inflammation.

Lowering your weight by eating well may improve your psoriasis! Lowering your weight may also help to improve your mood and improve your heart and general health. Eating well is one of the best things we can do to keep ourselves healthy. Our diet not only impacts our health but also our energy levels and capacity to enjoy life.

Take a look at our article on ‘Nutrition and psoriasis‘ for more support.

Stress

Stress levels, especially chronic stress, affects every area of health and can often visibly affect the skin. In some instances, you may experience feelings of depression and anxiousness that might be caused by one of many stressors and big life events– whether that’s dealing with an illness, parenting, work stress, experiencing family, housing or money issues, relationship struggles, bereavement, or otherwise. It is now accepted that stress is associated with inflammation that can trigger psoriasis. Stress can also make your existing psoriasis worse.

Read our ‘Importance of emotional wellbeing’ article for more support.

Why should I moisturise?

Moisturisers are no substitute for the treatment your health care provider recommends for treating your psoriasis, but they are a way to combat some of the symptoms you might experience like itching. The skin is often itchy because it is dry, and so keeping the skin well moisturised is important.

Top moisturising tips to reduce itching.

One way to combat itch is by using a moisturiser frequently. Try to make your treatment fit in with your lifestyle as best you can. Some suggestions might be to use a lighter moisturiser in the morning before going to work and then using a richer moisturiser before going to bed. Try taking a small pot of cream to work with you and apply if a patch gets particularly dry, itchy or uncomfortable.
Try applying the moisturiser by gently stroking it on in a way that follows the line of your hair. Avoid rubbing too aggressively, as this can aggravate your psoriasis – a gentle repeated motion is best.
Water and soap dry out the skin, therefore it is very important to moisturise after a bath or shower.
Avoid irritants such as soaps, bubble bath and detergents.
Keep nails short to limit any damage done to the skin by scratching when applying moisturisers. Try not to scratch if at all possible. It is thought that scratching can make itch worse and an ‘itch - scratch’ cycle may develop with regular scratching. (That is, you itch more because you scratch, so you scratch more because you itch more, and so on). Picking at plaques can also make psoriasis worse, increase itching and discomfort and encourage infection – try not to pick if at all possible.

It can help to write down some of the things you might do to support your skin care. If you feel that they are not working replace them with an alternative.