Helping Psoriasis With An Alkaline Plant Based Diet And Herbs

Psoriasis

Psoriasis is an inflammatory skin disease, but it is helpful to think past only addressing only the skin and and address the whole body.

Psoriasis is caused by a malfunctioning immune system where white blood cells called T cells cause havoc in the skin.^[1] The body mistakenly over-activates the normally protective T cells which trigger immune responses that cause skin cells to replicate too quickly.

Under normal conditions skin cells replicate and replace old cells within a month’s time. The body makes skin cells below the surface of the skin. The new skin cells normally move slowly towards the surface of the skin.

Normally old cells cells would fall off in a coordinated process to make way for the new cells. This replacement cycle is called turnover.

Psoriasis causes the body to over-activate T cells. This triggers an immune response that causes the new skin cells to rise too quickly. The new cells don’t have the normal time to mature and are susceptible to environmental toxins and pathogens. The immature skin cells become inflamed as a result.

Helping eliminate psoriasis involves putting the body in the best situation to allow its DNA to correct the faulty immune response. You would also need to address the inflammation.

DNA’s programming seeks to maintain homeostasis of all bodily functions, and to heal itself under the right conditions. This can happen even if a person has a predisposition towards a particular disease.

Types of Psoriasis

Autoimmune diseases occur when the body takes in toxins and pathogens (antigens) that resemble normal tissue in the body. The immune system will develop antibodies to attack these antigens, and will friendly-fire on the normal cells the antigens resemble.

Researchers still aren’t sure as to what the specific antigens are that lead to the different types of psoriasis including^[1]:

• Erythrodermic psoriasis: Widespread reddening and scaling of the skin. May be a reaction to severe sunburn or to taking corticosteroids (cortisone) or other medications.
• Guttate psoriasis: Small, drop-shaped lesions appear on the trunk, limbs, and scalp. Guttate psoriasis is most often triggered by upper respiratory infections like streptococcal bacteria.
• Inverse psoriasis: Smooth, red patches near the genitals, under the breasts, or in the armpits.  Friction and sweating can worsen the symptoms.
• Plaque psoriasis: The most common form of psoriasis and can form anywhere on the body including the elbows, scalp, genitals, and even inside the mouth. Plaque psoriasis presents as dry areas of silvery scale raised red lesions.
• Pustular psoriasis: Blisters of noninfectious pus appear on the skin. Medications, infections, stress, or exposure to certain chemicals appear to trigger pustular psoriasis .

Smoking, heavy alcohol consumption, obesity, stress, sunburn, cuts, infections, vitamin D deficiency, and medications can trigger psoriasis.

Diseases Associated With Psoriasis

The genes that affect the expression of psoriasis are in a group of genes that affect autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Such diseases are inflammatory bowel disease, type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and atopic dermatitis.^[2]

Cardiovascular disease and some cancers, like skin cancer, are more common in patients with psoriasis. Scientists haven’t determined a casual relationship or how each condition supports the other. It does appear that treating or one condition can have a favorable outcome on another.

Fortunately removing meat, dairy, and processed foods and consuming a whole food plant food protect against these illnesses.

• Psoriasis: 1
• Inflammatory bowel disease: 1, 2, 3
• Multiple Sclerosis: 1
• Type 1 diabetes: 1, 2, 3
• Atopic dermatitis: 1

Treating Psoriasis

DNA determines the makeup of organic and inorganic molecules in the body. Eating the right foods help the DNA to express itself as a healthy body made up of these molecules.

People’s DNA programs their body’s to seek homeostasis, or the optimal operation of all metabolic functions. Toxins and pathogens interfere with the healthy expression of DNA. Natural minerals, nutrients, and phytonutrients found in a whole food plant based diet supports the healthy expression of DNA.

Consuming meat, dairy, and processed foods introduce pathogens and toxins that interfere with the healthy expression of DNA. This can translate into the body attacking itself as in the case of autoimmune diseases like psoriasis.

Reduce Salt-Sodium Consumption to Help Eliminate Psoriasis

We all need salt-sodium to support healthy body function. Too many people consume much more salt than the body needs and instead of being helpful, it becomes harmful.

Psoriasis is caused by the over-activation of T cells. Though scientists are still working on identifying the antigens that the over-activation of T cells, excessive salt consumption appears to be driving factor.

Please watch the video:

Fasting for Psoriasis

Eliminating psoriasis and other complex diseases involves removing pathogens and toxins that attack the body. Removing the consumption of meat, diary, and processed foods greatly aids in accomplishing this.

Fasting quickly removes pathogens and toxins from the body that compromise the immune system and that support psoriasis.

This video covers different methods to approach a dietary fast to remove pathogens and toxins from the body.

An Alkaline Plant Based Diet And Psoriasis

A whole food alkaline plant based diet reduces the inflammation psoriasis causes.

A plant based diet is generally an inflammatory diet. Plants use their anti-inflammatory minerals, nutrients, and phytonutrients to protect themselves against disease.

When you consume these compounds you benefit from their anti-inflammatory properties. Plants contain thousands of anti-inflammatory, health protecting phytonutrients that fall into several categories. They include carotenoids, capsaicin, flavonoids, isoflavones, isothiocyanates, lycopene, phytosterols, polyphenols, saponins, and terpenes.

Not all plant foods are equal, and alkaline or alkaline forming plant support homeostasis and removing disease.

Non-GMO and less hybridized plant foods are more health supporting because they contain more of their original genetic programming. Genetic modification and excessive hybridization  makes plant foods less compatible with the genetic programming of the body.

Non-GMO and less hybridized plant foods have more chemical affinity with the body.  The body naturally recognizes their genetic makeup and structure so they produce less or no harmful byproducts when digested.

Consuming natural whole plant foods will greatly eliminate the intake of pathogens and toxins that trigger psoriasis. They will help bolster and regulate the immune system.

Learn More About the Better Health Supporting Plant Foods on the Dr. Sebi Nutritional Guide »

Drink Blended Vegetable Juices to Treat Psoriasis Inflammation

Fasting is a great way to speedily remove pathogens and toxins from the body. Drinking blended vegetable juices is an excellent way to saturate the body with anti-inflammatory minerals, nutrients, and phtyonutrients.

You will more easily consume more vegetables drinking vegetable juices, than by eating them. Blending vegetables into a juice also breaks down the cell walls of the plants much more effectively than chewing does.

This makes the plant’s nutrients more bio-available and accessible for digestion. See the article: Blending Vegetables Into Smoothies Makes Nutrients More Bioavailable.

I suggest this vegetable juice for its all around cleansing and nourishing properties: Bam Bam vegetable juice.

Herbal Psoriasis Treatment

The psoriasis present in the skin, the root of the problem lies inside the body.  The focus of reducing the impact of psoriasis should be in internal one, though you can address the symptoms externally.

A good place to start is clearing the blood of pathogens and toxins. Eating a plant based diet and drinking vegetable juices naturally cleans the blood. The phytonutrients in herbs does help to provide a deeper intracellular cleanse and also speeds the healing process.

You can learn how to use herbs like burdock root, yellow dock, elderberry, and sarsaparilla to clean the blood in my book Alkaline Herbal Medicine.

View the Alkaline Herbal Medicine Table of Contents.

You can also learn about using herbs to assist the alkaline plant based diet in cleaning the entire body in the herbal book.

Sources:
[1] National Institute – Skin Diseases
[2] US National Library of Medicine