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(Reuters Health) – The Mediterranean diet could do more than thwart heart disease, it could also help improve psoriasis, suggests a new study.
"Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory disease triggered by environmental factors" lead author Dr. Celine Phan, dermatologist at Hopital Mondor, Creteil, France
"The Mediterranean Diet, characterized by a high proportion of Fruit, vegetables, cereals, fish, extra-virgin olive oil, etc., could reduce chronic systemic inflammation through the anti-inflammatory properties of these foods, "she said in an email
Some people seem to inherit a susceptibility to developing psoriasis, notes Dr. Laura Ferris, a professor of dermatology at the University of Pittsburgh, who was not involved in the study. study.
"It is a disease characterized by areas or patches of skin that is red and thick and scaly," said Ferris in an e-mail. "It can really hurt the quality of life of A patient e because of its discomfort and appearance: if there are red scales, dander on the face and hands, it hampers life. "
About 2% of the American population suffers from psoriasis, Ferris said.
Phan and his colleagues drew on a large French health study that had collected dietary information on 158,361 volunteers over two years. The researchers sent all participants a link to an online questionnaire on psoriasis. Of the 35,735 who completed the questionnaire, 3,557 reported having psoriasis, 878 being severe.
In addition to information on food consumption, the original study also collected information on lifestyle and health factors, such as sex, smoking habits, body mass index (BMI), levels of physical activity, cardiovascular diseases and symptoms of depression.
The researchers evaluated the dietary habits of volunteers according to their degree of monitoring of the Mediterranean diet. Previous studies have shown that the diet was associated with a lower risk of chronic systemic inflammation related to heart disease and diseases such as psoriasis.
After taking into account other health and lifestyle factors that may increase psoriasis, the researchers found that severe cases of the disease were less likely in people whose eating habits were more similar. to the Mediterranean diet.
Compared with people whose dietary habits were the lowest by Mediterranean standards 22% less likely to have severe psoriasis, and those with a moderately Mediterranean diet were 29% less likely.
The study found no association between diet and the onset of psoriasis.
The researchers however found an association between the severity of psoriasis and several other factors, including BMI, smoking, activity levels, heart disease, elevated triglycerides, p Even if the study does not prove that consuming a Mediterranean diet will lessen the severity of psoriasis, "this raises interesting questions and is provocative," said Dr. Jonathan Silverberg, associate professor of dermatology. , Preventive Medicine and Medical Social Sciences at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago and Director of the Center for Eczema at Northwestern Medicine. "Other studies have suggested a connection, which would confirm these studies."
What an observational study like this can not show, is if the Mediterranean diet is in the process to improve or there is a factor shared by people that helps with psoriasis, says Silverberg, who was not involved in the new research.
But studies like this one are needed to encourage other researchers to make randomized controlled clinical trials that could answer this question, says Silverberg. Even though it is shown that the Mediterranean diet may help to improve symptoms, "I doubt that it would be effective enough to replace the many treatment options we now use in clinical practice," Silverberg said. . But doctors might be able to use it as a complementary treatment strategy, he noted.
For now, however, it would make sense to refer patients to a Mediterranean diet because there are few disadvantages. In addition, "there is an association between following the Mediterranean diet and other health benefits," she explained. "And maybe it will help with psoriasis."
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/2LjL6VX JAMA Dermatology, online July 25, 2018.
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