Guest guest Posted September 21, 2004 Report Share Posted September 21, 2004 On Tuesday, September 21, 2004, at 04:54 AM, ayurveda wrote: > Message: 6 > Tue, 21 Sep 2004 01:48:21 -0000 > "doulaminerva" <martha > Re: skin disease - Psoriasis > > Yes, good news! I had done some research and helped a couple friends > with medium to bad psoriasis very significantly. Other factors in > poor compliance brought it back some. I understand it is about > liver, high pitta, thin small intestinal wall and aggravated, impure > pitta high blood, emotions. Dietary factors very significant. In Ayurvedic medicine the cause of psoriasis relates to the presence of ama trapped in the skin and failure of the blood to metabolize and remove it, thus aggravating the doshas. From a scientific perspective psoriasis is related to a localized, dysfunctional immune response in the skin that induces cellular proliferation. The cause of this is some toxin or antigen-antibody complex, or some aspect that causes a derangement in immune function. Diet is very important here, whether we consider the cause from an Ayurvedic perspective, i.e. ama, or from a nutritional/gastroenterological perspective, i.e. intestinal permeability syndrome. I routinely recommend that patients implement a paleolithic approach to diet, and find this to be helpful in many circumstances: http://www.toddcaldecott.com/paleodiet.html There may also be numerous potential nutritional deficiencies, e.g. omega 3 fats, various minerals etc. But diet isn't the only thing: there is strong relationship between the skin and nervous system, and thus emotional/behavioural patterns may need to be addressed. There is strong link between the complexion and the sun: in health the skin is said to display a natural luminescence (varna in sanskrit), just as the sun radiates light. It is interesting how UV light can actually be used to put psoriasis into remission when we consider this connection. In medicine this is realized to some extent, and one common psoriasis treatment is PUVA therapy, consisting of using a psoralen (e.g. methoxsalen) in conjunction with UV-A light. Psoralens however are also found is the plant kingdom, most notably in herbs like Khella (Ammi vishnaga) and Bu gu zhi (Psoralea coryfolia), and have been used for thousand of years to treat psoriasis in conjunction with sun exposure. One method is to take the Indian herb Katuka (Picrorrhiza kurroa) to strengthen the effect of psoralens, e.g. Katuka 2 g + Bu gu zhi 2 g, twice daily, with a minimum of 20 minutes of sun exposure daily (or tanning beds). This more natural form of PUVA therapy can be used in conjunction with other blood cleansing herbs, dietary changes, nutritional supplementation and behavioural therapies... Caldecott todd www.toddcaldecott.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 22, 2004 Report Share Posted September 22, 2004 i forgot to add that this information is also detailed in Alan Tillotson's excellent book "One Earth Herbal Sourcebook" best... Todd On Wednesday, September 22, 2004, at 05:53 AM, ayurveda wrote: > One method is to take the Indian herb Katuka (Picrorrhiza > kurroa) to strengthen the effect of psoralens, e.g. Katuka 2 g + Bu gu > zhi 2 g, twice daily, with a minimum of 20 minutes of sun exposure > daily (or tanning beds). This more natural form of PUVA therapy can be > used in conjunction with other blood cleansing herbs, dietary changes, > nutritional supplementation and behavioural therapies... Caldecott todd www.toddcaldecott.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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