Gluten intolerance often leads to psoriasis and eczema

Gluten intolerance often leads to psoriasis and eczema

Several recent articles have confirmed a correlation between patients with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity and those who also suffer from psoriasis and eczema, and that gluten sensitivity runs in families[1]. These studies finally bring to light something that people who have chosen a gluten-free lifestyle have known for years. Skin conditions can be caused by gluten sensitivity (GS) and a strict gluten-free diet can relieve the symptoms of psoriasis and eczema. And gluten sensitivity is often present in multiple members of the same family.

Patients now have a new tool for working in the medical profession, and physicians have reason to believe that a patient may have GS when presenting with psoriasis or eczema or when considering a patient's family history.

Clinical correlation

An article published inBritish Journal of Dermatology[2] concluded: “The presence of CD-associated antibodies in psoriasis patients correlates with greater disease activity.” Celiac disease-associated antibodies include anti-gliadin antibodies (AGA). Gliadin is a wheat peptide that people with celiac disease and gluten sensitivity cannot digest. It is this antibody that causes the many symptoms of celiac disease and GS, including nutrient deficiencies and gastrointestinal distress. In my practice, I naturally look for connections between the symptoms. The body systems do not work independently of each other, but as a whole. Food intolerances and other allergies naturally lead to a variety of reactions including skin diseases. More physicians need to look at the whole patient to make correlations when treating individual disorders.

Psoriasis and eczema as symptoms

For many years, doctors did not consider psoriasis or eczema to be a primary symptom of gluten sensitivity and celiac disease. And often enough, patients who had lived with gluten sensitivity for many years had enough other symptoms, particularly gastrointestinal symptoms, that allowed doctors to look beyond psoriasis and eczema as being caused by celiac disease.

However, the significant correlation between psoriasis and gluten sensitivity has been highlighted inClinical and experimental dermatologychanged the game. An article was also published inBritish Journal of Dermatology[3] found in 2011 that 16 percent of all psoriasis patients also had high AGA levels. Physicians treating patients with psoriasis and eczema as well as patients with celiac disease and gluten intolerance should be aware of the skin conditions as a symptom of the body's inability to digest gluten. Patients may present with intestinal symptoms. However, they could also have several other extraintestinal manifestations of gluten intolerance, including the presence of psoriatic lesions.

Once again, these studies prove that doctors should look at their patients from a holistic perspective rather than just looking at symptoms in isolation. We must treat the whole body – internal, external and neurological – to help patients find relief from chronic pain.

Gluten free diet treatment

Switching patients with psoriasis and eczema to a gluten-free diet to treat these skin conditions should be considered a viable treatment plan instead of or in conjunction with pharmacological approaches.

In another study, 33 patients who tested positive for AGA followed a strict gluten-free diet for a period of time, used no other pharmacological treatments for their lesions, and almost all of them reported significant improvement in their skin lesions after three to six months on the gluten-free diet.

Given the resounding success of a gluten-free diet for this population, physicians should consider prescribing a gluten-free diet to patients with psoriasis and eczema as the primary treatment for the skin conditions.

Family genes

Finally, a study published inWorld Journal of Gastroenterologyfound that the most important risk factor for celiac disease is having a first-degree relative with already defined celiac disease or gluten sensitivity, especially a sibling. The risk factor was at least 20 percent for people who have a first-degree relative with gluten sensitivity or celiac disease.

For many people living with gluten sensitivity or celiac disease, and doctors who approach their patients holistically, these findings only confirm what they have known for years. Gluten sensitivity runs in families and choosing a gluten-free diet can dramatically reduce the occurrence of psoriasis and eczema. Doctors need to consider these factors in addition to the more severe intestinal problems and nutrient deficiency symptoms of celiac disease and gluten sensitivity in order to diagnose more people earlier. The sooner patients can start a gluten-free diet, the better they will feel and the healthier they will be.

[1] http://www.wjgnet.com/1007-9327/12/843.asp

[2] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15491433

[3] British Journal of Dermatology, Volume 142, Number 1, January 2000, pp. 44-51(8)

Inspired by Dr. Karl R.O.S. Johnson, D.C