It’s believed that at the base of psoriasis, there lays a genetic predisposition. Some lucky person may live for her/his entire life without ever developing psoriasis. In the less lucky persons under the influence of a provoking factor, they will develop psoriasis.

What may serve as a provoking factor for psoriasis? It may be a stress, an intellectual over-strain, an infectious disease, bad diet etc…

Hypothermia may also become a provoking factor for psoriasis.

Hypothermia – the Low Temperatures.

What is hypothermia? Hypothermia is a prolonged lowering of the internal body temperature.

Hypothermia is a very dangerous condition, which may occur when a person is being subject to low air or water temperatures for a prolonged period of time. Hypothermia does not always occur in the winter. It may also occur in the spring, autumn, or even the summer. For example the body temperature of a child who has been swimming in cool water for a long time, may lower without him/her even noticing that.

The body temperature of a human is maintained through the so-called homeostasis — the mechanism which insures the stable internal environmental of our bodies. With hypothermia, the homeostatic systems will eventually fail to produce high enough heat levels in the body.

Hypothermia is very dangerous because it can lead to incapacitation, frost bite and even death in the worst scenario.

Even though hypothermia is not the most common trigger of psoriasis, it was known to trigger psoriasis in some cases.

Hypothermia is a threat for example for the survivors of a sinking ship. People in this case are subject to the cold waters until they are rescued. Water absorbs heat very quickly and therefore the body temperature of a person staying in cold water will start to drop very quickly.

In this case, hypothermia would also be connected with stress induced by fear. Such combination would especially be capable of provoking psoriasis in a genetically predisposed person.

Cryotherapy – the Ultra Low Temperatures.

Surprisingly, the ultra low temperatures are reported to be capable of treating psoriasis. Ultra low temperatures are used in the so-called Cryotherapy. Cryotherapy has practically nothing in common with hypothermia.

What is Cryotherapy? Cryotherapy is a treatment with the use of ultra low temperatures. Such low temperatures, as they use in Cryotherapy, cannot be achieved without special equipment. The usual temperature of the gas used in the Cryotherapy composes -150° Celsius.

The contact of the body surface with the ultra low temperatures with Cryotherapy composes only several minutes.

The skin temperature at the time of the Cryotherapy procedure lowers down to -2° Celsius. This provokes a potent stress on the skin and in the whole body. This type of stress is probably one of the only ones, capable of influencing psoriasis beneficially.

The irritating action of the Cryotherapy causes the mobilization of various impaired body functions, i.e. it may help to repair the skin affected by psoriasis. Cryotherapy is especially known to be effective for the treatment of the scalp psoriasis.

I have had psoriasis for 14 years (see my BIO) – since my teenage years. During those years I have collected loads of information that helps me keep psoriasis under control.

Please visit my website for Much More Unique Psoriasis Information

But genetic predisposition alone is not enough for the development of psoriasis. There has to be some kind of a trigger to start the mechanisms of psoriasis.

Let’s discuss what stress is, and what stress may cause in the genetically predisposed to psoriasis people.

Stress is usually a strong negative (rarely – positive) mental or physical experience, which causes various negative chemical reactions in our body.

These chemical reactions are capable of deteriorating the internal organs of our body, and causing various physical disorders as well as various disorders of the nervous system. Most of these disorders would never have surfaced, had they not been triggered by stress.

In the same way stress may eventually also trigger the pathological mechanisms of psoriasis disease.

Various studies have shown that stress is one of the most often psoriasis triggers in the genetically predisposed to psoriasis people — about 50% of the cases. Stress is also a major factor for the flare up of psoriasis — about 40% of the cases.

Therefore, it would be a prudent thing to do to try to avoid getting stressed, or to learn to relieve your everyday stress.

Mental stress may be often caused by losing your loved ones, losing your job, getting divorced etc…

Physical stress may be often caused by freezing, getting into a car accident, undergoing a major surgery etc…

Stress may also be caused by a positive experience, such as getting married or giving birth to a child.

In order to try to prevent psoriasis in the predisposed to psoriasis adults and children, or to better manage the existing psoriasis, I would advise you to screen your life or your child’s life for any possible causes of stress.

It is easier for an adult to find the possible causes of stress but it may be harder to do that for a child.

Here is the list of things you may want to look for in your child’s life:
-Skipping meals;
-Dressing improperly;
-Having a conflict at school or in preschool;
-Insufficient sleep or not enough rest;
-Uncomfortable clothes or footwear.

By trying to eliminate stress, we may as well succeed in preventing psoriasis or improving the developed psoriasis. It is definitely worth a try.

Here are the most often symptoms of stress, both in the adults and in children:
-Feeling down;
-Headaches;
-Fast heartbeat;
-Nervousness;
-Insomnia.

Thus, if you find anything that may be stressing you (or your child) you should try to eliminate it, especially if this turns out to have been a prolonged stress.

There are various relaxation techniques, which may help you in your stress management.

I have had psoriasis for 14 years – see my BIO – since my teenage years. During those years I have collected loads of information that helps me keep psoriasis under control.

Please visit my website for Much More Unique Psoriasis Information

The first thing to note is that psoriasis may be the underlying cause of dandruff. Psoriasis is thought to be caused by immune system and a genetic predisposition to psoriasis. Quite often if a member of your family has psoriasis, you may have inherited the genes. However, not all people who have the psoriasis genes go on to develop psoriasis. People of any age can get psoriasis: children, teenagers, adults and older people. Psoriasis tends to affect males and females equally.

As mentioned, both scalp psoriasis and dandruff can cause similar symptoms. Scalp psoriasis can be triggered off by anything from cuts, abrasions, scratches and even sunburn. More often than not a flare up will happen in winter: the skin becomes flaky and dry because of a lack of natural sunlight. With scalp psoriasis, the patches are commonly seen on the back of the head but can be seen on other areas of the scalp or even cover the entire scalp. The psoriasis may not be confined just to the scalp. Scaly, silvery patches may appear on areas such as elbows, knees, lower back, groin and other body folds.

Dandruff, on the other hand, is primarily caused by naturally occurring fungus, the Malassezia yeast that feeds on the natural oils of the skin. This causes the skin to shed more quickly and to itch. Other possible causes of dandruff include not brushing hair regularly, not enough shampooing, dry skin, diet and stress. Mild dandruff often occurs after puberty, usually between 20-30 years, and tends to affect more men than women.

The treatments for both scalp psoriasis and dandruff tend to be similar. Treatments include using shampoos that contain coal tar and salicyclic acid or topical steroid creams to reduce inflammation. Since dandruff is caused by fungus, using an anti-fungal shampoo to inhibit the growth of the fungi usually does the trick.

The difference between scalp psoriasis and dandruff is that scalp psoriasis may be more resistant to regular treatment. If specific shampoos or steroid creams do not work, then your physician may recommend exposure to ultraviolet light to help the skin repair itself. If this doesn’t work, then oral retinoids may be prescribed, but usually as a last resort.

Now you know that even though scalp psoriasis and dandruff look similar in appearance, there are different causes which may require slightly different treatments.

Having either scalp psoriasis or dandruff need not be the end of the world: there are a lot of effective products and help available. If you think you have scalp psoriasis or any other form of psoriasis, study the psoriasis symptoms and consult your doctor to confirm the diagnosis. You should be aware that as well as conventional treatments, there are also natural psoriasis treatments.

Vicky Massey has a wide experience of alternative health and healing. She has a degree in Traditional Chinese Medicine and qualifications in massage, nutrition, healing and yoga.