Psoriasis, can diet help?

Psoriasis is one of those skin conditions that tend to hang around and is very difficult to get rid of or just to control at times. There are many treatments but what about food? The latest research suggests that some people may get some relief from psoriasis by decreasing the amount of Omega 6’s in their diet. You need Omega 3 and 6’s but they have to be balanced which is easier said than done.

Omega 3 and 6 are called essential fatty acids which means we need to get them in our diet as we can't make them ourselves. Omega 3’s are often thought of as anti-inflammatory while omega 6’s are thought of as pro-inflammatory when you have too much.

You can find Omega 3’s in fatty fish, coloured vegetables, tomatoes, capsicum, berries, wholegrains, Brazil nuts, tofu, whole wheat pasta, mushrooms, ground linseed, flaxseed, hemp seeds and walnuts, edamame, kidney beans, olives and wholegrains.

You find omega-6’s in soybeans, corn, safflower and sunflower oil, nuts and seeds and meat, poultry, fish and eggs.

The better ratio of Omega 6 to Omega 3 in the diet is around 4:1 or less. But with a lot of people on a Western diet, their ratio is between 10:1 and 50:1! Have a look at your diet and see where you can make some changes. If you look at these two lists of foods you can see that having more plant-based foods in your diet is better. Sometimes small changes can make a big difference.