SKIN PROBLEMS

Welcome to www.nutritionhelp.com.

Did you know that skin diseases – whether eczema, psoriasis or acne - can often be helped by Nutritional Therapy? In my clinical practice, I have seen it happen time and time again - and now you can receive tailor-made advice online from www.nutritionhelp.com!

My name is Erica White. I’m Nutritional Director of Nutritionhelp, and also a Fellow of the Institute for Optimum Nutrition and an Honorary Fellow of the British Association for Applied Nutrition and Nutritional Therapy. I have now retired from clinical practice, but we have set up an online Questionnaire and Report system which can give you all the advice you need, with an optional facility to have contact with one of our associate team of qualified Nutritionists.

I’m going to answer a few questions about skin problems which I hope might be helpful to you.

Q. Erica, can you tell us first of all about acne?

Acne often starts in a teenager as a result of zinc deficiency, and it can usually be put right quite quickly - if tackled in time - with an appropriate nutritional programme providing good levels of zinc and Vitamin A, and also Omega 6 essential fatty acids, all of which are important to skin health. However, many teenagers are frequently prescribed long-term antibiotics, which unfortunately have the effect of turning a simple nutritional-deficiency symptom into a fungal condition because antibiotics destroy friendly bacteria in the gut, thereby encouraging an overgrowth of unfriendly microbes such as the common yeast, Candida albicans.

Q. What about eczema?

Eczema can be a food sensitivity reaction to things like cow’s milk or wheat, but it is also frequently found to be a fungal condition - just like acne, with an imbalance of microbes on the surface of the skin reflecting an imbalance in the intestines.

Q. And psoriasis?

Psoriasis is another skin complaint which is frequently found to be fungal in origin; in other words it can be caused by an overgrowth of Candida. In addition, it has been found to have a strong link with inefficient liver detoxification (not surprising when Candida is known to release at least 79 toxins in the body!) so it is especially important to support the liver’s detoxification processes by drinking dandelion root ‘coffee’ and taking a Milk Thistle (silymarin) supplement besides drinking plenty of water and good levels of Vitamin C. Sometimes the situation requires even more attention, in which case it is helpful to organise a Detoxification Profile laboratory test based on saliva and urine specimens (collected at home) which show the efficiency or otherwise of specific detoxification pathways so that appropriate Nutritional Therapy can be advised to help the situation.

Q So you are saying there’s a strong possibility that any of these skin problems – acne, eczema or psoriasis – could be due to Candida. But surely Candida overgrows in the gastrointestinal tract, doesn’t it?

Yes it does - but as I’ve said, the balance of microbes on the surface of the skin reflects the balance in the intestines. It is also three months behind! In other words, an overgrowth of Candida in the gut will often show itself as an overgrowth of Candida on the skin a bit later on. The fact that the balance between Candida and friendly bacteria on the skin is three months behind the balance in the gut means that you have to be very patient before seeing an improvement in your skin problem. You must first work at bringing Candida fully under control in your intestines (and also building up your levels of friendly bacteria), and then the newly healthy internal balance has to be maintained for three months before it will begin to be reflected externally on your skin.

Q. So you are saying that most chronic skin conditions will benefit from taking steps to bring Candida under control, as well as from following Nutritional Therapy to improve the nutritional status, like taking Vitamin A and zinc and Omega 6 fatty acids?

That’s exactly right. A four-point plan is needed which includes a carefully-controlled anti-candida diet, together with natural anti-fungals and probiotic supplements to increase levels of friendly bacteria in the gut, but part of the plan is to take an appropriate supplement programme – preferably tailor-made.

Q. I’ve heard that it’s not good to use a steroid cream for too long. Are there natural creams or ointments which can be used instead?

Yes indeed. While a nutritional programme is dealing with the root cause of the problem, there are various herbal products which can help to alleviate symptoms. For instance, Chickweed ointment is helpful for irritation, a Propolis product can reduce inflammation, and Tea Tree or Echinacea ointments can be helpful for alleviating acne. But you should always check with your doctor before stopping a steroid prescription.

Q. So what would you say to someone who is looking for answers for a chronic skin condition, whether it’s acne or eczema or psoriasis?

If you haven’t considered it before, you may well find that appropriate Nutritional Therapy could be very helpful. Of course, we can make no claims for you as an individual, but we can say that many people have seen significant improvement.

Maybe you would like to register for an online report from www.nutritionhelp.com. A detailed Questionnaire enables you to be provided with personalised advice based on my clinical experience over nearly twenty years. In addition, it will tell you about various optional supplements which can help to relieve your symptoms while you are tackling the root cause.

For just £47 you will receive an extremely detailed report giving tailor-made nutritional advice to help you on your road to recovery. Read how the system works on www.nutritionhelp.com/quest_more.php.

Register for an online Questionnaire on www.nutritionhelp.com.

I wish you well!

Erica White, Dip.ION, FBANT
Nutritional Director, Nutritionhelp Ltd