What You Need To Know About Psoriasis Medications

Choosing the right treatment will depend on the severity of your skin condition. As a rule of thumb you should always start with the mildest medications first and then proceed to the more progressive psoriasis treatments. Since there is no cure for psoriasis you need to find a treatment that will reduce and control the symptoms of your skin condition. What works for one person may not work for another. Often a combination of medicines is needed to completely control your psoriasis. In this article we will discuss over-the-counter treatments, prescriptive psoriasis medications and therapeutic medicine.

Over-The-Counter Psoriasis Medications

OTC psoriasis medications are the most common and popular treatments for psoriasis. For the vast majority these products will provide the benefits your skin needs to look normal again. The active ingredients recognized by the FDA for the treatment of psoriasis include; coal tar, salicylic acid and Zinc. Any OTC medication labeled for the treatment of psoriasis will contain a specific percentage of one or more of these active ingredients that have been scientifically proven to treat the symptoms of psoriasis. The cheaper products will most often contain a lower percentage and the more expensive psoriasis medications will most likely contain the highest percentage. Depending on your needs these OTC  medicines can come in the form of a topical cream or lotion, a bodywash, shampoo and even topical oils. Most people start with a cream and add other products if their condition persists.

Prescription Psoriasis Medications

There are quite a few prescriptive psoriasis medicine available from your doctor today. Many of them are similar just marketed under different brand names. Some you may have heard of due to their frequent ads on TV or in magazines. It is important to remember that marketing or advertising does not necessarily make these products the best treatment. The most well known brands include:

Clobetasol

Humira

Methotrexate

Elocon

Stelara

Typically only people with severe cases of psoriasis that cover a large portion of their body will require a prescriptive psoriasis medicines. It is important that you discuss the benefits and also the side effects on your body of using one of these drugs long term. Many of the side effects can be quite dangerous since they can affect your immune system.

Therapeutic Psoriasis Medications

The most common and effective therapeutic treatment is phototherapy or light therapy. Many individuals will see their psoriasis condition worsen in the winter months and improve during the summer. This is because we are exposed to less sunlight in the winter. Sunlight helps our bodies to naturally produce vitamin D which has been shown to help control psoriasis. In addition, ultraviolet light will cause the skins activated T cells to die. T cells are what cause your skin cells to reproduce quickly and cause the plaque we recognize as psoriasis. By reducing the T cells the symptoms of the psoriasis will also be reduced.

To achieve these results using therapeutic treatment individuals are exposed to controlled amounts of artificial ultraviolet light usually done under doctor supervision. These lights are designed to expose the skin to both UVA and UVB light. The combination of both UVA and UBV rays have been shown to produce the best treatment for psoriasis.

Things To Consider When Choosing a Psoriasis Medication

Choose your treatment based on the severity of your skin condition and psoriasis symptoms. The best approach about “how to treat psoriasis” is to start with the mildest treatment and proceed to more intense products if your condition does not improve. Medications always have some side effects and the benefits must always out way the risk when using any psoriasis medications.