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What Is Salicylic Acid?

Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009

Salicylic acid, which comes from the willow tree, is a beta hydroxy acid. It can be used in topical treatments to soothe joint and muscle pain. It is also used in ointments, creams and gels to improve a variety of skin conditions that include acne, psoriasis, calluses and warts.

Salicylic acid helps open pores, shed dead skin cells and neutralizes bacteria. As a result of this exfoliating effect, new skin cells are allowed to grow back unhindered.

Salicylic acid or coal tar are the main active ingredients of many over the counter topical psoriasis medications. Both ingredients are common in several shampoos developed to treat dandruff as well as scalp psoriasis.

Salicylic acid by itself is not a direct treatment for psoriasis, but it is used to help other medications reach the live, younger skin that is inflamed, below the surface by dissolving the dead skin or psoriasis plaque build up on the surface. Thus, salicylic acid can be used to complement other topical treatments designed to treat mild to moderate psoriasis symptoms.

Salicylic acid can also be applied as a preparation for UV light therapy for moderate to severe cases. If lesions associated with psoriasis become infected by various types of growths this ingredient is also used as an antiseptic and disinfectant. Concentration levels vary by use.

The percentage of concentration in over the counter products for psoriasis is usually about three percent. In excessive concentrations it can irritate the skin. The fact that wart removers may contain up to 17% salicylic acid gives you an idea of how potent salicylic acid can be.

In some cases salicylic acid can actually increase, rather than decreases skin inflammation (though nothing like this has ever happened to me).

Products that combine this ingredient with sulphur are not approved for the treatment of psoriasis. The FDA considers this an effective treatment for dandruff only. Moisturizers containing this ingredient should be applied immediately after bathing for best results.

Note: Using moisturizers throughout the day can control psoriasis symptoms between treatments. Though the FDA has deemed salicylic acid safe, there are some safety considerations to keep in mind. Use sparingly, for brief periods on young children as they are more likely to develop skin irritations. Read the instructions for use carefully. Do not exceed the recommended dosages when referring to concentration and length of treatment. This could result in adverse side effects that include severe skin irritation and poisoning. The treatments containing this ingredient are meant for topical use only. Using in or near the mouth, nose or eyes could result in over absorption by the skin.

Neutrogena’s T/Sal is a common over-the counter salicylic acid shampoo, which I use on a regular basis with very good results.

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Product Review: Scytera Coal Tar Foam

Thursday, November 5th, 2009

scytera

Scytera is a new coal tar psoriasis treatment by Promius Pharma. Scytera is unique because it’s delivered in the form of an off-white foam.

“What is coal tar?” you might ask. Coal tar is a dark, viscous by-product of coal that has long been used to treat psoriasis. It can be applied directly to skin areas affected by psoriasis to suppress the disease itself as well as act as an immediate itch inhibitor.

Thus, Scytera is designed to deliver coal tar in a way that takes advantage of coal tar’s therapeutic qualities all the while minimizing some of its less pleasant cosmetic qualities, such as its strong odor and tendency to stain cloths. I found that this foam solution smelled more like mint than the coal tar shampoos I am used to smelling. As you can tell from the picture below, it looks as close to white as any coal-tar based solution could possibly look.

My first impression of Scytera was that it must be a new kind of coal tar shampoo. But it is actually a coal-tar-based topical treatment that can be applied anywhere on the body, hence the emphasis that it does not stain cloths as standard coal tar tends to do. According to the directions provided with the product, it can applied up to four times per day.

As a scalp treatment (which is the only kind of psoriasis treatment I need), it worked very well. It had an immediate “tingly,” soothing effect that effectively suppressed my psoriasis itch all day. Luckily my head is almost shaved already, so I was able to apply it directly to my scalp.

For my first time using Scytera, I applied it to my scalp after using regular shampoo. After letting it soak in for a while, then rinsed off any excess. It worked for the duration of the day. The efficacy of this coal tar solution is comparable to my favorite coal tar shampoo: Neutrogena’s T/Gel Stubborn Itch Control, which contains menthol.

Scytera is made up of 10% liquor carbonis detergens, which the makers of Scytera refer to as “equivalent to 2% coal tar.” From researching different sources that use the phrase “liquor carbonis detergens” interchangably with coal tar, it would seem that this can either refer to coal tar directly or a somewhat diluted version of it.

scytera foam

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Psoriasis Shampoo Update – Using a T/Gel, T/Sal and Selsun Blue Rotation

Monday, October 26th, 2009

I switched back to Neutrogena’s T/Gel (Stubborn Itch Control, active ingredients: coal tar and menthol) as of about 4 days ago… and what a relief it is. T/Gel – Stubborn Itch Control continues to be the most effective shampoo for suppressing the deep itch that would otherwise have me scratching my scalp all day. Constant scratching all day can lead to scalp damage over time, including hair loss.

I tried out Selsun Blue (active ingredients: selenium sulfide and menthol) for a few days to see if this well-known dandruff-treating shampoo, would have a positive effect on my psoriasis, which tends to flare up only on my scalp. For a about one-and-a-half days my scalp seemed to react well, but soon after that my psoriasis itch came back in full force. Thus, Selsun Blue might be an acceptable shampoo to rotate in with T/Gel (the current reigning champion for battling psoriasis in my case).

A method I use to keep the pruritus (itchiness) at bay is to “keep it guessing,” as it were, by changing shampoos around every other day. For example, my shampoo rotation tends to include T/Gel, T/Sal and regular shampoo. Using regular shampoo gives my scalp a break and is also significantly less expensive. Now I will most likely use Selsun Blue in the rotation as well, probably for however long it takes to use up this bottle (which cost me almost ten bones).

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Expensive Psoriasis Shampoos Vs. Holistic Treatments

Sunday, October 25th, 2009

psoriasis shampoos

You don’t have to be a math whiz to figure out that medicated psoriasis shampoos are a lot more expensive than standard shampoos. Whereas basic shampoo brands such as Suave can go for about 99 cents for a bottle, you would be lucky to find any kind of psoriasis shampoo for five bucks (or less). Occasionally my local grocery store, Fry’s, puts T/Gel on sale for about 5 dollars a bottle, but I have come to expect about 6 dollars a pop. As you can see in the picture above, such pricing leads me to leave the shampoo bottles upside down until I can squeeze every last drop out of them.

Included in the picture above:

T/Gel — Extra Strength (4% Neutar) and Stubborn Itch Control (2% Neutar as well as menthol)
T/Sal — Active ingredient: Salicylic acid.
Selsun Blue, with menthol and 1% selenium sulfide, which is a common dandruff medication

Cost is a major factor that must, by necessity, be calculated into one’s daily psoriasis-battling regimen. If insurance doesn’t cover a certain medication, if copays add up to too much or if you don’t have any insurance at all then, short of taking up a life of crime, you will have to seek out other options to treat your psoriasis. It is because of such resource limitations that holistic treatments (changing your entire lifestyle to treat psoriasis) are sometime necessary. This can be a good thing much of the time since treating psoriasis generally involves becoming more healthy all-around.

In addition to being more affordable, holistic, herbal and generally more natural treatments can be more effective in the long run for treating your psoriasis. If your body is equipped from the inside-out to fight off this condition, then additional brute-force drugs such as steroids or immunosuppressants will become unnecessary.

This is similar to the effect that drinking less caffeine has on my ability to concentrate and work effectively. It’s nice to get that jolt of energy, but there is inevitably a let-down afterward, during which work seems even more difficult than before. During the let-down phase I feel compelled to drink more caffeine, thus increasing my dependence on this drug. But, when I opt for sleeping enough and drinking more water, my brain works better over longer periods of time.

The theory behind holistic psoriasis medications is similar to the principal of sleeping more rather than drinking caffeine.

Modern medicine is adapting to the fact that the body is, much of the time, better equipped to deal with biological issues than any man-made drug. This points to the general fact that you, if you are suffering from psoriasis, should use shampoos such as those listed above but, at the same time, keep exercising, eating right and maintain a healthy state of mind to the best of your ability.

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