by jenn* » Thu Apr 12, 2007 10:01 am
I have Keratosis Pilaris. Here is a pretty concise definition from wikipedia:
Keratosis pilaris (KP) is a very common genetic follicular condition that is manifested by the appearance of rough bumps on the skin and hence colloquially referred to as "chicken skin". It most often appears on the back and outer sides of the upper arms (though the lower arms can also be affected), and can also occur on the thighs and tops of legs, flanks, buttocks or any body part except glabrous skin (like the palms or soles of feet). Less commonly, lesions appear on the face and may be mistaken for acne.
40 % of the population has it, most commonly it appears in women. I have it on the backs of my arms; have for years. Kind of comes and goes (to some extent - never gone completely), but it's been hard for me to correlate the coming and going with anything else.
I also believe that I have hypothyroid (I should find out today) and that is linked to dry skin, dry hair, and can exacerbate (and maybe cause?) dermatitis condtions.
I have found that I am very sensitive to gluten (although no severe reactions, but bloating, break outs, post nasal drip) and have found much evidence pointing to a link between gluten intolerance and hypothyroid.
So, now I've been trying to figure out if the annoying (a purely cosmetic issue) bumps on my arms could have anything to do with these two conditions, and maybe be improved with a gluten-free diet and hormone replacement for my thryoid (if that is necessary for me at this time).
AHA!!! Last line on the Keratosis Pilaris wikipedia page:
Food allergies may also exacerbate the condition, causing hyper-keratosis pilaris, gluten being a common culprit (source: physician's (MD) oral presentation).
I feel like a rockstar! Why aren't my medical providers doing this research? I will, of course, look for more evidence. Anyone can contribute to wikipedia, and I know the internet is not always the best place to find factual information, but it's a start. I will find more, but I wanted to put this info out there for anyone who has shown such a symptom to a doctor and been told "it's just a dermatitis, put this stinky, expensive cream on it twice a day for the rest of your life or just deal with bumpy red arms". I will post again to this in a few weeks, after going back to gluten-free, and perhaps by then I will have started hormone replacement as well. My theory is that I can at least lessen the appearance of the bumps with a gluten-free diet and exfoliating, and hormone replacement if that is something that I need to maintain proper thyroid function.
If you have never checked your thyroid - have a TSH (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone) test done. It's very inexpensive and is a good starting point, especially if you have high cholesterol or any family history of thyroid problems. Your thyroid controls your metabolism and could be slowing your weight loss, spiking your cholesterol and triglycerides, and causing many other problems you either aren't aware of or may be attributing to something else. If nothing else, you can scratch one more thing off of that nebulous list of inexplicable health/body issues.
If anyone else has Keratosis Pilaris, please share your info, experience, or your thoughts/counterpoints on what I've posted. I'd love to try to figure this out and see some improvement. I do not want to use the stinky skin cream that I'm 99% positive has some non-vegan ingredients.
"veganism starts with vegetarianism and carries it through to its logical conclusion" -Donald Watson, founder of Vegan Society