Hereditary factors, that is, genetic predisposition, sometimes plays cruel jokes with us. The set of genes that we inherited from our ancestors cannot be changed. For example, if someone in the family suffered from psoriasis, there is every chance that sooner or later this unpleasant disease may affect his direct descendants. Unfortunately, this fact is established, proven, and that psoriasis is inherited, we have to take it for granted.
Why be afraid?
There is no age limit for psoriasis. It can appear for the first time in a 2-3-month-old baby, in a teenager, in an adult, in a very old man. Most often, the first symptoms of the disease, as a rule, appear in youth – 65% of all cases of onset of the disease are observed in patients aged 21-40 years. Moreover, the earlier psoriasis occurs, the more severe it proceeds, worse treatment is given, more often it recurs.
People with a genetic predisposition to this disease develop psoriasis 4 times more often than people with healthy heredity. So, if psoriasis is transmitted to a child from one parent, the likelihood of developing the disease in him is 25%. If both parents are sick, the risk of getting psoriasis increases manifold and amounts to 65-75%. The likelihood of psoriasis in a child if both parents are healthy, but the closest relative is sick is 17%.
The statistics are disappointing, but not hopeless. Not everything is as sad as it might seem at first glance. The fact is that it is not the disease itself that is transmitted, but only the predisposition to it. That is, it is not at all a fact that a child whose parents (or one of the parents) are sick with psoriasis will necessarily manifest the disease. This may not happen at all if there are no certain factors provoking the onset of the appearance of psoriatic plaques on the body. That is, hereditary predisposition is only a potential threat. And in order to avoid the risk of psoriasis, it is necessary to clearly understand what causes can push its appearance and, if possible, eliminate them from life.
“Forewarned is forearmed”
Factors affecting the onset of psoriasis include:
– disturbances in the work of the endocrine system;
– violations of metabolic processes in the gastrointestinal tract;
– diseases of the digestive system;
– a decrease in the protective functions of the body (weakened immunity);
– hypersensitivity to food products, biological and chemical substances of an allergic nature;
– viral and infectious diseases;
– severe chronic diseases of internal organs;
– skin injuries (mechanical, thermal, chemical);
– malfunctions of the central and peripheral nervous system (stress, strong emotional outbursts, constant nervous tension, etc.);
– living in an unfavorable climate (either dry cold or hot humid);
– improper nutrition;
– bad habits (alcohol, smoking).
If you are at risk by birth, that is, you know for sure that psoriasis is inherited in your family from generation to generation, you need to do everything possible to avoid the influence of provoking factors on the body. By adhering to certain rules of behavior in everyday life, it is possible, if not to completely prevent the onset of psoriasis, then at least to minimize the risk of its manifestation.
Attentive attitude to your health, correct daily regimen, balanced diet, rejection of harmful products that can cause an allergic reaction, immediate adequate treatment of any diseases, preventive measures that help to strengthen the general condition of the body and skin, including proper skin care, exclusion contact with aggressive chemical compounds – all this must be remembered as two and two and performed constantly, throughout life. The same rules should be followed during periods of remission, when the disease has already made itself felt, and you have learned from your own experience to successfully treat outbreaks of its exacerbations.
Unfortunately, there are currently no methods that could change the hereditary predisposition to a particular disease. And they are unlikely to appear in the foreseeable future .