Psoriasis is an autoimmune skin condition in which skin cells turn over too quickly. As a result, people develop itchy red patches of skin, often covered in silvery scales. These can be unsightly, but victims find the itching and pain even more troubling. We have heard of some people getting relief by taking an exotic vacation, such as snorkeling in Hawaii. Would this work for you?
Getting Relief from Psoriasis with an Exotic Vacation:
Q. I read about the person who got relief from psoriasis by bathing in the Dead Sea. I had almost the same experience at the Blue Lagoon in Iceland.
I had a bout of scalp psoriasis and dunked my head several times in the water. I didn’t have any more flare-ups again for nearly four months.
On the way back to the U.S. on the plane, we met a woman who flies to Iceland every three months just to go to the Blue Lagoon to treat her eczema. Now I buy the Blue Lagoon shampoo and conditioner online, and my scalp psoriasis has not recurred for nearly three years.
The Blue Lagoon in Iceland:
A. The Blue Lagoon is a popular resort spa in Iceland. The water comes from a geothermal power plant that supplies electricity for the city of Reykjavik. It is rich in sulfate and minerals such as silica, sodium and potassium.
Researchers at the University of Iceland have studied the effect of exposure to the geothermal seawater together with exposure to narrowband ultraviolet B light (Photodermatology, Photoimmunology & Photomedicine, Feb. 2014). Although narrowband UVB exposure is a standard treatment for psoriasis, they found that bathing in the Blue Lagoon in addition to light exposure worked faster and produced longer-lasting remissions than UVB exposure alone.
