One hot summer day at my herb shop, a woman named Laura arrived looking for a skin salve. The temperature was well up into the nineties, yet she was wearing a long-sleeved turtleneck shirt. I politely said nothing about her attire, for I suspected she was covering up a skin problem. It turned out I was right, and Laura was more than anxious to roll up her sleeve. When she did, I saw a terrible case of eczema and asked if she had seen a dermatologist. She nodded, but then explained that except for keeping her on cortisone, her doctors were ready to give up. In spite of this poor prognosis, she hoped that a skin salve might help. She chose one that contained comfrey and calendula.

A month passed and I forgot about Laura, until I received an order for more salve and some traditional herbs used as a tea for the liver, such as burdock, yellow dock, sarsaparilla and dandelion. Then, one day in the fall, I was at a laundromat sorting clothes when a slender woman wearing a spaghetti-strap blouse practically jumped over my laundry cart, spilling my clothes in the process. She gave me a huge bear hug. As she stepped back, wearing a huge smile, I saw that it was Laura, thanking me for helping her. Actually, I had done nothing, but I was certainly impressed with what the herbs had done for her. Her skin was smooth and clear—I could see why she had chosen the blouse she was wearing. Equally impressive was her slender figure—in addition to clearing up her scaly, oozing skin, she had lost a great deal of weight. She said that she felt so much better about herself that she no longer binged on food.

If you're confused about the difference between psoriasis, eczema and dermatitis, I'm not surprised. Even dermatologists sometimes have trouble identifying these skin problems. Actually, both eczema and psoriasis are types of dermatitis, which simply means "inflammation of the skin." Eczema is considered more of a symptom than an actual disease, and is best treated by dealing with the underlying cause. Psoriasis can be controlled by prescription drugs, but these are hard on the liver and therefore must be carefully administered, especially considering that impaired liver function is thought to contribute to psoriasis. Most types of dermatitis result in inflamed, red skin that is often itchy and may develop into lesions. Eczema can include crusty sores, scabs, thickened skin, pimplelike eruptions and some-times even lesions. The skin can be either oozing or crusty and easily becomes infected. Psoriasis produces reddish lesions with a characteristic silvery scaling that flakes off, causing the skin underneath to bleed. These scales are actually excess skin generated when certain substances in the body that are responsible for directing skin cell growth go out of control and make the cells grow too quickly—sometimes 1,000 times faster than the normal rate of growth. The exact cause of these skin conditions is often difficult to determine. We do know that you are more prone to get them if you have thin, dry skin. According to researchers, dermatitis is often caused by allergies and sensitivities to particular foods. Eliminating the foods most likely to cause allergies often decreases eczema. Most people with eczema test positive to some type of allergy, have elevated levels of antibodies in their blood (a sign of an allergic reaction) and often do not have enough stomach acid, a common cause of food sensitivities. People with psoriasis usually have high levels of polyamine, an undesirable, toxic type of amino acid that is formed during poor protein digestion, another cause of food sensitivities.

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