Scientists from Hangzhou Medical College found smoking, but not alcohol consumption is causally associated with psoriasis.
The research is published in the British Journal of Dermatology and was conducted by Jiahe Wei et al.
Psoriasis is a skin disease that causes a rash with itchy, scaly patches, most commonly on the knees, elbows, trunk, and scalp.
Psoriasis is a common, long-term (chronic) disease with no cure. It can be painful, interfere with sleep, and make it hard to concentrate.
Obesity, high blood pressure, and diseases such as diabetes increase the risk of developing psoriasis.
In the study, the team examined the causal links between alcohol drinking and smoking with psoriasis using genome-wide association study (GWAS) summary-level data for alcohol consumption, smoking initiation, cigarettes per day, and smoking cessation.
The researchers found genetic links between smoking and psoriasis. A causal effect of smoking initiation, cigarettes per day, and lifetime smoking on psoriasis was found.
In addition, there was a causal effect of smoking cessation on psoriasis. No causal link was identified between alcohol drinking and psoriasis.
The team says not only can smoking increase the severity of psoriasis, but it can contribute to or worsen a number of comorbidities, including heart disease, inflammatory bowel disease, lung cancer as well as several other cancers.
This study provides genetic evidence supporting the causal effects of smoking on psoriasis risk, suggesting that restricting smoking could be helpful in reducing the burden of psoriasis.
If you care about smoking, please read studies about smoking may increase heart disease risk by 200% and e-cigarette smoke may cause lung cancer, and bladder disease.
For more information about skin, please see recent studies about how to prevent skin cancer effectively, and results showing red onion skin could help reduce high blood pressure.
Copyright © 2022 Knowridge Science Report. All rights reserved.
