Study links psoriasis with women who drink beer

A new study has linked the disease psoriasis with women who drink beer. Psoriasis is a common immune-medicated skin disease. The cost of effective treatment options for patients with psoriasis is outpacing the current rate of inflation.

A team of researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School in Boston conducted the research. They studied the lifestyle of more than 82,000 women since 1991 who were in the age group of 27 to 44 years. Through the course of the research, the women provided the details about their drinking habits, such as the type of alcohol and the amount of alcohol that they drank every couple of years. At the end of the study period, a total of 1,070 women out of the 48,000 who said they drank alcohol developed psoriasis.

The research found non-light beer was the only alcoholic beverage that increased the risk for psoriasis

The researchers determined that even comparatively moderate quantities of beer seemed to increase the risk of psoriasis, with 2.3 drinks a week driving up the risk almost 80%.

The study’s authors wrote, “We estimate that in the United Kingdom, in excess of 10 400 diagnoses of depression, 7100 diagnoses of anxiety, and 350 diagnoses of suicidality are attributable to psoriasis annually.”