Eczema Impact Runs Deeper Than Skin, Says Study

The term "eczema" has its origin in the Greek word "ekzein", which means to effervesce or bubble or boil over. It is estimated that over 30 million Americans suffer from this chronic skin disease. Dry, sensitive skin, intense itching, red patches and recurring rash are some of the symptoms associated with eczema. But if you thought that eczema sufferers' woes are only skin deep, you are wrong, and here's why...

A study conducted by Northwestern Medicine has found that adults who have eczema have higher rates of smoking, drinking alcoholic beverages and obesity than people who don't have the disease. In addition, eczema sufferers are less likely to exercise because their condition may worsen as a result of triggers such as sweat and heat.

The plethora of bad health habits gives the eczema sufferers a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, including high blood pressure and high cholesterol as well as diabetes. They also have higher rates of insomnia, reveals the study.

As part of the study, the researchers analysed data for 27,157 and 34,525 adults aged 18 to 85 years from the 2010 and 2012 National Health Interview Survey, respectively.

According to the study results, patients with eczema had 54% higher risk of being morbidly obese, 48% increased risk of hypertension, up to 93% higher odds of having pre-diabetes and up to 42% higher chance of having diabetes. The eczema patients also had 36% higher odds of high cholesterol.

Commenting on the findings, Jonathan Silverberg, lead author of the study said, "This opens our eyes in the world of dermatology that we're not just treating chronic inflammation of the skin but the behavioural, lifestyle side of things. Dermatologists need to ask patients about their lifestyle habits such as smoking and physical activity so they can offer interventions".

The study was published on January 8, 2015 in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

by RTT Staff Writer

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Eczema Impact Runs Deeper Than Skin, Says Study