Healing Psoriasis
The Natural Alternative
By John Pagano
John Wiley & Sons
Copyright © 2008
John Pagano
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-470-26726-4
Chapter One
Psoriasis:
The "Inside" Story
Doctor, you must help me-I can no longer go on living this
way." These were the first words Mr. A. uttered to me as
I greeted him at my door. He was a friendly, pleasant man in his
late sixties. Judging by his outward appearance, one would assume
there wasn't a thing wrong with him. But something was indeed
wrong-radically wrong. When Mr. A. disrobed, I saw the reason for
his torment. He was a victim of one of mankind's oldest skin diseases:
psoriasis. He had been suffering with the disease for thirty years. It
had finally reached a point where over 80 percent of his body was
covered with thickened, silvery scales that caused pain, bleeding, and
intolerable itching.
He had heard about me from a local health food store owner, who
told him that I had helped several psoriasis sufferers. Mr. A, having
exhausted all other available means of fighting the disease, came to me
with the expectation that I might solve his problem.
His case was so severe that I hesitated to accept him as a patient,
for fear of giving him false hope. I had no choice, however, when he
pleaded, "Doctor, I have no one else to turn to."
I am happy that he persuaded me to accept him as a patient, for he
proved to be totally cooperative. He followed my instructions to the
letter, and much to my (and his) surprise, he was totally clear of all
lesions in thirty days!
This patient was, and still is, the fastest-responding case I have ever
witnessed. Most patients take from three to six months to show results.
Years later, Mr. A appeared before a group of my patients to verify his
successful recovery. He was an inspiration to all who met him.
Mr. A's success had come about by following a regimen of therapy
based on a theory never before recognized or even seriously considered
by the scientific community. This theory accounts for his success and
the success of many others whom I have had the privilege of treating.
My Definition of Psoriasis
Since psoriasis has often been described but never really defined, I offer
this as a reasonable definition of the disease, based on my many years of
clinically dealing with the subject: Psoriasis is the external manifestation
of the body's attempt to "throw off" internal toxins. In other words, to put
it more succinctly, the skin is doing what the bowels and the kidneys
should be doing. The skin is not ordinarily designed to remove waste
matter to any great extent, but, due to the toxic overload produced by
a leaky gut, it acts as a backup system and takes on the task of removing
toxins-thus the rash, irritation, and lesions.
The Cause of Psoriasis
Looking to the skin for the cause of psoriasis is like looking at the tip
of an iceberg and assuming it to be the entire structure. One can keep
chipping away at the tip, but the iceberg will never disappear. Why?
Because its main body lies hidden beneath the surface, and as long as
that remains hidden, the iceberg will continue to exist.
So it is with psoriasis. What one sees on the outside is the physical
evidence of something happening inside the body. One can treat the
outside, but the disease will keep coming back again and again, month
after month, year after year, until the patient has exhausted all available
avenues of relief. Whom does he turn to? Is there really a remedy
to this irritating, often devastating, chronic skin disease? Is it possible
for a victim to be free from a lifetime of pain, disfigurement, and
considerable expense?
The answer to these questions is an unequivocal yes! There are
solutions to the riddle of psoriasis, solutions that have guided me in
effectively managing the disease in a safe, natural way.
If a researcher turns to orthodox medicine for an explanation of
the cause of this disease, he will still be met today with the same age-old
declaration that "there is no known cause or cure for psoriasis."
Only an inner belief that there must be an answer, although presently
unknown, will motivate this scientist to continually seek a solution.
I have done just that by turning to the works of Edgar Cayce, where
I found what sounded like a logical explanation for the disease. "There
is a cure," declared Cayce. He then went on to cite the cause and suggest
a remedy. The question remained, however, could his theories be
proven? This led me into concentrated research for a period of fifteen
years. During that time, I convinced my patients, as well as myself,
that the information provided by Cayce was indeed valid and worthy
of serious consideration in the treatment and management of the disease.
In this book, Cayce's information and the concepts drawn from
it are revealed as clearly and as simply as possible. Simple, however,
does not necessarily mean easy. It all depends on the attitude of the
patient. What is easy for one person may seem monumentally difficult
to another. I advise my patients to approach the problem in a relaxed,
confident way. Anxiety is not part of the regimen.
As an example of the effect of attitude, the skin of one of my
patients cleared up in fourteen months after his suffering with psoriasis
for fourteen years. He expressed his gratitude when he said, "Fourteen
months after fourteen years is not bad." Eight years after his skin
cleared, he remained satisfied with his results.
Another patient, after staying on the regimen for two weeks,
complained, "Had I known it was this difficult, I would have never
started." Needless to say, she remains a victim of psoriasis.
In order for the treatment to work the patient must first understand
psoriasis for what it is; second, it is important to get on the right
track, to rid oneself of the disease; and third, the patient must have
patience and persistence!
The Origin of Psoriasis
As mentioned earlier, to understand the reason for the outward manifestations
of psoriasis, one must go inside the body to find the origin.
According to the theories advanced by Cayce, that source is found in
the intestinal tract. Here is where psoriasis begins and, until this fact
is fully grasped and therapy is based on this premise, I believe with
utmost certainty that the condition will persist.
For psoriasis to occur, the walls in certain areas of the intestinal
tract must become thin and porous. When this happens, toxic
substances that should normally pass through the intestines and eventually
be eliminated by the body seep through these walls, enter the
lymphatic system, and invade the bloodstream. The body's natural
purification system, primarily the liver and the kidneys, then tries to
filter out these toxins, which build up in the blood. It may take some
time, but sooner or later the accumulation of toxins will prove to be
more than these organs can effectively handle. When this point is
reached, the body's secondary or backup purification systems attempt
to aid in the process of elimination. When the liver, the major filtering
gland of the body, is overloaded, the skin comes to the rescue and
helps to eliminate toxins. When the kidneys are overtaxed, the lungs
come into play. This concept is clearly explained in the works of Henry
Bieler, MD, and is discussed in a later chapter.
A Brief Anatomy Lesson
The digestive tract, the area primarily involved in the origin of
psoriasis, is actually a long tube that carries out various functions all
along its course, from the ingestion of food to the elimination of waste
products.
When food enters the mouth, certain enzymes begin the process of
breaking it down for eventual absorption and assimilation in the small
intestine. Before food reaches the twisting and turning small intestine,
it must pass down a straight section of tubing called the esophagus and
enter the stomach. There it may remain for hours, being acted upon by
more enzymes and certain acids before passing into the first portion of
the small intestine, the duodenum, which is only about twelve inches long.
It then enters the next portion of the small intestine, called the jejunum,
which, in turn, leads into the ileum.
It is within these areas, especially where the duodenum meets the
jejunum, that the walls of the intestines in the psoriatic become thin
and smooth, allowing a transfer of toxins to take place. This transferance
can, however, take place anywhere along the entire length of
the alimentary canal. This is called intestinal permeability, commonly
referred to as the leaky gut syndrome.
The Leaky Gut Syndrome Explained
To facilitate understanding of the leaky gut syndrome, I refer to the
impressive work of Zoltan P. Rona, MD, MSC, of Toronto, Canada, who
gives the following concise description of this now recognized disease:
The Leaky Gut Syndrome is the name given to a very common
health disorder in which the basic organic defect (lesion) is an
intestinal lining which is more permeable (porous) than normal.
The abnormally large spaces present between the cells of the gut
wall allow the entry of toxic material into the bloodstream that
would, in healthier circumstances, be repelled and eliminated.
The gut becomes leaky in the sense that bacteria, fungi, parasites
and their toxins, undigested protein, fat and waste, normally
not absorbed into the bloodstream in the healthy state, pass
through a damaged, hyperpermeable, porous, or leaky gut.
Dr. Rona states that the leaky gut syndrome "is almost always associated
with autoimmune disease, and reversing autoimmune disease
depends on healing the lining of the gastrointestinal tract." He named
diseases in this category, such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple
sclerosis, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, vertigo, Crohn's disease,
ulcerative colitis, and diabetes, among others, as being directly
related to a hyperpermeable intestinal wall. With leaky gut problems,
we become less resistant to viruses, bacteria, parasites, and candida (yeast
infections). These are but a few of the many diseases or conditions that
are now being closely scrutinized as having their origin in a leaky gut.
I find it interesting that Edgar Cayce was the first to offer this explanation
for the cause of psoriasis, over sixty years ago. He described this
osmotic process, which takes place in the intestines, as seepage of toxins
through thin intestinal walls. Although he did not refer to it specifically
as "intestinal permeability" or "leaky gut," it is quite obvious that he
was describing the same phenomenon using the language of his day.
Why the Walls Break Down
Dr. Rona lists the following causes associated with the breakdown of
the intestinal walls that produces the leaky gut syndrome:
Antibiotics, because they lead to the overgrowth of abnormal flora
in the gastrointestinal tract (bacteria, parasites, candida, fungi)
Alcohol and caffeine, which are strong gut irritants
Foods and beverages contaminated by parasites
Chemicals in fermented and processed foods
Enzyme deficiencies
Prescription corticosteroids (Prednisone)
A diet high in refined carbohydrates (for example, candy bars, cookies,
cake, soft drinks, white bread)
Prescription hormones (birth-control pills)
Mold and fungal mycotoxins in stored grains, fruit, and refined
carbohydrates
I would also add the following, each of which will be dealt with as
we proceed:
Chronic constipation
Improper elimination
Insufficient daily intake of water
Foods high in saturated fat
The "nightshades," particularly tomatoes, which carry an enzyme
that is powerfully destructive to the psoriatic, eczematous, and
arthritic patient
Smoking
Negative emotions such as resentment, fear, and anxiety
Depression
Spinal misalignments
Hereditary factors
Rebuilding the Walls
As you can see, there are many reasons that the intestinal walls break
down and become porous. The good news is that the repair and regeneration
of these walls is well within the reach of the average person, for
the inner lumen (wall) that forms the barrier that prevents undesirable
elements from seeping through is normally renewed and regenerated
every six days-provided, of course, that consumption of irritants is
halted and other beneficial substances are introduced.
The two primary substances taken internally, which I have used
successfully, are slippery elm bark powder and American yellow saffron tea.
Both are prepared in the form of a tea and are administered with the
purpose of healing the internal walls of the intestine and purifying
the entire alimentary canal. (These teas may be obtained by calling Baar
Products at 1-800-269-2502, online at www.baar.com, or contacting
the Heritage Store at 1-800-862-2923, online at www.heritage@
caycecures.com.)
The Folds throughout the Intestinal Tract
The food, known as chyme at this stage of digestion, continues to move
into the ileum, the longest portion of the approximately twenty-three-foot-long
small intestine, where nutrients are absorbed and waste
matter is passed into the large intestine and then the colon and is
eventually eliminated.
The walls throughout most of the intestinal tract should have certain
folds present at all times, aiding in the absorption and movement of
the contents that are passing through. These folds begin at the latter
half of the duodenum, continue throughout the jejunum, and end
about halfway into the ileum. They are more concentrated at the duo-denojejunal
flexure.
According to the information supplied by Cayce, when these folds
become smooth, as though they were thinned out in the psoriatic, they
permit a seepage of toxins through the walls and eventually into the
bloodstream. Anatomically, they are called the plicae circulares (valves
of Kerckring).
Although the transfer of toxins occurs primarily at the duodenojejunal
flexure, this seepage of poisons can and probably does take place
throughout the length of both the small and large intestines of a person
suffering from psoriasis. The idea, therefore, in this new approach
to the disease is twofold: (1) to cut down or preferably stop ingesting
pollutants, and (2) to strengthen these porous intestinal walls.
Why the Intestinal Walls Become Thin
In his 1968 treatise for the Medical Research Division of the Edgar
Cayce Foundation, Frederick D. Lansford Jr., MD, reported that
the smoothing of the intestinal walls does not always have the same
cause, but more often than not is due to improper coordination in the
eliminating systems.
Doubtless, some of the conditions that cause poor elimination overlap
each other, contributing to a toxic buildup and causing an increase
in acids in the blood that should always be alkaline. The acid content
of the blood must be reduced. This is the basis for the therapeutic regimen
outlined in the subsequent chapters of this book.
The toxic buildup I refer to is caused by not only those elements
that have already been identified as having a poisonous effect on the
body, such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbons, cyclamates,
and many others, but there are also other substances that are
more common but less suspect, especially certain foods that do not
necessarily affect the average person but play havoc with the psoriatic.
They act as allergens to psoriasis suffers and turn their lives into a living
hell. The control of the disease, therefore, is attained primarily by
learning to identify those foods that cause a toxic overacidic reaction in
the body and by making it a priority to avoid them at all costs.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Healing Psoriasis
by John Pagano
Copyright © 2008 by John Pagano.
Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
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