Another Reason to Lose the Weight

Psoriatic arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disease affecting the skin and joints. A form of arthritis that afflicts psoriasis sufferers, the condition is characterized by joint pain, stiffness and swelling that can be disabling.

Imagine dealing with not only psoriasis, but also arthritis; you’d be willing to do just about anything to reduce the severity of your symptoms, right? Start with managing your weight. Research suggests body-mass index (BMI) is associated with disease severity – the higher the BMI, the more severe the psoriatic arthritis.

Specifically, in obese patients, disease activity, patient-perceived disease impact and disability were all significantly higher compared to non-obese patients.

The study included nearly 1,000 PA patients in eight European countries, with results presented at the Annual European Congress of Rheumatology.

Being overweight or obese isn’t just a problem for psoriatic arthritis sufferers, of course; excess weight is linked to a host of negative health outcomes including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and various types of cancer. If you need to lose weight (and need help doing it), work with your doctor to develop appropriate meal plans, an exercise schedule and a system of accountability so you can succeed in losing the weight and keeping it off.