The role of nutrition in dermatologic diseases: Facts and controversies

Many dermatologic diseases are chronic with no definitive cure. For some diseases, the etiology is not completely understood, with treatment being difficult and associated with side effects. In such cases, patients may try alternative treatments to prevent onset, reduce symptom severity, or prevent reoccurrence of a disease. Dietary modification, through supplementation and exclusion, is an extremely popular treatment modality for patients with dermatologic conditions. It is, therefore, important for dermatologists to be aware of the growing body of literature pertaining to nutrition and skin disease to appropriately inform patients on benefits and harms of specific dietary interventions. We address the role of nutrition in psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, urticaria, and bullous diseases and specific dietary modifications as an adjunct or alternative to conventional therapy.