New Research Shows Vanilla Extract Could Have a Big Skin Benefit

Psoriasis is a skin condition that affects 7.5 million people in the United States, according to the American Academy of Dermatology. Among these millions of Americans suffering from this inflammatory disease are celebrities such as Kim Kardashian West and Cyndi Lauper who have opened up and shared their struggles with it.

The good news is, there could be a new cure to put an end to the red, scaly flare-ups that are so commonly associated with psoriasis.

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According to a study in the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry, Vanillin (which you might know as vanilla extract) taken orally can relieve these flare-up side effects.

Previous research has shown that vanillin effects interleukins, which is a group of proteins that can cause inflammation. The researchers decided to directly test it’s ability to combat these on psoriasis flare ups through mice.

Every day for a week, the mice received 0, 5, 10, 50 or 100 milligrams of vanillin. After seven days, all mice that had any vanillin showed lower levels of interleukins. Those that had 50 or 100 milligram doses showed a large reduction.

Although further research is needed to really prove any major benefits vanillin has for psoriasis, it’s not a bad excuse to have a few more sugar cookies this holiday season.