What do musician Art Garfunkel, singer LeAnn Rimes, and model CariDee English have in common? Psoriasis. August is Psoriasis Awareness Month, so here’s a primer on the skin disease affecting as many as 7.5 million Americans.

Psoriasis is a chronic, autoimmune disease that appears on the skin. It occurs when the immune system sends out faulty signals that speed up the growth cycle of skin cells—say onto a 7-day cycle instead of 28 days. Psoriasis is not contagious.

Five Types of Psoriasis

• Plaque – the most common form, it appears as raised, red patches or lesions covered with a silvery white buildup of dead skin cells
• Guttate – looks like small, salmon-pink drops on the skin
• Inverse – an uncommon form, a tender, red rash occurs in skin folds, the “flexure” areas of the body like groin and armpit
• Pustular – an uncommon form that manifests as clearly defined, raised bumps on the skin that are filled with pus (pustules), with red skin under and around the bumps
• Erythrodermic – a rare but very serious complication of psoriases characterized by most (over 80%) of the skin surface becoming covered with redness, inflammation, and psoriases. Has the potential to be life threatening, hospitalization is required

Psoriasis can occur on any part of the body and is associated with other serious health conditions, such as diabetes (women with psoriasis are an astounding 63% more likely to develop diabetes), heart disease and depression. There is currently no cure for psoriasis, but stars like Rimes are speaking out about their skin conditions in hopes of helping others feel like they are not alone.

Rimes is a spokeswoman for the Stop Hiding From Psoriasis awareness campaign.  She says, “Psoriasis definitely takes a physical and emotional toll. I've had to deal with people judging me … I hope this is kind of a chain reaction. It's been so inspiring to me and also empowering to be able to talk about it. I hope this spirals out of control -- in a good way -- so we can better support each other."

What Can You Do About Psoriasis

There is no cure, and psoriasis manifests differently in each patients, so psoriasis treatments are varied. Here's a rundown of a few:

• Topical treatments
  Creams, lotions, ointments, foam, and shampoo products applied directly to the skin or scalp to provide relief from psoriasis symptoms. For milder forms of psoriasis they can be helpful, but as the disease progresses they are less likely to alleviate symptoms.
• Phototherapy
  An at-home remedy that’s easy for sufferers—sitting in the sunshine. PUVA and UVB rays from sunlight or specially-formulated artificial lights can effectively treat psoriasis. BB-UVB and NB-UVB have a safety advantage over most other psoriasis therapies, because side effects are limited to the skin, while the most serious potential side effect—skin cancer—has not been clearly demonstrated. PUVA, however, is linked with skin cancer. A word of caution—commercial tanning beds usually only emit UVA rays, so they have no benefit as a psoriasis treatment.
• Systemic drugs
  There are three common FDA-approved drugs for psoriasis treatment. Methotrexate, cyclosporine, and acitretin (Soriatane), are usually taken orally. All three are effective but present varied side effects from permanent damage to the liver to birth defects.
• Biologic agents
  Biologic therapies are derived from human or animal proteins designed to target specific processes in the immune system that cause psoriasis flares. Five biologics are currently FDA-approved for treating psoriasis: Stelara (ustekinumab), Remicade (infliximab), Humira (adalimumab), Enbrel (etanercept), and Amevive (alefacept). They are overall very effective but relatively new to market, so long-term effects haven’t been studied.
• Lifestyle Factors
  Stress has long been linked to psoriasis. Psoriasis sufferer Susan Strauss tweeted, “Vitamins and living a stress-free life has helped my Psoriasis clear up!” Testimonials like this are not rare; when patients manage their stress, their psoriasis is likely to at least lessen, if not disappear.
  Recent research presented in the Archives of Dermatology shows that regular beer—but not light beer or other types of alcohol—appears to be associated with an increased risk of developing psoriasis. The gluten-containing grain that beer is made with may be the culprit, so light beer may be off the hook because it contains less grain than regular beer. More research is needed before this is a conclusive link, however.

While there is no cure for psoriasis, the good news is two-fold: research is moving forward, and awareness is moving mainstream. With campaigns like this month’s Stop Hiding From Psoriasis and Psoriasis Awareness Month Challenge, while more celebrities are revealing their struggles with the disease, psoriasis doesn’t have to be a hidden disease anymore. And that’s good news.

Lyssa Myska Allen is editorial director at EndlessBeauty.com