Lichen Planus Remedies

Hi there, I have Lichen Planus which is a terrible skin disease. I had it about 15 years ago that took 3 years to control with cortisone shots for a year and left me scarred in the end. It went into remission only to come back worse on most of my body. I read that taking aloe vera might help. I did, at first I took a shot of aloe vera every morning and noticed the lesions were going white after a week and a half. I upped the dose to 2 shots a day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon and kept seeing the improvements daily. After taking the aloe vera for 3 months, 2 shots a day... it went into remission and have been clear for a year and a half now. I wouldn't of believed it if I hadn't experience it myself. It is fairly cheap to take and the brand I buy, which seems to be readily available, is pure aloe juice, not the gel one. It has no preservatives but just citric acid and it is in a dark brown bottle. You need to refrigerate after opening. A one liter bottle lasts about 3 weeks to a month on one shot. It is worth it, you will see results on your skin very fast.... give it a couple of months at least so that you can be sure to see the difference and is worth the try. You cannot over dose on aloe vera and it does not contraindicate with medicines either from the information on research. But, don't take my word for it, do your own research and see the many benefits to aloe vera... you will be amazed and it is natural. I am a living testimony that this stuff really really works. I hope this may help you....

Sincerely, Claudine G.

Severe lichen plains healing:

I have had lichen planus for over 14 years now. The dermatologists say I have the worst case they have ever seen. One even wanted a picture for his medical journal! I have lost all 20 nails, have hair loss, and my esophagus and vagina have constricted and I have to do monthly dilations. I have many other conditions so will list them with the solutions that I have found.

First of all, over the years I have found that any treatment given for herpes works for my lichen flare ups. (Yes, I have been tested for herpes and it is negative). My obgyn had stopped my period to avoid eroding of the membranes, baths with lavender and lemon balm help. I have even applied lemon balm directly to the area when not raw. For severe flare ups, she prescribes me herpes medicine (valtrex).

For brushing teeth, I use Tom's natural toothpaste with propolis and myrrh, and a natural mouthwash. Gums never hurt and blisters have gone away. Dentist can't even tell that I have it in my mouth. I drink whole leaf aloe juice everyday, 4 oz. in with my green tea 2x a day. I watch my argenine to l lysine intake. A diet high in l lysine and low in argenine has worked wonders. A list can be found online. I take omega 369. I take isotonix brand vitamins and the ingredients in the opc 3 help the most.

Hope this helps someone with relief thru my years of finding alternatives to taking steroids. This week, I am going to start researching the immune boosting benefits that mushrooms have, thanks to the advice of the local health food stores. Best wishes on your path to healing.

I have had the condition Lichen Sclerosis for approx. 15 years but about 6 weeks ago a blister type sore erupted over an old childhood scar on my left shin. It was extremely itchy and rapidly grew in size and redness. My doctor informed me it was Lichen Planus and wrote out a prescription for cortisone ointment. Not wanting to use such a toxic medication I tried various other more natural preparations such as Witch Hazel and Calamine Lotion. Nothing worked and the area affected was rapidly increasing. I then decided to make some Comfrey Root Ointment.

Eight days ago I commenced treatment by spreading the ointment on a cotton pad and taped it firmly over the Lichen Planus area. I changed the pad morning and night. The result has been nothing short of miraculous. The itching disappeared almost immediately the first pad was applied. Since then the size of the sore has gradually moved inwards and the surrounding tissue is now a very pale pink. It looks healthy and I may even end up losing the original scar. I am seriously considering using it on my Lichen Sclerosis. The ointment was simplicity itself to make.

A good guide is to go to You Tube and look up 'How to make Comfrey Ointment Part 1' (Part 2 is also there). It is a demonstration by someone called Sue Goodwin. I followed her instructions and it was so easy. At the end of the process I added some essential oil of lavender, just to make it smell nice really. As long as you have some Comfrey Root you can access you can make at least three jars using the method shown.

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Update 04/25/2013

It is now 12 Days since I started using it on my Lichen Planus and each day it gets smaller and healthier looking. As with all herbal remedies I will continue with the ointment until it is well and truly cleared up.

I have to share my experience here because one year ago my 6 year old was diagnosed with lichen planus through a biopsy. We were thrilled to finally have a name to put with the horrible skin reaction that had covered our son's body (only his face and mouth were clear) and lost as to what to do next. The doctor prescribed three meds. The steroid cream I had to apply to his body using rubber gloves because I was going through steroid treatment for pneumonia (second time I had it). That was scary for me. Every time I would put it on him I would think, "I'm supposed to treat this child with this strong steroid indefinately?! ". The next drug was just supposed to put moisture back on his skin but it was new and I was nervous since I was the victim of a new drug that was later recalled for disasterous side effects. The third was to help him sleep and not scratch his skin at night. We gave that to him once or twice but it knocked him out cold and it was difficult to get him to wake up the next morning.

I know we could have lowered the dosage, etc. But something in me snapped. I was sick and tired of everyone in my family being sick and tired. I searched everywhere on the internet for a cure, including this site. Nothing worked. Then I stumbled across the website drmcdougall.com. I read it all night (I have chronic insomnia too). We had tried so many things that I decided we could try eating the ultra-healthy mcdougall way. It was hard, but it wasn't a pill that might be recalled in a few years. We eliminated all fats, dairy, processed foods (even the processed vegetarian stuff), meat, oils and sugar. We ate a ton of vegetables, fruits, potatoes, sweet potatoes, rice, barley, beans, quinoa... You get the picture.

Within a week, the swelling went down on the lichen planus sores. Within two weeks we noticed that he had less spots. Within a few months his hair in the places he had lost it actually started to grow back! Shortly after that, he was completely symptom free! The whole family followed the diet (my teenager bought junk at school for the first while and then even that little bit became unappetizing) and we are all finally healthy again. I got over my asthma, pneumonia, even my arthritis pain went away completely, other family members went through winter without getting sick... Not even a cold! My husband and I lost weight and the kids have continued to grow at the same rate they did before. Now we eat the mcdougall way about 90% of the time. When my son spent two weeks at grandma's this summer his lichen planus came back on his back, arms and legs. A few weeks of eating the mcdougall diet helped him to become symptom free again.

I really hope this helps someone. I hope you try it. Everything on mcdougall's site is free. So it really won't cost you anything. We bought one book of his after we were already seeing results because I wanted to be thourough. I also bought a mcdougall cookbook after a while. It isn't necessary though since he lists a lot of recipes for free anyway. I felt that I needed more recipes since this is our lifestyle now and not a diet per se.

I suffered with lichen planus for two years. Fairly mild but a pain nonetheless. I cut out milk and I haven't had symptoms since. Please spread the word.

Rsw made me aware of the limited natural remedies available for Oral Lichen Planus (OLP) so I thought I would mention one that has a pretty good track record, is readily available and is often mentioned here on EC for several health issues. The supplement is Hyaluronic Acid (HA).

Not that I have tried this for OLP, but I have tried it for something else and found it quite effective for the purpose I used it for in a relatively short period of time. The study suggests that it is helpful for people living with OLP and is non invasive. In any case it seems worth considering and there is the potential to realize other health benefits from HA. Another advantage of HA over something like curcumin is that HA mixed as a gel is clear and colorless which means no yellow teeth or extra teeth scrubbing and that seems like a big plus to me!

Here is a link to the full study that used a relatively low concentration (0.2%) HA topical with impressive results:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4740703/

This seems like a really easy to use remedy for OLP!

I think it would be really interesting to see a study that combined HA with Colloidal silver for OLP. That seems like it would be a fairly easy combo to make!

Art

I've had lichen simplex chronicus since September 2015, and I've been using organic olive oil with the following essential oils: tea tree oil, lavender oil, peppermint oil, and eucalyptus oil. This combination has been amazing for the itching, hydration, and has soothed my senses and skin. When I was first diagnosed, the dermatologist gave me a steroid cream that I used for 1 night, because it dried my skin severely. He also gave me itch relief pills for night-time, which are amazing too. I later started using a cream and soap containing emu oil, and since I've been using that with my essential oils combination, I've been functioning with extreme improvement! I pray this helps someone.

Saw you had posts for lichen plantus. I had this rash until I started taking monolaurin pills. Two pills twice a day. Rash was gone after two weeks. Now just small scars im treating with store bought lightening creams. Thought you would like to post for your readers.

Common Purslane: aka duckweed, fatweed, pursley, pussley, verdolagas and wild portulaca is known to cure lichen planus according to my dentist.

Personally I have been looking for this plant and will find it.

grown in wild is better than domesticated

Purslane may be a common plant, but it is uncommonly good for you. It tops the list of plants high in vitamin E and an essential omega-3 fatty acid called alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). Purslane provides six times more vitamin E than spinach and seven times more beta carotene than carrots. It's also rich in vitamin C, magnesium, riboflavin, potassium and phosphorus.

Omega-3s are a class of polyunsaturated essential fatty acids. Your body cannot manufacture essential fatty acids, so you must get them from food. Unfortunately, the typical American diet contains too few omega-3s, a shortage that is linked to a barrage of illnesses including heart disease, cancer and Alzheimer's disease.

TO Geo41 (and Rich): Thank you for your posts. My heart breaks when I hear about a little four year old having this horrible problem. Let me tell you what I have learned if it will be of any help, particularly for the little four year old and all families.

My dermatologist is highly trained and yet, he has a holistic view of the body. He gets this from two points. (1) He grew up in Switzerland and has relatives there. (2) His mother in law changed her diet and got out of her wheel chair to play golf after being diagnosed with M.S.

I will get to my Lichen Planus story in a moment. But, let's cut to the chase.

I also have rheumatoid arthritis-been diagnosed for 17 years. Keep that in mind as I tell you the type of reading I've been doing. I am reading a book call "The War Within" by a noted researcher, Floyd H. Chilton, Ph. D. He has served on the faculties of Johns Hopkins University and Wake Forest University School of Medicine where he is currently a professor of physiology and pharmacology. He has written more than 110 articles and textbook chapters and holds 32 issued and 17 pending patents. That's from the book. This book was first released in 2005 under the title "Inflammation Nation" by Simon and Schuster.

I am also reading a book by the doctor's mother in law. I don't know the availability of this book, but I will tell you of her outcomes.

The bottom line is that whatever we are dealing with here is an inflammation response in the body. You have to go at this from the internal environment in the body and mind, as well as, the external environment of body and mind.

You need to start removing yourself from the poor food environment that we live in here in the U.S. Remove yourself from any processed food, which of course means you must give up eating out or picking up fast food. This includes things like condiments to food. Give up sugar and where it lurks in any form. This means give up white bread or pasta, spaghetti, doughnuts, etc. For adults give up alcohol. Alcohol is sugar. Give up gluten.

The mother in law who was never a cook learned to fix health food type of meals. They were delicious. She got rid of meat and poultry. Only fish. Dr. Chilton's book educates you about protein and what is recommended. The mother in law also (TAKE NOTE) was also battling a candida problem for 8 years before it got diagnosed. All these thing go together. Why? Inflammation.

All allergies, all chronic diseases, (Rheumatoid Arthritis, diabetes, heart disease, cancers, ) skin disorders, are inflammation responses in our body. We have been eating against what our natural bodies can tolerate for generations now and it is getting worse, isn't it? To hear that this is happening to a precious four year old makes me weep.

Here's another part of the Chilton book that is an eye opener... The fat on our bodies acts like an organ... The more fat we have the more it emits inflammatory messengers. Check out Chilton's words and research. An overweight, sedentary person has 60% more inflammatory messengers in the body than an lean, exercising person.

If this diet is affecting one member of the family, the diet is affecting everyone in someway or the other. Get everyone on the same diet. Chilton offers daily menus to help out. You don't have to reinvent the wheel.

This is a must.... You must keep a journal everyday... Write down everything.. Including what changes you notice in feelings and mood, successes and set backs, what is happening within the family, everything. This is the basis for your research, your cause and effect. You will be frustrated and your head will be spinning if you don't do this. Get things down on paper so you can go back and read. This is a journey. There will be "set backs". These are important clues! Never think of a set back as negative.

The doctor said that the most impressive cure that he read about for LP came from a person who was a very high powered type going all over the world. He broke out in Lichen Planus and nothing was working. Then he got diagnosed with a chronic disease. He totally and radically changed up everything. His schedule, his lifestyle, his diet, his exercise, his mental health. The lichen planus went away.

This is why lichen planus is said to be related to stress. That's why you have to journal. Stress in the body is not only what is happening on the outside, but what stress is being produced by the negative reactions to food and drink on the inside. Try as much as possible to eat organic. For instance, coffee has 200 pesticides in it. That will cause stress to the liver and the body. This is an onion thing. You keep peeling off the layers. This is a journey. But, walk it faster than slower.

Remember that for a four year old the loss of a favorite toy could bring on as much stress as the loss of a job to an adult. I'm watching a three year old grandson react to having a new baby sister. Oh, brother. I've learned that some children are much more sensory irritated by stimuli than others.

I will try any topical or vitamin etc. that I find posted. But, I think it's because I am on a powerful immunilogical medicine for my RA that this lichen is not into my eyes, or mouth like some. The spots are becoming larger, but not itching, like the first outbreak. I take salt baths in warm water. Two big cheap boxes of iodized salt poured into the bath. I soak, close my eyes in darkness. Love it. Very relaxing. The salt seems to reduce the redness and make the spots feel better. Doesn't burn or anything. This is one of those stress reducing things you need to work into your days. Look for things like that. My next thing is to start looking for info on candida as this is on my list.

My husband is on the same program as he is fighting diabetes. We read labels, menus together. Don't let all of this fall on one of the parents. Help each other and the whole family learn to get unstressed. Watch T. V. Content for children. In fact stop watching so much and get active with each other.

So this is a huge post, isn't it? I'd love some replies. I, too, will keep posting, but here you have my plan of getting to wellness. I hope some of it helps. BTW my lichen planus started when one of my children developed thyroid cancer. She had a great outcome. Now she, too, is focused on reducing inflammation. Onward and upward.

Hi janjamz,

They made the CoQ10 mucoadhesive tablets specifically for this study, so they are not available for purchase from suppliers. Too bad, because the results were similar to the topical steroid, which to me is very impressive. Here is a relevant quote from the study:

CoQ10 mucoadhesive tablet preparation

' The tablets were prepared using 120 mg coQ10 powder (in reduced form which is the antioxidant form) [41], mixed with mucoadhesive polymer 120 mg carbapol [42], and 60 mg anhydrous lactose [21], using a bench scale powder mixer continuously for 10 min. The components of each tablet were fed manually into a 13 mm die and compressed using a constant compression force to produce tablets (40% coQ10 concentration) with a 13 mm surface area and hardness of 10 kgf (Fig. 2).

Art

Lichen Planus: I've had most of the same signs that most of y'all are having But let me tell you what helps me 100 percent: black seed oil mix with vit E oil or coconut oil every single day and now I don't see or feel the affect of this curse.

Rsw,

You are very welcome!

Another major point about that study is that they only used the active treatment for 2 weeks......yes, just two weeks and then they stopped treatment and only observed for the last two weeks. In the last two weeks, the treatment group continued to improve! If this were a drug that they used for the study, it would be one big money maker for the drug company considering the results they got! As it is, very few people are even aware of this potentially great treatment for OLP!

Another major point in this study is that they used such a mild dose at just 0.2% HA! Just imagine what the results might have been if they had used a stronger dose, a more frequent dose or had continued the dose beyond two weeks?!?!

Keep us posted on how you do with it, Rsw!

Art

Hey, just wanted to update everyone with my lichen planus remedies.

Since my last outbreak on my thigh, I have another outbreak all over. This time around I wasn't able to get to the ocean :( but I have tried several other things. as of late I have been using frankincense and lavender essential oils mixed into a fragrant free all natural lotion. This has helped with the itching dramatically. Also I have incorporated turmeric pills. There was a study done that showed 9/10 people were cured from trumeric. As you all must know turmeric has known to help with inflammatory conditions and also helps with diseases in your digestive tract. As long as your gut is clean the rash will stay away. Try it out!

Vitamine E for Lichen Planus -- I'm going to make this short and simple. I've been dealing with stress for the past 5 years and that's when my symptoms started to show. In 2007 my first Lichen Planus breakout started to show on the inside of my wrists. I tried every medication and every cream there was. I was using vitamine E oil for my face at the time because I always read it was good for the skin so I decided to give it a try. I popped the capsule and spread the oil on the inside of my wrists and I cannot remember how they totally faded away.

I've been using it for the past 2 weeks since my recent outbreak and I have noticed a dramatic change. No itching, no redness. The rash starts to fade away by becoming brownish color. I'm using one capsule a day every day.

I do not guarantee it will work on every person because I think it depends on the severity of the outbreaks but you should definitely give it a try.

I hope it works out for all of you looking for a cure.

Lichen planus is difficult, I've had it for 7 years now. Hate it. But recently I've been using pure virgin coconut oil on my skin have not had an out break yet and always have it in Dec. near christmas time and in July. I've been using it for about 3-4 months. If one appears it just dries up in a day or so, haven't had a huge break out to know what the reaction would be. My suggestion try extra virgin coconut oil.

Rsw,

Okay, that sounds like it helps noticeably, but is not completely clearing you up from the OLP. Really difficult to be sure with what you have going on and the break from LDN which could potentially exacerbate a health condition.

I was looking at some other studies, which if you have not seen them yet may be worth going over.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5662509/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28029732

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5028429/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24245466

http://www.advances.umed.wroc.pl/pdf/2013/22/6/893.pdf

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4439686/

Judging from those studies, aloe vera appears to be worth consideration and possibly something that can be used in combination with something else.

In answer to your question, the link that I see in those diseases is excess inflammation and oxidative stress, so things you do to reduce those should be helpful to varying degrees depending on how much and how often you take it.

Good luck and keep us posted on your progress!

Art

Hi Art,

Thank you for the links. I have purchased three 32 oz. bottles of preservative free aloe vera juice (did not but the gel because of the carrageen, but it may adhere better) and will also take the pine bark capsules. Will keep you informed of any progress! Very grateful for your suggestions.

About 9 years ago I had a problem with lichen planus in my mouth, which various doctors, and specialists said there was no cure for. A friend encouraged me to try colloidal silver which he made for his family. I was very happy when I used this to find the ulcers in my mouth healed quickly. I used 20 to 30 mls, 3 or 4 times a day for 5 or 6 days, or less, holding it in my mouth for some minutes. I bought my own colloidal silver maker online, after carefully looking at a number of sites. The lichen planus would return every so often and I continued to use it as needed. I was not always careful to follow through with regular use for a number of days however.

For a number of years I have been free of the ulcers. Recently I had a series of cold sores, and then suddenly lichen planus occurred again, so I quickly made a new batch of colloidal silver and healed my mouth. I wondered if the cold sores somehow were connected with causing the lichen planus to revive in my system. Another small cold sore occurred on my lip while using the CS. After a week I stopped using the silver but the mouth ulcer started up again, more persistent and painful than before, so I went back onto CS again and am still using it with my ulcer not quite healed after a week of CS use. I am concerned that irregular use of the colloidal silver has given the lichen planus some resistance to the CS.

Despite regular use of colloidal silver in the past, I have not turned blue. My CS machine provider (at an Adelaide South Australian business) told me that turning blue is impossible. There is some controversy about this and heated debate about colloidal silver in general.

I have at times also used eucalyptus oil and aloe vera gel from pieces of fresh leaves that I grow, but I have not been systematic with these things. Perhaps a number of different remedies will be necessary to keep lichen planus away.I like using aloe vera because it is fresh and very easy to grow.

I also rub aloe vera leaf on a red cancer sore on my nose and other rough sun damaged areas on my face and hands. My raw nose area heals quickly, but regularly returns after being in the sun again. I slice a bit of leaf open and scrape some of the inner gel off with my teeth, holding the pulp in my mouth then swallowing it. Then I rub more inside leaf gel on my face and hands etc. I believe that this gel also helps to get rid of plaque from my teeth. My dentist told me that my teeth were free of plaque and that my brushing technique must have improved. So regular aloe vera gel use, 2 or 3 times a week makes teeth smooth and clean. While aloe vera pulp tastes bitter, I know that it is very alcaline and healing and have accepted the bitter taste as a good thing.

I've been suffering with Lichen Planus for 2 1/2 years and I tried everything. Oatmeal baths, tea tree oil, olive oil and leaf. I went to my doctor and she prescribed medicine to help with the incredible itching sensation. It didn't work and was referred to a dermatologist. She began saying that it wasn't as bad as she's seen in the past. She prescribed a steroid cream ans sent me on my way. Everything cleared up. Till I ran out of the steroid cream and it came back twice as bad. She then put me on a steroid pill with more creams. But, I knew it was temporary. I could feel it trying to come back. Around my eyes and mouth the top of my genitals. My legs were starting to get it at this point and my arms and my back was also covered now. Then it came to me. I use to go tanning, you know in tanning beds. Just in the spring for a month or two and only a couple times a week. I'm not a sun worshiper but, I didn't like getting a sunburn in the summer. So I would go for a short time just to create some color so I wouldn't burn. But, after I got married three years ago I decided to stop for now on, because it's not good for you anytime, and I didn't want to put myself at risk for cancer. But, like I said I've had this rash for 2 1/2 yrs now. So it became very obvious why this rash was taking over. And what was keeping it at bay for all these years.

I starting going into tanning beds or red light therapy (which is safe by the way) when I was 18 or 19 and just very little in the Spring and I stopped going when I was 31. I never had a single problem with my skin during this time. Before I went tanning ever, in high school I remember a period of time where I had this rash on my face, but then it went away after a few months and trying not wear makeup.

But, now at 34, I have this all over my body... nothing seems to hold it back. So, I decided to go tanning... for small amounts of time 5 to 8 minutes and for a month or two. Also, for only a few times a week. I've gotten through the first week and I have to say I haven't felt itchy even once! I've only gone three times and my sores are healing. All my bumps and new ones trying to form are gone! My skin is smooth. My scars are still there, but they even look better.

I know tanning beds aren't any good for you, but I look at it this way. Small amounts shouldn't hurt me and I'm wearing SPF 50 during the day. Just so I don't get additional exposure from the sun. I feel so much better.

FYI: My dermatologist was absolutely against it! She was not open to hearing this idea of tanning that could help me. My Dr wouldn't hear of it. I'm going to continue to treat my self a few times a week for two months. That should nip it in the bud, at least for the rest of the year. I hope this could be helpful to those out there suffering from this. I know how you feel.

Anita,

Thank you for your post. Can you tell us how many mg. per pill you took, and the brand? Did you have LP only on your skin, or did it also occur internally, like your mouth?

Thanks!

I've had an active breakout of lichen Plantus for two going on three years now. It took almost 4 months to get a correct diagnosis when I finally did doctors put me on oral steroids, steroid creams, and steroid injections. These things worked only for a short time and had awful side effects. I quickly realized I'd have to cure this on my own. Here are some things that have helped me: 1) A homeopathic, first aid ointment is extremely effective, helps with active LP and dark spots the also. The downfall of this product is its very pricey. 2) Tea Tree oil helps and is affordable the downfall with this is it smells. 3) Lavender Essential Oil is VERY effective if you can find it. 4) Epsom Salt Baths 5) Tea Baths 6) Cold Aloe Vera Gel helps a lot with itching and dryness 7) Lastly I've found that when I went to hawaii swimming At the beach, which I know can be embarrassing helps a lot. I hope this helps people suffering from this disease.

Hey everyone,

I've had lichen planus for the last 4 years now. It started in 2010 when I was 25 years of age and got worse and worse. I trusted doctors a lot at the time, untill they told me they dont' know much about this condition. Put me on antihystamine pills and cortisone creams which made my condition a gazillion times worse.

This is when I realized I need to take things into my own hands, the first thing that really helped me was I stopped drinking milk. This helped, not a lot but a little. Then I started eating a ton of honey, which is a natural antibiotic. I did this because honey is mentioned in the Quran and it has healed a lot of people. This helped a lot. The last thing that completely got rid of my lichen planus was a swim in the oceans of Hawaii. After my Hawaii trip, my lichen planus really died down. I realized the salt water worked wonders on my skin.

Since then I have not broken out into lichen planus. In the recent few months 2 new lesions have appeared on my thigh which I have not treated with any chemicals except for extreme salt water baths which flatten the lesions immediately. I also take vitamins that enhance the immune system. (More zinc and vitamin C)

I hope this helps someone out. Try not to make things too complicated and definitely try the salt water baths

Sophie