Lifestyle factors are predictive of the risk for incident psoriasis, regardless of genetic risk, according to a study published online April 12 in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology .

Minxue Shen, Ph.D., from Central South University in Changsha, China, and colleagues used data from the U.K. Biobank, which recruited 500,000 participants, to examine the gene-behavior interaction in association with incident psoriasis. Genetic risk was classified as low, intermediate, or high. Lifestyle, which included body mass index, smoking, physical activity, and diet, was also classified as ideal, intermediate, or poor. The risks for incident psoriasis associated with each lifestyle category were examined within each genetic risk group.

The researchers found that the hazard ratio was up to 4.625 in association with poor lifestyle and high genetic risk compared with low genetic risk and ideal lifestyle. No interaction was seen between genetic risk and lifestyle. The population-attributable fractions were 32.2 and 13.0 percent for lifestyle and genetic risk, respectively.

"We found that an unhealthy lifestyle and genetic susceptibility were associated with an increased risk of incident psoriasis," the authors write. "However, no interaction effects were observed between genetic risk and a healthy lifestyle; that is, an ideal lifestyle was associated with a lower psoriasis risk among participants in each genetic risk level."

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