Kim Kardashian’s Health: What to Know About Her Battle With Psoriasis & More
The reality TV personality not only lives an extremely public life, but she also has shared her health conditions with her fans over the years. Here is everything to know about Kim’s health journey.
Kim Kardashian, 43, needs no introduction for pop culture lovers! However, for those who might not be aware, the brunette beauty is more than a reality TV personality. Not only is Kim a mother to four children with her ex, Kanye West, but she is also a proud business owner, aspiring lawyer, prison reform advocate, and much more.
Most recently, the billionaire made headlines after she shared a series of vulnerable videos of her recent psoriasis flare-up on January 30, 2024. “Not gonna lie this is painful. Not sure what my triggers are. I haven’t changed my diet. I’ve tried everything! Psoriasis sucks,” she penned in the caption of the Instagram Story at the time. Amid Kim’s latest update on her skin condition, below is everything to know about her battle with psoriasis and her previous pregnancy complications.
Kim Kardashian Diagnosed With Psoriasis
The Kardashians star first began to deal with psoriasis in her mid twenties. She wrote about her initial flare-up via a blog post on her sister, Kourtney Kardashian‘s website, Poosh, in 2019. “When I was 25, I had my first psoriasis flare-up. I got a common cold, and since psoriasis is an autoimmune condition, this triggered it,” Kim penned at the time.
Before Kim lived in a lavish California mansion, she lived in an apartment and was able to get help from her dermatologist neighbor. “It was all over my stomach and legs. Luckily, in my apartment complex at the time, my neighbor was a dermatologist,” she explained in the same post. “I showed it to him, and he said to come into the office and he would give me a shot of cortisone and then hopefully it would go away (since it was my first big outbreak). I did this and my psoriasis completely went away for about five years.”
Psoriasis is known as a skin disease that can cause “a rash with itchy, scaly patches” as reported by the Mayo Clinic. Over the years, Kim has experienced these rashes and has documented her outbreaks through photos and videos shared on social media. Later in the blog post, the SKIMS co-founder revealed that she a consistent “spot” that will often reoccur on her right lower leg. “I can always count on my main spot on my right lower leg, which consistently stays flared up. I have learned to live with this spot without using any creams or medication—I just deal,” she wrote. “Sometimes I cover it up and sometimes I don’t. It doesn’t really bother me.”
Kim inherited the skin condition from her mother, Kris Jenner, who only passed down the trait to Kim. Additionally, Kim suffers from psoriatic arthritis, a type of arthritis triggered by her skin condition. Most recently, in October 2023, she opened up to Refinery29 about her chronic condition. “I’m still very confused about my psoriasis and what triggers it,” Kim told the outlet. “Sometimes I’ll be completely stressed out and I’ll be completely clear with my psoriasis. Sometimes I’ll be zen as can be, not a care in the world, and my psoriasis will completely flare up. They say it should be the opposite. I’ve kind of given up on trying to figure it out.”
Kim Kardashian’s Preeclampsia and Placenta Accreta
Not only has the SKKN BY KIM founder suffered from psoriasis, but she also experienced various complications during her prior pregnancies. Kim gave birth to her daughter, North West, in 2013 and her son, Saint West, in 2015. Due to her complications during those two pregnancies, the Selfish author chose to use a surrogate to have her youngest children Chicago (b. 2018) and Psalm (b. 2019).
Kim had to give birth to North about six weeks early due to suffering from preeclampsia. The Cleveland Clinic reports that preeclampsia is known to be a “serious blood pressure” condition and can threaten the life of both the mother and child. In December 2019, Kim shared a video via Instagram explaining what she had experienced during those pregnancies.
Not only did Kim have preeclampsia, but she also suffered from placenta accreta during the pregnancies. This can occur when the placenta does not detach and remains attached to the uterus. “I actually had to have five different operations within a year and a half to fix the damage that all of that did inside,” the makeup maven said in the clip. Eventually, Kim used her remaining two embryos to conceive both Chicago and Psalm via a surrogate.
How Is Kim Kardashian Doing Today?
As previously mentioned, Kim is continuing to have psoriasis flare-ups in 2024. After she shared the “painful” flare-up on January 30, Kim took to Instagram to share a new update the next day. She treated her recent flare-up on her leg with a medicated cream and slept with it covered by Saran wrap. “Look at how much better it is!” she said in the clip. After Kim treated the recent breakout with the cream and plastic wrap, it significantly reduced the redness on her leg.
Although the mark was still present, Kim noted that “one night” with the treatment “changes everything.” Kim also recently faced backlash for using a tanning bed at her office in mid-January 2024. She took to X (Twitter) to clapback at haters and explained that it helps with her skin condition. “I have psoriasis and it really helps when it’s bad,” she wrote. “But I don’t use it too often.”