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What skincare routine should you use if you have rosacea? Honestly, rosacea is no fun at all. It is a medical condition that should be taken very seriously. Although it is not life-threatening, it has a negative physiological impact on people suffering from it.
People with rosacea tend to have dry and highly sensitive skin such that innocuous chemicals cause irritation and due to its propensity towards acne, it is often difficult to diagnose. The commonly seen symptoms of rosacea are flushing, redness, pimples, and inflammation. Other symptoms include burning, stinging, thickened skin, and uneven skin tone around the nose, red or watery eyes.
These symptoms are more visible around the centre of the face such as the cheeks, nose, forehead, and chin. You may also find it in places that are prone to sun damage such as the neck, ear, scalp, and upper back.
Before going into details on the skincare routine for Rosacea, it is important to know the causes and triggers of rosacea.
Causes Of Rosacea
The exact cause of Rosacea is still unknown. However, some theories speculate an increased infestation of a mite called Demodex folliculorum that is present in the skin is responsible for the dryness and inflammation were seen in rosacea
Other culprits are genetics, UV light, abnormalities of the immune system, dilation of the blood vessels and psychological factors
What Triggers Rosacea?
It is important to pay close attention to your skin. Write down things that may be triggering your rosacea because it is one of the first steps to manage the symptoms.
Emotional trigger
Being under a lot of stress such as anxiety, depression or other stressors can lead to more rosacea flare-up. So try and do some exercises like yoga, meditation, and journaling. I use this app on my Ipad called Insight Timer to meditate and manage my stress level. It is a free app available on both Apple and Android devices.
Food and lifestyle trigger
Foods like yoghurt, cream, soy sauce, avocado, cheese, eggplant, spinach, tomato, lime, vinegar, spicy and hot foods, hot beverages, raisins, banana, chocolate, and alcohol. Lifestyle trigger includes intense exercise, alcohol
Temperature and weather conditions
Temperatures such as hot baths, saunas, heated atmosphere. Change of weather conditions from cold to hot, sun damage, intense wind.
Skincare triggers
Certain kinds of skincare products contain harsh ingredients that trigger rosacea so it is best to avoid them. Avoiding skincare products that contain
- Water-proof make up because they are always very difficult to remove
- Toners: Most toners contain alcohol, peppermint, camphor, witch hazel, and eucalyptus oil.
- Cosmetics that contain glycolic acids, or fruit acids, retinol, fragrance, and sodium lauryl sulfate
- Exfoliating scrub creams
Skincare routine for rosacea
The skincare routine for people with Rosacea must be very simple as this skin type could easily flare up. Just using a mild and gentle cleanser, moisturizer and sunscreen is enough. It is better to be as simple as possible.
Cleanser
When choosing a cleanser, look for a cleanser that is close to the skin’s PH. The skin’s natural PH is between 4-6.5. Therefore, having a cleanser that tends towards neutral or slightly acidic is vital for rosacea. A good cleanser should remove any form of dirt, harmful bacteria, and environmental toxins without changing the skin’s natural moisturizing factor. For that reason, I recommend using Syndet bars to normal bar soaps. Syndet bars are formulated to be neutral and slightly acidic and they don’t dry out the skin.
Cleanser – make up remover
Using cleansing creams or milk is gentler and mild for the Rosacea skin type. These types of cleansers leave a thin film of moisturizer on the skin that hydrates the skin well. Using one that is slightly acidic or neutral helps people with rosacea retain moisture and prevents water loss from the skin.
Moisturizer
After cleansing, the next step to take is to hydrate. This helps to restore the skin moisture content, softens the skin, and reduces water loss from the skin. You would want to select a moisturizer that does not contain any harsh ingredients mentioned earlier. Look for one that prevents evaporation of water, increases skin hydration, and soothes the skin.
Sunscreen
Considering that UV light triggers Rosacea, It is important to use a sunscreen with SPF of 50 and above to prevent damage to the dermal layer. You should also look for a broad spectrum SPF that protects against both UVA and UVB light. Another criterion for picking a sunscreen is that it should be a physical sunscreen; meaning it should contain titanium dioxide and zinc oxide. Although physical sunscreens leave a white cast, they are still more tolerated than chemical sunscreens.
Top 10 Skincare Tips For Rosacea
1. When applying water to the face, ensure the water is lukewarm, and avoid changing the temperature of the water drastically.
2. The application of a cleanser should be done smoothly, avoid using abrasive towels or scrubs to prevent burning or stinging.
3. If you are using your hands to cleanse your face, let your fingers go in a circular motion with a smooth and gentle touch. You may also use cotton pads.
4. Oral medications for treating rosacea with side effects such as dizziness, headaches, hypersensitivity should be discontinued and reported to your dermatologist.
5. Avoids skincare ingredients that contain alcohol, harsh bathing soap, parabens and fragrance
6. Drink lots of water as dehydration can trigger inflammation leading to more flare-ups.
7. Your food should contain an anti-inflammatory diet. Diets such as ginger, Tumeric, vitamin B, Omega 3 and olive oil
8. Wear your sunscreens daily. In case of intense sunlight, apply your sunscreens 30 minutes before leaving the house and reapply every 2 hours
9. Apply your products in this order: cleansers, moisturizers, and sunscreens last. This will ensure you are not reducing the effectiveness of the sunscreen, then you can apply a foundation with SPF.
10. Lastly, ensure you don’t forget to remove your makeup before going to bed
Conclusion
It is important to know that Rosacea cannot be cured but the symptoms can be well managed to help people with this skin condition feel much more confident about their skin. I hope this post has helped in knowing the causes, triggers, and best skincare routine for rosacea.
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Image by Sharon McCutcheon from Pixabay
Thanks for this. I believe this is what my daughter has. I’m sending it to her.
Oh, thank you. I hope she finds it helpful. Thank you for reading
Thank you for sharing about rosacea – I’ve heard of it but hadn’t known much about it.
Thank you, glad you learnt something new 💜
Thank you for writing this! I have it just on my face. It’s crazy because I feel like I’ve had it for a while, what with if I was outside for too long my face would always flush and same if I got embarrased. But about a few years ago was when it got triggered bad. I haven’t been able to figure out how to calm it down some. It’s mostly red on my nose and right side of my face with the little bumps. I am going to try some of your tips though. I never even heard of the PROcure Rosacare Gel. So I am going to try that out soon. Thank you again so much!!
I’m so sorry you go through this, reading about it made me understand what people go through. It’s really not easy to treat but can be managed. Thank you for suggesting I write about this and I’m glad you found it helpful 💜
I don’t personally suffer from this but I know a few people who do and this is such a good post to make people aware of it. I’ve heard so many people say horrible things like ‘why doesn’t he just wash his face’ and it annoys me so much! Thank you for this post!
Saying “people don’t wash their faces” is so annoying. I wish people learn more. Thank you for reading ❤️
This is definitely not what afflicts my skin, but I loved reading about this and your tips on preventing flare-ups, as stress and gluten are big ones in causing break-outs on my skin. Not wearing make-up to bed is a handy tip; I like to sleep with fresh, clean skin, and I love a glass of golden milk before bed.
Oh wow, this sounds like enjoyment. Love the sound of golden milk.
Wow I wonder if this is what my husband has! Those triggers (especially hot water) are absolutely spot on. We already do fragrance free bit I will look into those other ingredients.
These are some really great product recommendations, I also use a lot of Cerave products! Love them 😊
🌿 Marissa Belle × marsybun.com 🌿
Love this in-depth guide! I haven’t got this condition but I know some people who suffer badly so I’ll direct them to this!
-Kyra xx
Thank you so much 💜
Another fab post, Rayo. And really informative for people with rosacea or who think they might have it!
Awww… thank you 🙏🏾
Thank you for putting this together! I’m sure that it’s frustrating to be fighting with something like this where we aren’t even sure what the causes are yet. However, there is some great information here to help manage the condition and reduce triggers. I’m sure this will be SO helpful for many people out there!
What an insightful/helpful post! I don’t personally suffer from this, but I do know a friend who has Rosacea. I remember it use to upset her at times but then she found a realy good skincare routine that helped, and that boosted her confidence. I’m not sure what she did, but I’m sure it involved similar things to what you suggested – thanks for sharing x
Really helpful post. I personally don’t go through it but known ppl who did. Thanks alot for providing information about it.
This is so informative and such a great post! So helpful!
Thank you ☺️
I haven’t really heard of rosacea before reading this post. You did a great job explaining it and sharing helpful resources for it. Thanks for sharing all this info!
I’m so happy to hear this, thank you 💕
These are such fab tips I love how much information you provide it is wonderful! I haven’t actually heard of rosacea before so this is really interesting to me.
Amber – https://theunpredictedpage.com
I’m so glad you know more about rosacea now. Thank you for reading 💜
My skin is so sensitive that I need to be careful. Diet is so important when it comes to contributing to the flare ups. Having the proper skincare routine is so important! You want to help your skin, not give it any more reasons to flare. Thanks for sharing all of these facts!
Nancy ♥ exquisitely.me
I have learnt so much about rosacea in this post, I didn’t really realise it was more than reddened skin. I will have to point my auntie in the direction of this post, as she suffers from this.
Thanks for sharing another great post!
Aimsy xoxo
Aimsy’s Antics
Awww, so glad to hear this… Thanks Aimsy. I hope your Auntie finds it helpful 💜
One of my relatives really struggles with her rosacea. You have a lot of great information here so I am going to share this with her.
Thank you so much, I hope she finds it helpful 💜
Great post! I wasn’t really aware of what is was so thank you for sharing this!
This is such an informative post about rosacea. I never knew it could be triggered by so many different things found in our skincare. Thanks for sharing.
Great informative post. Thanks for sharing.😊😊😊
Sometimes I get it when I’m pregnant but knock on wood, usually not otherwise. Thanks for the great tips!
I’ve not heard of rosacea before so I really enjoyed this post! All your tips are so helpful and informative x
Thank you for taking time out to read and comment
A very insighful post, Rayo! I don’t believe I suffer from rosacea, but it’s always nice to discover new things!