About Rosacea
Over the last while, I ‘ve got a good few emails asking if NiEriu products are suitable for rosacea, and due to the number of these emails, I decided to look into what exactly this was. Sorry about the delay posting this up , I know I’e emailed it to a few of you already but for the benefit of everyone else, here’s what I’ve gathered. As always, note that what I write here is not and should not replace medical advice. I cannot diagnose if you do have rosacea or not. I am not a doctor…I have no personal experience of this ailment either so what I write here is really from what I’ve gleaned from talking to people, and scouring the internet and journals.
So, first of all, let’s identify what Rosacea is. According to Wikipedia “Rosacea (pronounced /roʊˈzeɪʃi.ə/) is a chronic condition characterized by facial erythema (redness)” I gather it is also often referred to as the “curse of the celts.” It affects mostly adults and for most people it is cyclical or set off by triggers. Rosacea is different from Acne though it can often be misdiagnosed as that. Rosacea is a neurovascular disorder while acne is one of the sebaceous glands.
There is no cure for Rpsacea but it can be controlled similar to excema, psoriasis, etc. It is important to get a dignosis that what you have is indeed Rosacea and how you choose to control or treat it’s symptoms after diagnosis is up for debate. Looking through discussion forums online it would appear that similar to psoriasis in that different things work for different people.
The staff at Mayoclinic outline the signs of rosacea as follows:
- Red areas on your face
- Small, red bumps or pustules on your nose, cheeks, forehead and chin (but not the same as whiteheads or blackheads)
- Red, bulbous nose (rhinophyma)
- Visible small blood vessels on your nose and cheeks (telangiectasia)
- Burning or gritty sensation in your eyes (ocular rosacea)
- Tendency to flush or blush easily
They further state that there are 3main stages of Rosacea-
- Pre-rosacea- . Where Rosacea begins as a tendency to flush or blush easily and then progresses to a a persistent redness around the central portion of the face. For some people this takes a few hours to clear and can also itch or burn a little.
- Vascular rosacea- This might develop and small vessels on the nose and cheek swell and become visible. The redness becomes more persistent, taking up to a few days to clear in some cases. Skin may also become oversensitive and there might be oily skin and dandruff. It is ideal to start treatment at these earlier stages. The sooner treatment is started, the easier it is to control
- Inflammatory rosacea- Small, red bumps or pustules may appear and persist, spreading across your nose, cheeks, forehead and chin. This is sometimes known as inflammatory rosacea. Some people mostly men can develop rhinophyma which is a bulbous enlargement of the nose.
Some people might develop ocular rosacea which is characterized by a grittiness and burning sensation in the eyes.
Source: Mayoclinic
The exact cause of Rosacea is unknown, however, there have been a few triggers identified:
- Hot foods or beverages,Spicy foods
- Alcohol
- Temperature extremes
- Sunlight
- Stress, anger or embarrassment
- Strenuous exercise
- Hot baths, saunas
- Corticosteroids
- Drugs that dilate blood vessels, including some blood pressure medications
Will be outlining remedies for rosacea in more detail in another post…for now
As part of the treatment, it has been suggested that sufferers use less products, and apply minimal friction to the skin. Also use reduce exposures to heat by using just tepid water and avoid steam or heat based treatments. And like anyone else, keep your hands off your face. For application topically, suggestions for now are:
Liquorice extract: A study showed that using liquorice on the skin can improve redness significantly.
Sheabutter: Due to it’s anti-inflammatory properties and moisturising is great
Aloe-Vera.
Tumeric
Sometimes, because seborrheic dermatitis(itchy skin with dandruff or whitish or yellowish scales or scales) is there with the rosacea, this makes it worse and it is then worth treating the seborrheic dermatitis…sheabutter, virgin coconut oil, manuka honey or raw honey, can help. I’ll cover this alongisde treatments for rosacea…give me some time to look into it some more.
Bibliography:
http://www.rosaceaguide.com/rs_basics/rosacea/basics.html
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/rosacea/DS00308
Weber TM, Ceilley RI, Buerger A, Kolbe L, Trookman NS, Rizer RL, Schoelermann A. Skin tolerance, efficacy, and quality of life of patients with red facial skin using a skin care regimen containing Licochalcone A. J Cosmet Dermatol. 5.3 (2006): 227-232.
