What you might want to know about Rosacea

What is Rosacea?

• It is a chronic, inflammatory skin condition mainly affecting the face of lighter-skinned women
• It presents with redness mainly affecting the centre of the face and small red and white bumps that can be mistaken for acne
• People with rosacea often are ultrasensitive when it comes to using new products on their skin
• Symptoms may come and go and be triggered by the weather, certain foods, alcohol, stress
• Patients with Rosacea have a higher prevalence of gastro-intestinal disease (irritable bowel syndrome, Colitis ulcerosa, SIBO) and anxiety disorders

What are the different types of Rosacea? There are four main subtypes of Rosacea that can occur simultaneously or separately:

1. Erythematotelangiectatic Rosacea characterised by persistent redness on the face
2. Papulopustular rosacea characterised by the presence of small red bumps and whitehead pustules on cheeks/chin/forehead
3. Phymatous Rosacea which presents with thickening of the skin, most often affecting the nose, known as rhinophyma.
4. Ocular rosacea, often presenting as a feeling of burning or irritation in your eyes

Is there anything I can change in my diet if I suffer from Rosacea? Whilst diet alone is most likely not the cause, it can be a contributing factor and one can make some changes.If you suffer from persistent rosacea, it would be good to avoid/limit :

• inflammatory foods (refined and added sugars, processed foods, large amounts of dairy products, fried foods )
• foods rich in histamines (fermented foods, aged cheeses, tomatoes, citrus fruits, crustaceans)
• foods that act as a histamine liberator (triggers the release of the body’s histamine) such as large amounts of chocolate
• spicy foods
• alcohol particularly aged red wine

At the same time, you might want to increase/add the following in your diet:

• vegetables especially leafy greens and low histamine fruits (apples, blueberries, apricots, mango, pears, grapes, raspberries)
• dairy substitutes such as coconut milk and almond milk
• lean protein like white meat (fresh chicken, turkey) and grass fed beef
• freshly caught fish rich in omega 3 (wild salmon)
• cook with ginger, turmeric, saffron, fennel, nigella seeds which are known to soothe inflammation
• olive oil
• gluten-free grains such as quinoa and rice
• probiotic foods such as yoghurt and kefir
• eggs

What treatments are there available to treat Rosacea? Each patient is different, but the following options will be discussed:

• analysing triggers and underlying causes
• optimising skin care
• prescription creams
• prescription oral tablets
• light therapy

Different treatments can be combined and sometimes it can take a while before we are on the right path for you.