Rosacea–A Different Type of Skin Disease

What is Rosacea?

Rosacea is a very common skin disease that affects people over the age of 30. Rosacea is often affects Caucasians who are in their 30s to 50s; so this disease has a nickname “The Curse of the Celts".  Women are also more affected than men. Rosacea is a skin problem characterized by severe redness on the skin on the forehead, cheeks, nose and chin. Some people get little bumps and pimples on the red parts of their faces. Rosaceas can also cause burning and soreness in the eyes.  

Watch the video by Randy Strong about Rosacea below:

Mysi/CC BY-ND 2.0 via Flickr

 Symptoms of Rosacea

Besides the redness on the skin of the forehead, nose, cheeks and chin, people affected with rosacea may also suffer from watery eyes. Blood vessels may also be seen through the skin. In some cases, pustules and pimples develop. Unlike acne, these pimples when pressed do not spat out pus or white heads; they secrete clear liquids. 

In rare cases, rosacea that is not treated may cause permanent effects, such as thickening of the skin on the face or loss of vision. It may cause knobby bumps on the nose, called rhinophyma. Over time, it can give the nose a swollen, waxy look. But most cases of rosacea don't progress this far.

Rosacea Causes

Experts are not sure what causes rosacea. Rosacea doesn't seem to be an infection caused by bacteria. It tends to affect people who have fair skin or blush easily, and it seems to run in families. Rosacea often flares when something causes the blood vessels in the face to expand, which causes redness. Things that cause a flare-up are called triggers. Common triggers are exercise, sun and wind exposure, hot weather, stress, spicy foods, alcohol, and hot baths. Swings in temperature from hot to cold or cold to hot can also cause a flare-up of rosacea.

Rosacea Treatment

Unfortunately, rosacea has no cure. This is a lifelong chronic problem that needs lifelong management and control. But with treatment, most people can control their symptoms and keep the disease from getting worse.

• Redness and breakouts can be treated with low-dose antibiotics and skin creams.
• Dry skin can be protected using moisturisers and sunscreen.
• Dry and red eyes can be treated with artificial tears or using eye drops.
• Redness from tiny blood vessels can be treated with lasers and intense pulsed light treatment (IPL).
• Thickened skin on the nose or face can be treated with cosmetic surgery.

Cure for Rosacea – The Management and Prevention of the Disease

There are some foods that should be avoided by the people who are suffering from rosacea. These are chocolate and other dairy products, some vegetables like eggplant and beans, fruits like the plum, some citrus foods and coffee and other products with caffeine. Smoking and drinking alcoholic beverages should be avoided.  Rosacea is not caused by alcohol abuse, but in people who have rosacea, drinking alcohol may cause symptoms to get worse.


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