WHY IS MY FACE RED?

One in 20 people has rosacea, which causes facial flushing and redness, yet most of us do not know what it is. Many people with rosacea assume they have either sensitive skin or acne. This is especially worrying because if rosacea is left untreated it becomes progressively worse. There is no cure, but you can keep it under control if you know what to do.

What Does It Look Like?
Symptoms of rosacea include mild to constant flushing and spot-type breakouts. You may get a sudden sensitivity to products you have used for ages, and during a flare-up (which will last around 30 mins) your skin may burn and itch. The skin on your nose, chin and forehead are most affected and can become sore and swollen.

What Causes It?
Rosacea is an abnormality of facial blood vessels and its most likely cause is genetic, with 40% of sufferers saying someone else in their family has it too. Symptoms usually start in the 30s to 50s and, although hormones do not cause rosacea, if you are already genetically prone, hormonal changes (such as during the menopause) can aggravate the condition.

What happens During The Attack?
Too much blood is pumped through your capillaries, causing them to stretch and lose their elasticity. This makes them unable to work properly, so the capillaries become overloaded and your skin goes red. Your lymphatic system cannot take away all this extra fluid and it builds up in the surrounding tissue, causing inflammation and swelling.

What Brings On An Attack?
Rosacea-prone skin is stimulated very easily by the following common triggers.

• Hot liquids such as coffee and tea; alcohol (especially red wine); spicy foods; and histamine-producing foods such as tomatoes. Keep a food diary so you can work out exactly what triggers an attack for you.
• Stress, as it stimulates your system, causing increased capillary action.
• Changes or extremes in temperature (winter can be the worst time for rosacea sufferers, as they alternate between the cold outdoors and heated indoors).
• Intense exercise that stimulates the skin, such as running or hot yoga. Much better options are regular hatha yoga, walking and pilates.
• Smoking, which depletes the body's vitamin C levels, causing weaker capillaries.

The best thing you can do for your skin is create a barrier between it and the outside world.

What Can I Do To Improve It?
Avoid triggers as much as possible, and practice slowing down, because reducing your stress levels can have massive effect on your skin. It is also well worth seeing an experienced skin therapist who can recommend the right products. You can seriously improve your skin just by knowing what to avoid.

Your enemies include any face scrubs and peels; alcohol; fragrance (the number one sensitizer in products); with hazel, menthol, peppermint and eucalyptus oil (which are all astringent); and oil-based creams that feel greasy on your skin. The best thing you can do for your skin is create a barrier between it and the outside world. You should also keep well moisturized to prevent water loss and protect your skin from the sun all year round with a mineral-based sunscreen to deflect capillary-damaging sunlight.

Other rosacea-friendly ingredients to look out for include aloe vera, allantoin (from the comfrey plant) and arnica, which are all great anti-inflammatories; red clover and red raspberry, which strengthen capillaries; liquorice, which is both an anti-inflammatory and an antioxidant; and chamomile and lavender, which are soothing. The best way to treat spots is with a dab of tea tree oil applied on a cotton bud. As for make-up, a great choice for rosacea sufferers is mineral make-up, as it is non-pore-blocking and oil-free, minimum allergy risk and anti-inflammatory