Rosacea is a condition where skin is reddened and irritated, often flaring up to darken large regions on the face with a pink, red or purple color. It is estimated to affect over 16 million Americans, and its unwanted appearance has been shown to significantly undermine sociability and self-esteem in many cases. Especially after the age of 30, many people begin to notice the early symptoms of skin reddening and rosacea. Thinking it will improve on its own, countless people leave it untreated — but over time, rosacea tends to worsen if left untreated.
While the causes of rosacea are not fully known — there are likely both genetic and environmental components — proper skin care can greatly mitigate and reduce redness and irritation, helping treat rosacea at any stage. Here are three top tips and product recommendations for treating redness, rosacea and sensitive skin:
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Apply a gentle cleanser twice daily. Rosacea patients require both gentle products and daily cleansing. This isn’t always an easy combination — since cleansers are meant to dissolve and wash away impurities, they often contain harsh soaps, alcohols or acids. These stronger chemicals need to be avoided when treating sensitive, reddened or rosacea skin. However, cleansing is still essential to keeping the skin barrier healthy, fresh and pure.
With that in mind, we recommend our Lavender Creamy Cleanser, which is a very gentle alcohol-free cleanser. It combines relaxing antiseptic lavender essential oil, calming aloe vera and antioxidizing, repairing vitamin E to deeply soothe while cleansing the skin.
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Soothe, repair and protect. Red skin and rosacea are more sensitive, particularly to pollutants, irritants and strong chemicals. Products succeed in reducing redness and rosacea by literally calming the skin, using soothing ingredients such as aloe vera. Repairing and protecting against further damage also can significantly help restore a natural, healthy color using ingredients such as antioxidants and vitamins.
One of our most powerfully soothing, anti-inflammatory products is C-Stem®, which uses lilac stem cells, vitamin C and marine extracts to simultaneously reduce visible signs of aging, brighten, repair and protect.
Another great product that we always recommend for pre- and post-procedure patients is Vitamin K Crème, which greatly reduces bruising. Vitamin K helps rebuild capillaries, improving drainage and soothing inflammation on the skin surface. This product also contains glycerin and lecithin to help restore hydration for softer, healthier skin.
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Protect against sun. Although the absolute causes of rosacea are not fully known, some environmental factors — including sun exposure — have been shown to greatly worsen red flare-ups. While sunscreen is a helpful product for anyone and everyone, it is an absolute necessity for rosacea patients.
CosMedical offers two sunscreen products, both of which provide protection from UVA and UVB and are paraben, sulfate and alcohol-free, making them gentle enough for rosacea patients. For extra-sensitive skin, we recommend our chemical-free mineral sunscreen, Daily Replenishing SPF 30+.
Ultra Replenishing SPF 40 contains the same sun-blockers as Daily Replenishing, plus additional free radical and HEV light protection with lipochroman® and winter cherry.
Help treat rosacea, redness and sensitive skin this month by using gentle, restorative and protective products. With improved color, patients will have much to smile about. View some of our redness and rosacea products here.
