Sarah’s Health Notes: How to help rosacea
While rosy cheeks may look healthy-pretty and a pop of blush can make your eyes sparkle, being permanently red-faced is not so easy to deal with, as we’ve heard from readers over the years. Here are some ideas on skincare and make-up to soothe and camouflage skin that’s prone to redness and rosacea
There’s a mine of helpful general information online at rosacea.org, the website of the American National Rosacea Society. But I wanted to look at cosmetic brands and products to help this inflammatory skin condition. One thing to start with: check that products are fragrance-free and allergy tested. Oh, and a second thing: sadly not every product will suit everyone with rosacea. If the product causes a flare up, note the likely villains in the ingredients and try to avoid in future.
Starting with skincare: Dr. Charlene de Haven, clinical director of prescription skincare brand iS Clinical, tells me that research still centres on rosacea being an inflammatory condition primarily driven by vascular hyperreactivity – the medical term referring to blood vessels (invariably in the face with rosacea) having an over-sensitive response to stimuli (stress, UV radiation, certain foods, cosmetic ingredients and more), so they dilate easily and frequently, causing the signature flushing, redness and visible blood vessels.
The add-on for researchers now, Dr de Haven says, is exploring the role of genes in the process. That gets a bit complicated but the interesting thing is that there’s evidence to show botanicals can help not only calm the inflammation but also work on some of the accompanying genetic markers and the proteins they produce, which influence inflammation. In due course, that research will hopefully lead to new drugs but meanwhile plant-based topicals are definitely a category to consider.
iS Clinical offers a skin regime for rosacea, formulated with pharmaceutical grade botanical ingredients, which they say, ‘work synergistically and safely with skin cells to soothe and calm the symptoms’.
Janet Hayward, former beauty editor and founder of Australian organic brand Ipsum Best Skin, says: ‘the key is to look for gentle, anti-inflammatory ingredients in a simple formula’. In all Ipsum products, she uses native botanicals, long used medicinally. Her new Nutrient-Rich Moisturising Cream – her first non oil formula - provides instant hydration and comfort for all skins, including rosacea and redness-prone complexions.
With a base of aloe vera, one of my favourite skin-healing botanicals, this features natural anti-inflammatories squalane and Lilly Pilly (love the name!), a rich source of vitamin C. Other potent but gentle plant extracts include Kangaroo Paw Flower (no animals were harmed…) and omega-rich mango seed butter, plus macadamia, sea buckthorn and jojoba oils.
Other skincare brands much liked in rosacea circles are Avène Redness Expert Range, also Cetaphil PRO Redness Prone Skin products, available at Boots. Cetaphil offer a Redness Control Bundle with Face Wash, Day Cream and Night Cream for Redness Prone Skin for a reasonable £49.47. (NB Cetaphil includes some natural ingredients but is largely synthetic.)
Moving on to make-up:
Firstly, always cleanse your hands and then your skin thoroughly before applying products. But be gentle! Don't rub or pull with your fingers and beware of using a washcloth or towel because they may cause irritation. Make-up sponges are not a good idea; best are scrupulously clean (again, always) antibacterial brushes.
It’s vital to wear sunscreen every day year round, with broad-spectrum UV defence. Using a multifunction product can minimise the number of different potentially irritating ingredients and the number of times you need to touch your face. Rosalique 3 in 1 Anti Redness Miracle Formula SPF50 is a prescription-free treatment that instantly conceals and reduces redness in hypersensitive and rosacea-prone skin as well as protecting it from UVA and UVB.
Erborian CC Red Correct Cream SPF25 is also multi purpose. Don't worry that it looks green at first, there’s method in that because green colour corrects red. Also this clever product adapts to match your skin (the non-red parts). Use it on its own or as a primer under oil-free foundation and/or concealer.
A longtime favourite, Clinique Redness Solutions Makeup SPF15 is fragrance-free with ‘probiotic technology’ to help tackle the inflammation. Only four fair-ish shades, all giving medium coverage, but the brand says these are the ones most in demand.
Mineral make-up is popular with rosacea sufferers as the properly pure stuff, i.e. with just the minerals like bareMinerals Original Loose Powder SPF15 Foundation, is both naturally soothing and free of added ingredients that can exacerbate the condition. You apply it with a kabuki brush so, again, do make sure the brush is clean.
For really hard to conceal rosacea, the charity Changing Faces offers a personal Skin Camouflage Service. Find the details here.
