Make-up Induced Rosacea

Moisturizers, toners and makeup can all worsen rosacea. Rosacea sufferers can use a variety of skin-care products to their advantage. Moisturizers can reduce flakiness and makeups can camouflage symptoms and improve appearance. You may have to experiment until you find the products that work best for your individual condition. Here are some general guidelines that will help you select products carefully:
Avoid ingredients that sting, burn or cause facial redness. Some ingredients to avoid include alcohol, witch hazel, menthol, peppermint, eucalyptus oil or clove oil.
Select fragrance-free products. If you must choose a product that contains a fragrance, be sure that it appears at the end of the list of ingredients. The further down it appears, the less fragrance the product contains.
Use makeup to hide blemishes and cover redness. Spot application of makeup may be used to cover blemishes and visible blood vessels, and green-tinted base foundations are available at most cosmetic counters to mask general redness. They can be followed by a skin-tone foundation. Avoid powders, which can make dry flaky skin look worse.

Medical Conditions Can Aggravate Rosacea

Physicians have found that some underlying health conditions and temporary ailments can stimulate a flushing response and trigger rosacea flare-ups. The following conditions should be ruled out or treated by your doctor as appropriate to help bring flare-ups under control:

*Hot flashes associated with menopause. The hot flashes that often occur before or during menopause have brought on rosacea's first appearance in some women.

*Fevers, coughs and colds. Although intermittent, these ills may provoke the flushing that begins a rosacea flare-up.

*Systemic diseases. Occasionally systemic diseases, such as high blood pressure, have been identified as causes of rosacea flare-ups. When flushing is accompanied by itching, breathing difficulties or diarrhea, seek medical attention.

Medication Induced Rosacea Flare-ups

Certain medications can cause or increase the incidence of facial flushing, resulting in rosacea flare-ups. If you experience flare-ups as a result of the following medications, discuss the problem with your doctor:

Vasodilator drugs: These drugs are used in the treatment of cardiovascular disease because of their ability to dilate the blood vessels. In some patients, they have been reported to cause symptoms called "vasodilator rosacea."

Topical steroids: Long-term use of topical steroids has been found to aggravate rosacea or induce rosacea-like symptoms. In one study, symptoms improved for patients who discontinued the steroids and were prescribed antibiotics.

Oral Antibiotics: Oral antibiotics create a two-fold situation. Oral antibiotics have also been known to cause facial redness, edema, or skin irritation and/or sun-sensitivity. You'll also notice oral antibiotics often carry a warning on the label to "take with plenty of water". Use of antibiotics can cause dehydration and often upset the pH balance of the body.

Rosacea Skin Care

Rosacea Skin Care starts with a proper lifestyle. Sometimes the simple things in life are ignored. Over time, the lack of simple maintenance can have drastic effects on your skin and body. The foods we eat, the products we use, and our daily activities all have an effect on our body.
Rosacea Skin Care and the foods we eat:
We have all heard the saying "You are what you eat". This statement is 100% true. Some of the foods and drinks to stay away from if you have rosacea are spicy foods (including spices like pepper), sweets like candy bars and cake, foods with a high fat content, soda to include diet soda and sugar filled drinks, coffee and tea, and alcohol. Each have different reactions to the body. Sugar and fat, when broken down are very acidic. Spicy foods and stimulants like coffee can increase blood pressure which leads to increased flushing. Keeping the body's PH Level above a 7.0 is healthy.

FDA Tightens Rules For Accutane Usage

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Patients and doctors must register with manufacturers before using or prescribing Roche Holding AG's acne drug Accutane or its generic versions, U.S. regulators said on Friday.
The requirement is part of a plan to strengthen safeguards meant to keep pregnant women from taking Accutane, the Food and Drug Administration said in a statement. The drug can cause birth defects.
The FDA also said it approved changes to existing warnings "so that patients and prescribers can better identify and manage the risks of psychiatric symptoms and depression" before and after prescribing Accutane.
The FDA had announced plans for tighter controls on Accutane in November 2004.
Accutane also is known by the generic name isotretinoin. Mylan Laboratories Inc., Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd. and Barr Pharmaceuticals sell generic versions of the drug.

Caring For Rosacea Sensitive Skin

Rosacea-sufferers should apply only a few basic products on their skin. They should restrain themselves from trying too many new products. Unfortunately, this is difficult as many are desperate and tend to succumb to this practice. It is best to choose products with simple formulations and few ingredients. Moreover, rosacea sufferers should apply less than the usual recommended amount initially until their skin acclimates to a new product. Those with severe conditions, who cannot tolerate any topical product, should be treated with oral medications and other procedures outlined in the article. Only after the inflammation and symptoms of irritation calm down should they venture to try new skin care products. When doing this, it is a good idea to start with one product at a time for 3 to 4 days before adding another one. This allows one to eliminate a culprit-product should irritation occur. I highly recommend choosing a small area of the face as a test site rather than applying a new product on the whole face.
• Avoid irritants. Any ingredient or product that provokes symptoms such as itching, stinging, burning or flushing should be discontinued. Unfortunately, certain products approved to treat rosacea papules/pustules and acne can induce such symptoms.
• Protect the skin from the elements of sun, wind, heat and cold. The impaired epidermal barrier in rosacean skin should be protected and allowed to heal. This can be achieved by wearing a silicone-coated physical sunscreen that offers adequate barrier function and capability.
• Conceal redness with a non-irritating foundation or mineral powder if tolerated. This is helpful in coping with the condition emotionally.
• Avoid high-potency topical corticosteroid. This treatment can give short-term relief but long-term steroid addiction, thinning of the skin and further progression of rosacea.
• Be gentle with the skin – avoid rubbing, squeezing of pustules and apply products by gently patting them on skin.

Mineral Make-Ups

Mineral Make ups, although slightly more expensive offer an excellent alternative to rosacea sufferers. Mineral makeup is as pure as it gets -- void of talc, chemical additives, fragrance, fillers, preservatives and dyes, it’s an excellent choice for rosacea skin care. Growing from a need for cosmetics gentle enough to use on skin after chemical peels or resurfacing treatments, mineral makeup is made from finely crushed, high pigment minerals. It has virtually no allergy risk and will not clog pores or irritate sensitivities. And because minerals such as titanium dioxide and zinc oxide are used as the base, these cosmetics are loaded with natural UV protection. "The beauty of mineral makeup is that it can be used by all ages and all skin types,"explains Kathy Krakora. The light-reflective properties of the mineral powders actually draw attention away from fine lines. Zinc oxide, one of the base minerals, is anti-inflammatory, which means it calms the skin down. So it's perfect for people with blemishes, rosacea, oily skin, dry skin or for immediate post-treatment use." And because it is talc-free, mineral makeup actually holds in moisture, keeping skin hydrated and averting wrinkles. A little goes a long way All makeup is not created equally and because mineral makeup is in such a pure form, there's no need to use as much of it as regular makeup. "Three words," Krakora says, "Less is more."