Making My Skin Even Better

Enjoying Summer With Rosacea

by Virgil Mccoy

Most people enjoy the summertime. The weather is warm, the sun is shining, and there's plenty of opportunities for backyard get-togethers, parties, and festivals. Unfortunately, if you have rosacea, these can all be triggers for a flareup. Here are four tips to help you enjoy yourself while not worsening your skin.

Avoid Alcohol

While cold beers and frozen fruity cocktails are common in summer, the alcohol can instantly trigger a reaction. According to a rosacea study of 700 people cited on WebMD, red wine was the biggest trigger, followed by white wine, so skip the wine if you know alcohol is a personal trigger. If you really want to be able to have the occasional drink, become a Scotch aficionado. Just 21 percent of people in the study reported a reaction to Scotch.

Protect Your Skin From The Sun

Sun is a major trigger for most people with rosacea. It's kind of hard to avoid the sun completely during the summer. This is why it's important for everyone to use sunscreen when they are outdoors, but for the rosacea sufferer, it is imperative.

Anytime you are outside, wear a high SPF sunscreen. Reapply it regularly throughout the day and immediately after swimming. Men and women both can wear wide-brimmed floppy hats to shade their face from the sun. Don a good pair of UV protection sunglasses, as well. 

Keep a spray bottle of water nearby to mist your face if you feel yourself becoming overheated. A recent study suggests that people with rosacea may have increased nervous system activity in their blood vessels and sweat glands and that the heat can trigger this hyperactivity. If you feel yourself becoming overheated, take a break and head indoors to cool down.

Watch What You Eat

If you are like most people with rosacea, you already know some foods that tend to trigger a reaction. Unfortunately, these foods are different for everyone, and they can even vary overtime in a person, causing a trigger one time but not at others. It can be very frustrating.

Spicy foods are a very common trigger. They are also very common in the summer months. Capsaicin is the active component in red chili peppers. This substance has definitively been found to increase body temperature. Of course, peppers are common in the spices used in Mexican or Cajun cooking. Considering the above mentioned study that a hyperactive nervous system may be at work, it's easy to see why spicy foods would be a common trigger for many. If you find yourself at a party with spicy foods, consider sticking to pasta salads and other foods that are less likely to cause a problem.  Keeping a food diary can be a very effective way of helping to identify those foods that cause issues. 

Schedule A Checkup With Your Dermatologist

New research on the various rosacea subtypes, medications, and treatment protocols are constantly being explored. If it has been a while since you have seen your dermatologist, make an appointment at a clinic like Georgia Skin Cancer & Aesthetic Dermatology to see what your current options are.

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