Is your rosacea aggravated by one or more of these triggers?

Although not every rosacea patient responds to the same triggers, the list of potential rosacea triggers in various individuals may be endless.

The National Rosacea Society published a survey of 1,066 rosacea patients. They found that the most common factors were exposure to sun, stress, heat, wind, heavy exercise and alcohol consumption. Here’s a list of factors and the percentage of people who found them to trigger rosacea:

Factors

81% Sun exposure
79% Emotional stress
75% Hot weather
57% Wind
56% Heavy exercise
52% Alcohol consumption
51% Hot baths
46% Cold weather
45% Spicy foods
44% Humidity
41% Indoor heat
41% Certain skin-care products
36% Heated beverages
27% Certain cosmetics
15% Medications
15% Medical conditions
13% Certain fruits
10% Marinated meats
9% Certain vegetables
8% Dairy products
24% Other factors

The following list was compiled from patient histories by Dr. Jonathan Wilkin and produced by the National Rosacea Society.

Foods

• Liver


• Yogurt


• Sour cream


• Cheese (except cottage cheese)


• Chocolate


• Vanilla


• Soy sauce


• Yeast extract (bread is ok)


• Vinegar


• Eggplant


• Avocados


• Spinach


• Broad-leaf beans and pods, including lima, navy or pea


• Citrus fruits, tomatoes, bananas, red plums, raisins, figs


• Spicy and thermally hot foods


• Foods high in histamine

Heat related

• Saunas


• Hot baths


• Simple overheating


• Excessively warm environments

Weather

• Sun


• Strong winds


• Cold


• Humidity

Drugs

• Vasodilators


• Topical steroids

Beverages

• Alcohol, especially red wine, beer, bourbon, gin, vodka or champagne


• Hot drinks, including hot cider, hot chocolate, coffee or tea

Emotional influences

• Stress


• Anxiety


• Exercise

Skin care products

• Many cosmetics and hair sprays, especially those containing alcohol, witch hazel or fragrances


• Hydro-alcoholic or acetone substances


• Any substance that causes redness or stinging

Other triggers

• Frequent flushing


• Menopause


• Chronic cough


• Caffeine withdrawal syndrome

This is by no means an exhaustive list, but these are the most common rosacea triggers. If you haven’t already noticed any of them as causative factors, start paying attention to what your specific triggers may be. Keep a notebook and jot down your activities, weather and/or environmental conditions, the foods you eat and drink and the products that you use. After a while you’ll begin to see patterns.

Once you know what triggers your rosacea, you’ll be able to protect yourself or avoid the trigger.