Ok first things first though! Be sure to look at your nutrition and your triggers while you’re doing this. The toughest patient to get “unred” we’ve ever treated was a women in her 50s, going through menopause (hot flushes), a chef so in a hot kitchen, and at wine tastings all the time.
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Lifestyle things to consider:
- Try to identify your personal triggers and avoid them. A common one is alcohol, especially highly sulfated red wines. European wines generally contain less sulfates, for example. Coffee, hot liquids, spicy foods are more common ones. I have rosacea too and oddly, soy products and certain green teas trigger me. It can be quite individual.
- See a board certified dermatologist. If you see FAAD after the MD, that’s good. It means Fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology or board certified.
- Consider trying an anti-inflammatory diet for a month or two and see if it helps. You can google these and there are several good books.
- Take a good quality probiotic every morning. We put almost everyone on them now, and it helps with many of our patients.
- There is a connection between the gut biome and the skin biome that we don’t completely understand, but research is being done.
- Flushing with exercise is normal and encouraged. ?
Laser related:
- Usually 3-5 treatments, in the initial series, with an IPL or Vbeam if you are really red and flushy. If the rosacea is mild, 1-2 might do it for the initial series.
- Experts differ on the IPL versus the Vbeam. We like the IPL because we have a powerful one, plus an Nd:YAG (used on larger vessels), because it gets the redness, brown spots and builds some collagen (glow) at the same time. The Vbeam just does red, and does it well.
- IPLs are not created equally. Many Medispas have weak ones, and often the ‘technicians’ don’t know how to customize the treatment for optimal results. If you’re not getting the results, you might need to pay a little more, and go to a dermatologists office.
- Cheap is NOT good with laser work usually!
- Maintenance usually requires 1-2 treatments per year.
- Generally there is no bruising with the IPL and you can go right back to work with a little concealer, make-up or tinted sunscreen.
- If you have melasma, IPLs or Vbeams, may and often do make it worse. Be sure to tell your provider.
Hope this helps,
Dr. B, MD, FAAD
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