All about rosacea

Rosacea is a condition that we get lots of inquiries about. It's another very mysterious and misunderstood condition that happens to affect about 14 million Americans and 3 million Canadians.

So what exactly is rosacea, and why is it such a mysterious, but common condition?

Rosacea is a chronic, inflammatory skin condition that mostly affects the face. (see the picture on the right for common presentations). It's mysterious, and by that we mean often misdiagnosed,because no one knows what causes it. Although the cause is unknown, there are many known triggers that can cause a flare-up or make symptoms worse. The list of potential triggers is long, and includes stress and hot weather, amongst other things that fall into the category of "Good Luck Avoiding These Things..." (You can see the list here.)

Since the cause is unknown, there is no cure. There's a theory that microscopic mites called demodex folliculorum may have something to do with it because, although these tiny critters live on everyone's skin (which is just too gross to even think about...), rosacea sufferers have many, many more. This theory is kind of a chicken and egg situation though: Do the mites cause rosacea, or does rosacea cause a proliferation of the mites? Go ahead and ponder that over your afternoon coffee.

In any event, currently the best rosacea sufferers can do is manage the annoying and often significant and embarrassing symptoms.

Since the primary symptoms are persistent redness, flushing, and/or pimples (usually distinguished from acne by the lack of blackheads), rosacea is often mistaken for and misdiagnosed as eczema or acne.

So what's the poor rosacea sufferer to do? Well, take drugs of course! But hold on, before you go the drug route, remember there is no such thing as a drug with no side-effects, and no one wants to trade one condition for another. Drugs should be a very, very last resort.

Ok, so redness is the result of inflammation. Enlarged blood vessels are the result of dilation. And pimples? Well, they're the result of clogged pores (maybe those pesky mites are doing some pore-clogging??)

So how can Simple Sugars help people with rosacea manage these symptoms? Well, let's break it down:

1) Antioxidants (like those found in green tea and green coffee bean extract) have natural anti-inflammatory action. 

2) Caffeine causes blood vessels to constrict and get smaller (that's the opposite of dilate, just in case you're not following here..)

3) Gentle cleansing is important to flush out and unlcog the pores.

Both our Green Tea and Coffee facials cover all of these bases. Throw in some emu oil for kicked up moisture and healing benefits and now you can see how Simple Sugars can potentially be your non-drug, all-natural solution to a condition that wreaks havoc on the self-esteem.

It certainly helped Stephanie's husband. You can read their success story here. It might just help you too.