After years of learning about rosacea, I’ve come to understand that there are things in my daily routine I used to do that could have contributed to the break down of my skin barrier. I really didn’t know much about the structure of our skin and it’s been enlightening. I always assumed the thicker the moisturizer, the better. Little did I know that my skin wasn’t absorbing any moisture which is why it always remained so dry. I was misinformed about several other things about skincare and as a result, I was actually damaging my skin even more. Here are some of the things I was doing regularly that I wish I hadn’t.
Extremely Hot Showers
The one thing that was always constant in my life was the luxury of my daily hot shower. It felt not only like my personal spa time, but also my space for meditation and self-help. I have lifted myself out of many funks. I have made plans, I have organized my day, I have cooled my hostilities, I have attempted to wash the heavy feelings of regret, I have weighed the value of relationships, I have calculated risks and I have calmed my anxiety.
I hadn’t a clue that decades of essentially boiling myself like a lobster would come at a cost. Although I do remember reading that Elizabeth Hurley takes 2 minutes freezing cold showers and Jennifer Aniston showers in less than 10 minutes, when you are young, thinking about anything anti-aging is miles away from your thoughts.
I would allow hot water to flow down my face directly and after a shower I would rub my towel against my delicate skin to dry it. My skin would be bright red and then start to fade. But when full rosacea hit, it stopped fading. It turns out hot water is the devil. It causes blood vessels to dilate, leading to increased blood flow and facial flushing. The heat can exacerbate inflammation and hot water also strips the skin of natural oils, resulting in dry skin. Since dryness further irritates the skin, it can be a trigger for rosacea flare-ups.
Over Exfoliating
Growing up, we were constantly exposed to commercials of young women using face washes with tiny microbeads that cleansed and exfoliated the skin at the same time. The women would of course be glowing. So we thought we also needed to use the same exfoliating cleanser to remove dirt and dead skin and it felt great rubbing those little beads around my face. The problem was that nobody ever warned people to not use it everyday.
Over-exfoliating can damage the skin’s protective barrier, leading to more sensitivity, dryness and irritation. Like hot water, it can strip the skin of it’s natural oils and cause increased dryness. Harsh physical exfoliants can also cause micro-tears in the skin. The compromised barrier can make the skin susceptible to common rosacea triggers like sunlight, temperature changes and certain skincare products.
The Wrong Skincare
Products that contain fragrances, alcohols and abrasive ingredients such as acids can irritate the skin. They can trigger or make rosacea flare-ups worse. Here are a few kinds of products that can trigger rosacea:
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Exfoliants and scrubs – especially those with physical abrasives or strong chemical exfoliants.
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Foaming cleansers – often contain sulfates that strip the skin barrier.
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Astringents and toners – especially alcohol-based ones, which can dry and irritate the skin.
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Anti-aging creams – many contain strong actives like retinoids or AHAs.
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Acne treatments – often too drying or irritating for rosacea-prone skin.
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Heavy or greasy moisturizers – can clog pores and worsen inflammation.
Watch out for irritating ingredients found in skincare, including menthol, camphor, eucalyptus, peppermint, sodium lauryl sulfate, retinoids like tretinoin, alpha hydroxy acids and beta hydroxy acids, benzoyl peroxide and witch hazel. But that’s not an exhaustive list and everyone reacts differently to chemicals unfortunately. For example, many experts say that niacinamide and hyalauronic acid are great for rosacea but I have always reacted negatively to both. I didn’t realize this until going through many products and hundreds of dollars later!
As I mentioned earlier, I thought the thicker the moisturizer, the softer my skin would become. I didn’t realize that it was actually making my inflammation worse. Also look out for certain chemicals often found in Korean skincare which were counterproductive to my healing as well: propylene glycol and butylene glycol. Also applying any type of face mask for a long period with the wrong chemicals can cause a skin reaction.
Not Using a Humidifier
I live in Canada and our winters can be rather harsh. With the furnace constantly running, the air becomes very dry. This affects rosacea sufferers immensely. I hate maintaining humidifiers. They often require thorough cleaning or else mold can build up. I thought if I placed small containers of water around the ducts in our room it would be good enough. But my skin was a mess and full of flakes. Any products I used to try to moisturize with was useless and so my face remained red, extremely dry and inflamed for the entire winter season. Once windows opened up and the furnace ran less, my skin texture started to improve a little.
Too Much Sugar
I’ll be discussing my diet more as I continue documenting my rosacea journey. One thing worth mentioning now though is that eating sugar was a bad habit for me because it was every day. I know some of you are saying, ‘hey my friend eats nothing but junk and she has glass skin.’ I know, I see her and I hate her too. But everybody is different and when you have really inflamed and compromised skin like we rosacea sufferers do, then you need to consider reducing your sugar intake. AI explains here how eating sugar can lead to inflammation. Rosacea is a chronic inflammatory condition.
Insulin Spikes & Acne
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Blood Sugar Surges: High sugar intake spikes insulin and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), which increases sebum (oil) production.
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Acne Breakouts: Excess sebum and inflammation clog pores, leading to acne, cysts, and hormonal breakouts.
Chronic Inflammation
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Cytokine Release: Sugar triggers pro-inflammatory cytokines (like IL-6 and TNF-alpha), worsening conditions like eczema, psoriasis, and rosacea.
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Gut-Skin Axis: Excess sugar disrupts gut bacteria, promoting leaky gut, which allows toxins into the bloodstream, triggering skin inflammation.
I suggest you evaluate your daily habits and think about if they are contributing to your skin issues at all.