Rosacea Triggers

Rosacea causes extreme skin sensitivity, making it prone to flare-ups from various triggers. These triggers vary from person to person, and even with treatment, flare-ups can still occur. By identifying your personal triggers and making simple lifestyle adjustments, you can:

• Reduce flare-ups
• Improve treatment results
• Prevent rosacea from worsening

Use this 3-step process to find your unique rosacea triggers.

Step 1: Identify potential rosacea triggers

To discover your triggers, you'll need to do some detective work. Review this list of common rosacea triggers and try to recall if any have caused your flare-ups.

Common Triggers (Ranked By Most to Least Common)

• Sun exposure
• Emotional stress
• Hot weather
• Wind
• Intense exercise
• Alcohol consumption
• Hot baths/showers
• Cold weather
• Spicy foods
• Humidity
• Indoor heat
• Certain skin-care products
• Heated beverages
• Specific cosmetics
• Medications
• Medical conditions
• Certain fruits
• Marinated meats
• Certain vegetables
• Dairy products

Find a more extensive list of triggers here

Step 2: Confirm your triggers

Now that you know what could be causing your rosacea flares, it’s time to gather the evidence. I recommend writing in a notebook or using the National Rosacea Society Rosacea Diary.

Write down possible triggers (foods you eat, beverages you drink, personal care products you use, and things you are exposed to (like cold and heat) every day for at least two weeks..

Look at the items you checked on the form to see what coincides with your rosacea flares.

You’ll also want to describe your rosacea symptoms, jotting down how serious they are.

Keeping track of these things for a few weeks (or months) can help you pinpoint what causes your flare-ups.

Step 3: Make some changes.

Once you know what’s triggering your rosacea flares, taking action can help you avoid those triggers.