Facial Redness; the causes and what to do about it

Facial redness is one of those mysteries you might have never solved. It's obvious when your face seems more flushed than usual, but you're not always clear what you should do about it or even why you have it. I get it. 

Finding out which skincare to use for redness ain’t easy, because redness isn’t cut and dry. It’s really more of an umbrella term for all of the different causes for red to appear on the skin.

The causes of skin redness

With so many causes of redness in the skin, it’s possible that more than one thing is contributing to that post-exercise flush (*even when you haven’t been sweating it*)

Sensitised skin
Using the wrong skincare products could be damaging your barrier, making your skin red. We find that many will experience additional redness because of products that include fragrances (synthetic smells) or drying alcohols which can cause damage to already wonky protective barriers.

Over-exfoliating is another core culprit of skin sensitisation. Follow the instructions of your cleanser or exfoliant and listen to your skin itself. If it starts to feel tight, red or itchy, give it a rest for a few days.

Chamomile & Walnut Scrub

Genetics
Although we try not to blame our heritage often when it comes to skin, redness is often something you inherit from those who gave you life. Genetics can define the thickness of the skin, how much your capillaries and blood vessels dilate, and how you regulate temperature.

Thinner, paler skin will allow your blood to show through easier (okay, kind of gross, but true) and if you and the fam run hotter and are prone to redness, you’re going to see heat-related redness more frequently. It’s simply logical.

Medical skin concerns
Of course, there’s also rosacea, the medical condition characterised by redness and flushing that recurs or (often) remains. Rosacea is a whole new level of conversation. In clinic, I'm seeing some really terrific results with my rosacea patients and clean skin care, yes, but we're making some big ol' changes on the inside (aka gut health) and seeing huge improvements with this annoying skin condition.

Chat to me here if you want some one on one help with rosacea.

Skincare for redness and what to avoid

It's important to take care of your skin so that it doesn't get all angry at you and appear even redder. Sadly, we can't change genetics, but Face Essentials Pack will keep your skin health and happy though. 

face essentials pack

Your goal for this 'compromised' skin, is to help your skin's protective barrier behave as it should.  We find that a specific set of ingredients assist with repairing this protective barrier and in tern reducing the redness..

Soothing plant extracts
Plants and natural extracts can do more than you think, and there’s a reason they’ve been used the world over for thousands of years.

Ingredients like calendula extract, marshmallow extract, green tea extract and aloe vera are natural born soothers with anti-inflammatory qualities.

The two most important skin vitamins for redness are without a doubt vitamin C and vitamin A. Vitamin C provides the skin with antioxidant protection to stop it from becoming inflamed by external stressors such as UVA and pollution, and vitamin A works over time to re-educate the skin to take care of itself better.  

When we add more good fatty oils to the skin, like shea butter and cocoa butter it performs better and is less prone to irritation. 

Take care of yourself, don’t sunburn (as if you would!!), try to reduce stress (we're a work in progress too on this one) and stick to your regime filled with skincare for redness.


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