REDNESS

Redness

Many people struggle with red and sensitive skin.
Redness on the face can be caused by a variety of factors, including sun damage, seborrhoea, acne.
If you are experiencing sensitive and red skin and want to relieve this sometimes painful condition, it is important to find out what is the main cause of facial redness.

In order to properly treat facial flushing, it is important to look at the underlying causes.

Causes of facial flushing range from serious diseases such as lupus to mild cases of eczema.
Check out the eight most common factors for facial redness and discover ways you can treat redness immediately and maintain a glowing, smooth complexion.

What causes flushing?

Facial erythema can appear differently in each individual. Some people have scattered cobwebs of blood vessels across their face, others have flushing on their cheeks, others only locally.

There are a number of factors and conditions that can cause your face to appear red:

Rosacea – Rosacea is a chronic inflammatory skin disease characterised by symptoms such as facial flushing, dilated blood vessels (telangiectasias), facial redness, papules, pustules and, in severe cases, a bulbous thickening of the nose (rhinophyma).

Seborrhoea – Seborrhoea, or seborrhoeic dermatitis, is a chronic skin disease that can occur at any age – from childhood to adulthood.
Seborrhoea is caused by a yeast in the genus Malassezia.
It is often found on the skin and feeds on sebum.
When the yeast grows, the skin becomes inflamed and the skin responds by forming new cells more quickly in the top layer of the skin.
The dead cells then form the typical signs of seborrhoea – dandruff and scales on the skin.

Eczema – Eczema is characterised by irritation, dryness, itching or redness on the surface of the skin.
People with atopic eczema develop eczematous lesions on the skin in stressful situations such as viral infection, skin irritation from various allergens or psychological stress.

Skin barrier – A damaged skin barrier is usually caused by external factors.
The main culprits are usually:

cleaning the skin with inappropriate cleansers,
overuse of cosmetic products with active ingredients (it is YOUR skin’s tolerance that is relevant here, not just the general instructions for use),
prolonged and continuous exposure to the sun without UV protection,
exposure to irritants; and
low humidity in the environment (this is a problem especially in winter).

A damaged skin barrier shows up on the surface of the skin as redness, dry skin, itching.
Once the signs are recognised, it is very important to act quickly to restore a healthy skin barrier, and the most we can do is prevent it.