Along with effective treatments, improving your skin may be as simple as making a few changes to your diet. At Bayview General Medicine, Dr. Richard Blandchar offers patients throughout the Fort Lauderdale area cutting-edge laser therapy to reduce the appearance of rosacea. Find out how easy-to-implement dietary changes can complement your treatment.
From discomfort to embarrassment, having rosacea is no walk in the park. But did you know that dermatologists routinely recommend dietary changes to reduce rosacea flare-ups and promote healthier skin?
Rosacea is a common inflammatory skin condition that causes facial redness, and often the skin develops a bumpy texture that looks like acne. Incidentally, the inflammatory potential of your daily grub may aggravate your skin. Here are a few changes you can make to get on the winning end of the rosacea battle.
You may want to give your diet an overhaul if you’re frequently munching on sugar-laden foods like cookies and candy, or drinking sugary beverages. A subset of rosacea patients finds that limiting their sugar intake helps reduce flare-ups.
If you know you’re guilty of giving in to your sweet tooth, it’s worth a try to trim the sugar from your diet. You may be unaware of just how much sugar you’re consuming. Most adults significantly underestimate the amount of the sweet stuff they take in each day.
It doesn’t help that sugar is often hidden in foods that aren’t thought of as sweet, like ketchup and other condiments. Or, that even so-called health foods, such as protein bars and smoothies, are often full of sugar.
Talk to Dr. Blanchar about your sugar intake. If you cut it back, you’re likely to notice an improvement in your rosacea.
For decades fat has gotten a bad rap – and it’s true, eating too much of certain fats is bad news when it comes to health. However, not all fats are created equal, and the omega-3 variety may even help calm rosacea flares.
Omega-3 fats have strong anti-inflammatory properties and help reduce inflammation in the body. Because rosacea is an inflammatory condition, it makes sense that a diet rich in omega-3 fats benefits rosacea.
So, if you aren’t consuming much in the way of omega-3s, you may want to start. Fatty fish provide the richest sources.
Fish highest in omega fats include:
Aim to eat at least two servings of fish each week. If you need space for fish in your diet, try swapping out a red meat meal.
When you think of fiber, commercials geared toward seniors likely come to mind, but you don’t need to be in your twilight years to reap the benefits of fiber. Besides, if you’re like most Americans, you’re not getting enough of it – and the fact that it helps control rosacea is another good reason to start boosting your intake.
Fiber promotes healthy gut bacteria, and certain strains of these friendly critters have demonstrated anti-inflammatory effects throughout the body, including the skin. So think twice next time you consider passing up a high-fiber food.
If your fiber intake is currently low, kick it up a notch by adding beans, lentils, whole grains, and fruits and vegetables to your diet.
Rosacea doesn’t have to rule your life. Take control of it today. Call or click to request an appointment with Dr. Blanchar to get on the road to having skin you can be proud of.
