Skin Care for Men With Rosacea

THE SPECIAL NEEDS OF MEN WITH ROSACEA

SKIN CARE

Men with rosacea face several unique challenges to controlling their rosacea. Whereas women are quite comfortable wearing makeup to cover up the signs of their rosacea redness, many men hesitate to apply foundation to their skin. One possible solution to this would be to apply a green cover up lotion. While this will not completely hide or mask the redness, the green tint does tone down the redness. When applying the cover up lotion you want to take care to apply lightly and evenly. These green tint lotions are marketed under several different names, the most commonly found one would be Eucerin’s Anti-Redness lotion and cream. While they make a lot of claims that the product doesn’t always live up to – it is a good quick, “my face is red this morning, how can I tone it down solution”. One thing to be aware of is the ingredient licochalcone in the lotion which the makers claim is a skin soothing extract of licorice root. Licorice root can interfere with other medical conditions or medications you may be taking for other conditions. 

It’s always good to check the ingredients on the product labels. Lanolin often found in moisturizers and skin care products is another ingredient that can be irritating to the skin. Anything that professes to be anti-wrinkle or anti-aging will be too harsh and irritating to the skin resulting in increased facial redness. 

Many men have trouble with shaving causing irritation. Some men will opt to grow a beard to hide the redness, but this can result in flaky dry patches under the beard called seborrhea dermatitis. Scratching or scrubbing to remove the flaky patches only makes the redness and irritation worse. The solution here if you chose to wear a beard to cover up your redness is to apply a drop or two of 100% pure jojoba oil twice a day to the beard area. Dampen the skin and lightly massage the oil into the beard area.

For those who chose not to grow facial hair to hide their redness, you will find that an electric wet/dry razor for shaving is the least irritating to the skin. One very good wet/dry razor is the Panasonic Wet/Dry Electric Razor. For the least irritating effect you want to shave with the skin wet using a shaving cream for sensitive skin with Dimethicone skin protectant in it. One possible brand to consider would the Noxzema Medicated Shaving Cream for Extra Sensitive Skin with Dimethicone skin protectant.  Some men find that the electric razors do not shave close enough to suit their facial hair growth, if this is the case, a disposable razor for sensitive skin and replace the blades or razors every two to three days still using the same shaving cream with Dimethicone. A lot of men and women have found that when they can’t locate any other cleanser or soap to cleanse their skin without causing it further redness and irritation that the shaving  cream with dimethicone is the answer. 

Addressing the redness from the inside will also be beneficial. Increasing your water intake will help to hydrate the skin,lessening the effects of irritation and redness. Spicy hot wings are great but you may pay the price with a redder complexion. So if you combine the internal tips to reduce redness with the external tips for redness reduction, you will gradually find the right balance that controls you redness without compromising your lifestyle.