3 Surprising Rosacea Triggers You Probably Never Suspected From A Derm

Well, in this week's episode of Clean Beauty School, I did a deep dive into the condition with board-certified dermatologist Estee Williams, M.D. In the episode we discuss the wide variety of causes and triggers—if you have rosacea or experience flushing, tune in to get a better understanding of what might be your skin's tipping point. Here, three very surprising triggers and causes of rosacea:

While there's still much to learn about the ways hormones influence rosacea, according to Williams the connection is unmistakable. "When we look at the demographics of rosacea—you know, more women in their midlife decades—you can't ignore the connection with hormones and hormonal changes," she says. "Although it hasn't been as well defined, we know that there's a hormonal component to rosacea. And this is why patients with rosacea tend to report flares during pregnancy or during perimenopause, for example." Or if you experience periods, you may see changes fluctuating depending on what stage of the cycle you are in. 

"It's thought that there is an abundance of Demodex mites, which is a tiny mite found on everyone's skin but in slightly greater numbers in rosacea patients," she says, noting more research is needed in this area (as the microbiome research is still relatively young across the board). "All these little microbes living on us—whether they're bacteria or fungi or in this case, mites—are constantly playing a part in skin function, whether that's in normal skin or in disease states. It's just a matter of us figuring out what exactly is going on."

Rather, she says, if you can identify a few that give you particular issues—just be mindful of their effects and don't consume them in excess.