Rosacea is not only a cosmetic problem but it can also severely impact a person’s self-confidence and psychological well-being. Discover a proven natural treatment protocol that is highly effective on rosacea skin.
I suffered for many years and tried all medical options on the market with no success. At some point, it became clear to me that I needed to take a different approach and look for the root cause, instead of trying to combat only the symptoms. Following a lot of study and research, I managed to put together this simple yet effective rosacea home remedies protocol.
I would like to point out that I am not a doctor and this is not medical advice, however, I would like to share what has worked for me and other people I know (just to say this approach can be reproduced). We all saw massive success with this home treatment protocol on our rosacea.
By following the below I managed to get rid of my rosacea, which I had been carrying with me for 15 years. Thanks to this treatment protocol have now been rosacea-free for almost 5 years.
Instead of keeping it very general, I prefer to give you concrete actionable advice based on my personal journey with rosacea.
I hope you will see the same dramatic results as I did.
Many ancient cultures believe firmly that the skin is the mirror of the gut. Both Traditional Chinese Medicine as Ayurveda say that any skin condition has its root cause in poor gut health.
Modern medicine is now also slowly discovering the importance of a balanced microbiome more and more in recent years.
I, therefore, encourage you to take measures in order to improve the balance of your gut microbiome.
This allows your immune system to also reduce any inflammation you might have in your body. I also recommend other approaches against inflammation and to strengthen your body as a whole.
These are the measures I would advise you to follow:
- Diet – Avoid eating refined sugar, gluten and dairy or at least reduce their intake as much as possible. I would highly recommend following the autoimmune paleo diet initially to exclude potential food triggers. After a while you may slowly transition to a regular paleo diet, if you notice you tolerate foods that you initially eliminated.
Eat many vegetables to fuel your body with vitamins and minerals and to nourish your beneficial gut bacteria.
- Gut Microbiome – Follow a protocol to rebalance your gut flora. There are many of those out there. What they generally focus on is to eliminate sugar intake, reduce carbs in general, avoid dairy and gluten.
What is definitely important as well, is to integrate many green and fermented foods into your diet. Avoiding foods you are intolerant to is also crucial.
If you suffer from histamine intolerance, however, you better avoid fermented foods initially and use a high potency probiotic. You can integrate fermented foods later, as your microbiome improves so your histamine intolerance gets better as well.
- Turmeric – Use a lot of turmeric when cooking your dishes. Turmeric is highly anti-inflammatory and is better absorbed by your digestive system when cooked.
- Sleep – Follow a regular sleep schedule. Good sleep has been shown to improve the status of your gut flora as well.
- Exercising – Move your body at least 3 times a week. Both cardio, as well as muscle-building exercise, are great. If you practice a sport that increases your heart rate and gets your blood flow going it is more beneficial in terms of gut health and against inflammation in my experience.
So running, playing soccer, tennis, volleyball, etc. tend to help more than weightlifting. If your physical condition does not allow for those, long walks in nature are good as well.
They also improve the function of your digestive system and boost your healthy gut flora. - Stress management – Avoid excessive stress as much as you can and start integrating meditation into your daily routine. I personally saw amazing results with the Wim Hof method, however, Yoga, mindfulness or other methods are very beneficial too.
The most important is to learn to relax and let go of your thoughts and become more mindful of your body and the present moment. This will in turn release any tension you might have in your belly area. Your digestive system will work better, which in turn will benefit your whole body as well. - Topical apple cider vinegar – Mix one tablespoon of apple cider vinegar into one cup of water and use a cotton pad to apply it on your skin and let it dry. If you want you may also use water kefir instead of water for added benefits.
You can do this once before sleeping and also once in the morning if you like. This helps to balance out the bacterial flora on your skin.
The vinegar can be a little aggressive on your skin initially, that is why I suggest diluting it like that. Depending on how your skin tolerates it you can also increase the concentration of the vinegar over time, however, never go above 50% of vinegar. - LED light therapy – You can do this at the dermatologist or also in some beauty centers, however, it is really expensive. One session can cost up to $300. As an alternative there are devices that can be used at home, however, most do not offer the specific wavelengths that are beneficial for rosacea as they were conceived for the treatment of other skin conditions.
I recommend to use RosaLight™ as it is the only device specifically for rosacea on the market. RosaLight™ uses a spectrum of wavelengths that have been shown to be particularly beneficial for rosacea skin. Particularly the red (633 nm), the blue (450 nm) and the yellow (590 nm) lights in the wavelengths used by Rosalight™ act in synergy to improve the appearance of rosacea skin.
In my experience already the steps mentioned above help a lot with rosacea, however, it was only after integrating the LED light therapy that things started to shift very quickly for me.
I sincerely hope these rosacea home remedies will help you as they helped me with my own rosacea!
Wishing you smooth and calm skin! ?
Sarah Palmer
Natural Health & Beauty Hacker
Thank you so much for article. I will introduce tumeric in my diet for sure.
Hello Elisa,
Yes, I would highly recommend it! Make sure to use to eat it in combination with some fat and also with a tiny bit of black pepper. Those increase its absorption and bioavailability.
All the best and warm regards,
Sarah
Do you use any probiotics to help heal the gut?
Hi Tahney,
The best probiotics you can use are natural fermented foods such as kefir, water kefir, kimchi or sauerkraut as they contain trillions of beneficial bacteria per serving, however, those are high in histamine and can be problematic for many people with rosacea at first, so yes, I would recommend starting with a good, high-potency probiotic, ideally one that also contains bacteriophages, as well as soil-based organisms. I would also avoid bacterial strains that produce d-lactic acid, as that can also cause issues if you are sensitive.
Warm regards,
Sarah
Thank you for sharing, Sarah… That’s very helpful to me! So glad hearing your rosacea is now gone and giving hope for the rest of us… Thank you, again!
Hi Joanne!
My absolute pleasure 🙂
Warm regards,
Sarah
Thank you Sarah , really appreciate your info. Looking forward to getting my Rosalight.At present I’m getting light treatment from a wonderful lady in her clinic, but it does add up money wise. I’m definitely getting results and looking forward to continuing with the treatments at home.
Hi Angie!
That sounds wonderful! I really hope you will see the same benefits as I did with the product 🙂
Make sure to keep us posted on your progress!
Warm regards,
Sarah
I struggle with putting the apple cider vinegar on my face. It burns and drys out my skin worse. Any other suggestions I can do. I know my gut is a mess and I’m sure that is why I have rosecea. I get dry patches on my face. There awful. And I refuse to go to a dermatologist. They made it worse. Thanks. God bless.
Hello Connie!
About the apple cider vinegar: It’s normal that it stings a bit when applying.
Despite the temporary sting, there is no negative effect on the skin (as long as you dilute it enough of course).
The vinegar is actually very beneficial in rebalancing the microbiome of the skin.
Just make sure you use the version with “mother”, as that’s the most beneficial one.
The quickest beneficial effect I found when using it was that the dandruff I had on my skin for many years disappeared very quickly.
If you find it too aggressive, you can dilute it more using either water kefir or water.
The water kefir adds to the benefits thanks to its probiotic effects.
About general gut health, I would suggest you look into the tips I mentioned in the article.
I would recommend to look further into SIBO and low FODMAP/AIP diet to rebalance the gut microbiome.
I hope this helps, Connie!
Warm regards,
Sarah
thank you for sharing this. It helps just knowing that I am not alone in my struggles. I already ordered my rosalight, and am going to incorporate many of your tips. I have heard many times diet and gut health are important with rosacea. Thanks for putting this all together like that. That lack of self confidence piece is real!
Hi Amanda!
Thanks so much for your comment. You are very welcome 🙂
Yes, it is not fun 🙁 But I’m sure you are on a good path if you follow those steps too.
Please make sure to keep us posted on your progress!
Warmest regards,
Sarah
Hi Sarah. Having just read your blog I noticed that on the dietary advice you haven’t mentioned spicey food or,alcohol. Also strong sun light which I’ve always been advised to avoid,I would appreciate your opinion.MANY THANKS.Tim.
Hi Tim,
Great questions!
Regarding staying in the sun, I also noticed my redness and flushing getting worse, however, it was mostly an acute effect in my case.
As long as I did not overdo it I rather saw a positive reaction on my rosacea in the longer run strangely (e.g. my rosacea was always way stronger in the winter than in the summertime oddly enough). Although my skin got definitely a lot more sensitive to sun burns while I had rosacea, so you definitely have to be careful there.
I am 100% with you about alcohol and spicy food though. I forgot to mention those in the article, but they have definitely been a big no-go for me as well. The issue is that many people with rosacea also have histamine-intolerance and this is what is actually causing the flushing after a glass of wine, eating spicy or exercising.
So until your rosacea is under control I would definitely avoid the first two. You should absolutely continue exercising regardless of the flushing though!
I hope this helps!
Warm regards,
Sarah
Thanks for the article. I’m curious: What do you think of horse paste for rosacea? I heard good things about it.
Hi Marina,
During my worst rosacea days I gave it a try and I did see some improvement, however, I have never been a big fan of prescription drugs (unless for emergency situations of course) as they don’t tackle the root causes and often can make things worse in the long run, as those chemicals accumulate in the body and add to the overall dysbalance.
Based on my research and experience with functional and holistic approaches, symptoms and chronic illnesses are just our body’s way of telling us there is a deeper issue within the body that needs to be addressed.
If we ignore that and just cover up the symptoms while taking in more chemicals it may result with more serious issues down the line.
Very often people with rosacea also have other symptoms or chronic illnesses. I had a long list and to me it was very clear those are all interconnected and I turned out to be right!
I would recommend to give the above steps a try. I sincerely hope they will help you as well!
Warm regards,
Sarah
Nice wrap up, Sarah! Thanks for that.
I was curious to know: What’s your opinion on water fasting for rosacea?
Hi Carmen,
Water fasting is very beneficial for gut health as well as for its overall anti-inflammatory benefits, however, if done without medical supervision it can also be dangerous.
Apart from that I personally find it very difficult to integrate it into my busy daily life. The above steps are normally just as effective, while being a lot less disruptive and easier to put into practice.
Warm regards,
Sarah
Thank you for the advice. Is there any specific skincare you would recommend?
Hi D,
My pleasure 🙂 Honestly, other than the apple cider vinegar I would use any skincare only very sparingly as most products would make me flare up, however, I found products by Weleda or The Ordinary to be quite mild.
Warm regards,
Sarah
Hi Sarah,
Great article! I was pleased to see you focus on more than topical solutions, including the influences of diet, lifestyle, stress, exercise,i.e. the whole body.
In your article you stated, that it was only after integrating the LED light therapy into your regimen that “things started to shift very quickly” for you. Was the LED therapy with a RosaLight or with LED therapy in a dermatolotist’s office or beauty center or both RosaLight and LED therapy?
Thank you!
Hi Joan!
Thanks 🙂 Yes, I noticed this condition is so multi-faceted, it is probably an illusion to heal it by just using a topical cream.
Regarding the LED therapy, I personally used the RosaLight as its light wave spectrum is optimized for dealing with rosacea, however, perhaps some dermatologists have already adopted the same technology as well. In my case it was just also a matter of saving money and practicality.
Warm regards,
Sarah
I have a severe case of rosascea. seen a dermatologist put me on Antiobiotics and 2 types of cream its so depressing
Hi Virginia!
I totally feel for you :-(( I went through the exact same and I found the creams to totally aggravate my sensitive skin. It would get bright red and very dry and scaly. I also took antibiotics multiple times and it did help in the short-run, however, as soon as I stopped I was again back to square one. A voice in me just told me there must be a root cause and a more holistic approach to this. Antibiotics are detrimental to our gut microbiome and I personally now would take them only in emergency situations (not medical advice here though, please voice any concerns you may have with your doctor!).
Warm regards,
Sarah
I’m so excited to read your article. I’m into week 3 of rosacea and it’s awful. I’m willing to try all your suggestions because I, too, want to find the root of the problem. Thank you for sharing your experience!
Hi Sharon!
Thanks so much for the kind words 🙂
I really hope the tips I shared will help you as well!
Warm regards,
Sarah
Hi All,
Wanted to give an amazing tip that Ive discovered purely by mistake. It’s so simple you might even think this is bogus or something. I put Garlic in my omelettes every day. About 2-3 cloves put through a garlic press/crusher. I don’t use that Garlic paste you buy in the tubes. My condition on my nose has cleared up. Doesn’t hurt when I press it now. It’s firmed up and redness on the cheeks has gone. The BEST it’s ever been. I know Garlic is well known to have anti-bacterial/infection properties in it (try googling and you’ll see), but this knocked me for six. I can’t believe the level of treatments and products on the market and yet something in your kitchen is making a huge difference. Give it a try and spread the word if it helps. I use it everyday to keep it working and might take you a day or two for you to notice a difference, but try it.
Nothing to lose, everything to gain.
Good luck! x
Hi Chris!
Thanks for sharing this advice.
That actually makes a lot of sense as garlic is very beneficial to the balance of the gut microbiome too and is known to kill pathogens there.
Warm regards,
Sarah
Hi Sarah. Thank you for your article. I am 73 years old and developed what has been diagnosed by dermatologist as rosacea. I have pustules on my face and neck. Beennuing a weak cortisone cream .1%. It helped initially but now not very effective at all. Also have been put on anti biotic which I find hard to tolerate. And that does not help much anymore either. I always had a clear skin before. I also have type 2 diabetes, hypertension and feel so weak and unwell every day. So other issues going on and for 7 years doctors not helpful. Gradually I have become reactive to many foods like citrus and berries etc. diet is very healthy and sugar free. I use a little xylitol in my tea. I desperately need help. Don’t know where to go. ???
Hi Vicky!
I am sorry to hear about your health issues 🙁
Kindly look for a doctor practicing functional medicine in your area. He should run tests with you to get to the root cause of your symptoms so he will advise you on any necessary diet and lifestyle changes as well as any supplements that may help in your situation.
All the very best!
Warm regards,
Sarah