You may have noticed that your face flushes when you enter a warm room, but have you ever thought about how that process actually works ?
Well, a nicely written article just released on the web goes into detail about how your body responds when you go from a cold room to a warm room.
Colin Dahl, rosacea sufferer himself, from Australian Sciences has created this article to help rosacea sufferers understand the thermoregulatory roots of facial flushing in a simple, easy to read manner.
The following couple of paragraphs from Chapter 1 give an accurate description of the contents of the booklet.
A Practical Understanding of Rosacea, Part 1: Heat Regulation and the Warm Room Flush Phenomenon, By Colin Dahl, Chief Scientist, Australian Sciences.
The simplified biological mechanics of rosacea have been explained in the booklet. Minimal medical terms have been used and may be further referenced online. I believe that a basic understanding of how the body deals with heat regulation and dilation of blood vessels is needed if you want to begin reversing this and other forms of facial flushing associated with rosacea.
It is not the intention of this booklet to name or deal with specific chemicals. The reason for this is simple, once you have excessive blood vessels and nerves in your skin, you will have an excess of numerous inflammatory chemicals. It is the intention of this booklet to highlight the systems involved, so that these systems can be used in your favor.
Often we see terms like nerve-mediated vasodilation, cutaneous nerves, angiogenesis (and a new one axonogenesis), sympathetic nerves, neurotransmitters, neuropeptides, nerve growth factors etc. thrown around. Finally here is a document that puts them together in context. Whatsmore, it is a pleasure to read.
I like that the document doesn’t suggest that IPL is the end-game for treating flushing. See the document for Mr. Dahl’s thoughts on how to enhance the effectiveness of IPL therapy.
From the PDF;
Australian Sciences is developing a range of effective products aimed at assisting in the reduction of excessive skin cell activity due to environmental factors such as sun exposure. Australian Sciences has conducted extensive research into the normalization of inflammatory skin cells with natural compounds such as silymarin, egcg, vitamin B12 and many others. Independent research has also showed these compounds to be effective for other inflammatory skin disorders such as atopic dermatitis and psoriasis. We believe these products can help normalize skin cells and assist in the long-term reversal of excessive skin infrastructure.
Further benefits can be achieved through reducing the exposure of skin cells to environmental factors. A major contributor to excessive skin cell activity is sunlight. Not only is the ultraviolet radiation a major contributor, but the excessive heat energy delivered to skin cells is enough on its own to cause problems for those with rosacea.
Stay tuned for further information. [update:] It seems that the company is no longer creating rosacea products.
Read the document here: Warm Room Flush.
What do you think about this document ? Leave a comment below or discuss it online at the Blushing and Flushing Forum at the Rosacea Support Forum.
I found this article very informative and living in australia I always have tried to keep my face ultra cool in hot weather, after reading this article it has made me deal with heat a bit differently. I alway noticed when keeping cool my cheeks and nose were really cold to touch, much colder than the rest of my body, but then when I moved to a warmer enviroment my face would flush like crazy. This article has helped me understand that keeping myself at a more regular temperature really is more successful. It really works for me. I think the article was kind of easy to understand . Thanks for submitting it.
Thanks! This was really helpful. My face does get much worse in winter (in Adelaide and July 2004 in Alice Springs) and I couldn’t work out why. I’d thought the severe flush was the getting too warm part of cold out-doors then overheated bus, office, shop, cafe etc. It’s useful to have a better understanding from your article of what’s happening when faces are cold. I’m trying to keep mine warmish now and reduce lenght of time in unavoidable cold to stop build up of inflammatory chemicals – living in hope! Thank you.
I’ve been keeping my face warm this winter (as much as possible as a public transport commuter who works in a front office by the front door) and it’s made a remarkable difference.
I’ve had a few minor flushing flare-ups (where it felt painful) resulting in just a few minor red spots (papules?).
Almost pain-free, totally embarrassment free – excellent! And the coldest part of winter will soon be over in SA. Happy days!!
Thanks again for your help – hugely!
So is the point to keep your face not cold, not hot, but warm? Like outting slight heat in my room might help?
Hi Katie, that is the general gist of what being proposed, yes.
Hi David – I saw a lot of red faces during the time I lived in the UK, I didn’t understand why until I found out recently about my Rosacea. I would have liked to know why our bodies ‘facilitate’ neuropeptide storage vs. depletion in either cold or hot places. I was told for years given my fairer/thiner epidermic layer skin I had sensitive skintyple. I guess that was mis-diagnosis! I recently booked an IPL treatments at my derma a small broken capilary on my cheek but it turned out ‘useless’ it came right back after crusting. I am really terrified of what I read online about IPL treatment for non-rosacea patients, I also got to see some patients once whilst I was waiting for my own appointment & which I cancelled.