Different foods and drinks may trigger a rosacea flare-up for different people, but some seem more likely to cause a reaction.
Here’s a closer look at some of the most common food and beverage triggers for rosacea:
Alcohol
Tingwei Zhang, deputy chief physician in the department of dermatology and plastic surgery at Zibo Municipal Hospital in Shandong, China, and former visiting scholar at the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing at Emory University in Atlanta, advises people with rosacea to “limit alcoholic beverages, especially red wine.”
“Alcohol can dilate blood vessels and increase blood flow to the face, exacerbating redness and flushing reactions. Red wine, in particular, contains a lot of histamine, which can trigger inflammatory responses and is not very friendly for rosacea patients,” says Dr. Zhang.
- Opt for white wine instead of red.
- Add soda or lemonade to alcoholic beverages to reduce the amount of alcohol.
- Limit yourself to one or two alcoholic drinks and have a large, cold glass of water after each one.
- Experiment with mocktails or nonalcoholic beers and wines to avoid alcohol.
Spicy Foods
“Try to avoid spicy foods as much as possible, like chili peppers and hot sauces,” advises Zhang. “These types of foods can stimulate the nerve endings in your skin, leading to facial vasodilation. The capsaicin in chili peppers can cause the skin to feel hot, especially in patients with rosacea, as their skin is very sensitive to heat and irritation. After eating spicy foods, it’s likely you’ll experience increased redness and warmth.“
Certain Fruits and Vegetables
If you have rosacea, you may want to avoid consuming these foods.
Hot Drinks
- Opt for iced tea or coffee.
- Let hot beverages cool before drinking them.
Histamine-Rich Foods
As mentioned above, foods that contain or increase levels of histamine may worsen rosacea symptoms such as flushing.
“Fermented and pickled foods are rich in histamine, such as sauerkraut, pickles, aged cheese, and cured meats,” says Zhang. “These foods accumulate histamine during fermentation, and the skin of rosacea patients is often sensitive to histamine, which can easily cause symptoms like redness and stinging.”
Fatty Foods
Niacin
Other Possible Triggers
- Yogurt
- Eggplant
- Spinach
- Lime
- Soy sauce
- Yeast products
- Cream
- White beans
- Peas
- Avocadoes
- Bananas
- Plums
- Raisins
- Figs
- Vanilla
- Vinegar
- Foods high in sugar
“High-sugar foods, like desserts and pastries, can cause fluctuations in blood sugar, leading to increased insulin secretion. Insulin can stimulate the production of inflammatory factors, worsening skin inflammation,” says Zhang.
How to Identify Your Food Triggers
Figuring out what improves and worsens your rosacea symptoms can help you pinpoint your triggers. If you’re unsure what’s triggering a flare-up, try cutting out foods one by one for a while to see if it makes a difference.
“Since triggers can vary between individuals, an elimination diet may be helpful,” says Jennifer Frediani, PhD, RD, assistant professor and nutrition scientist at the Emory Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing in Atlanta.
“To do this, start keeping a symptom diary,” suggests Dr. Frediani. “Track your meals, especially common triggers like spicy foods, alcohol, and hot beverages. Also keep track of any symptoms you have around the same time as your meals, or at least within the same day. After a few weeks take a look back at your diary. Do you see any patterns around certain foods? If so, those could be your triggers. Try to stay away from those particular foods and see if your symptoms improve.”
It can take time and patience to work out which foods make a difference. Cutting out items for a short time might not have an effect, while eliminating too many at once means you won’t know which one was the trigger. Avoiding too many foods could also negatively affect your nutritional intake.
“Dietary adjustments should be a gradual process,” explains Zhang. “You can try to reduce your intake of these foods and observe your skin’s response. For example, limit spicy foods and alcohol intake for a week and then monitor your skin condition. If there’s no significant reaction, enjoying them in moderation is fine. The key is to identify your skin’s sensitivities and maintain a balanced diet.”