How do I know if I have rosacea?

The tricky thing with identifying rosacea is that it shows up in many different forms. Apart from making the face look flushed, rosacea can show up as tiny raised red bumps or acne-type pustules, or an increased number of thread veins on the face. Add to that the way it tends to come and go, and you can see why it is tricky to spot, and why it isn’t diagnosed as quickly or as often as it should be.

Rosacea can be very mild, where your skin just has the odd tendency to flush — or it can be very obvious and persistent. It tends not to be obvious before the age of 30, and it tends to get worse the older you get. If rosacea is left untreated, it can thicken the skin, particularly on the nose, a condition called rhinophyma.

One of the odd things about rosacea is that it can make the skin feel rough and dry, rather than oily — people tend to expect the latter when they see spots. Rosacea is widely under-diagnosed, not least because not all rosacea looks the same.

We have a dedicated page about rosacea where you can read more information including FAQs and Alice’s handy e-book.