How To Clear Up Red Cheeks

Rosacea is a long-term skin condition that mainly affects the face. It's more common in women and people with lighter skin, but symptoms can be worse in men. Treatment can help with symptoms.

Check if you have rosacea

The first signs of rosacea include

redness (blushing) across your nose, cheeks, forehead and chin that comes and goes
a burning or stinging feeling when using water or skincare products

The redness may be harder to see on darker skin.

Picture of red patches on a man's cheeks caused by rosacea. — As rosacea gets worse, your cheeks, nose, skin and forehead will be red all the time

Picture of broken blood vessels on a woman's cheek caused by rosacea — Tiny broken blood vessels that do not go away may appear on your skin

Picture of pink and red bumps with some bumps filled with a yellowish liquid — You may get small pink or red bumps. Sometimes these become filled with a yellowish liquid

Other symptoms can include:

dry skin
swelling, especially around the eyes
yellow-orange patches on the skin
sore eyelids or crusts around roots of eyelashes – this could be blepharitis
thickened skin, mainly on the nose (usually appears after many years)

Triggers

It's not known what causes rosacea, but some triggers can make symptoms worse. Common triggers for rosacea include:

alcohol
spicy foods
cheese
caffeine
hot drinks
aerobic exercise like running

If you're not sure it's rosacea

Check what else it could be?

Rosacea can look a lot like other conditions, such as:

acne
contact dermatitis, seborrhoeic dermatitis and other types of dermatitis
lupus
keratosis pilaris

Non-urgent advice: See a GP if:

you think you have symptoms of rosacea

Information:

Coronavirus (COVID-19) update: how to contact a GP

It's still important to get help from a GP if you need it. To contact your GP surgery:

visit their website
use the NHS App
call them

Find out about using the NHS during COVID-19

Urgent advice: Ask for an urgent GP appointment or call 111:

If you have rosacea and:

your eye is painful
your vision is blurred
you're sensitive to light
you have a red eye
your eye feels gritty

These could be signs of keratitis, which can be serious if not treated urgently.

Treatment for rosacea from a GP

Rosacea cannot be cured but treatment from a GP can help control the symptoms. It can get worse if it's not treated.

A GP may suggest:

prescriptions for creams and gels you put on your skin
taking antibiotics for 6 to 16 weeks
IPL (intense pulsed light) treatment – this may not be available on the NHS

The GP may refer you to a skin specialist (dermatologist) if treatments are not working.

Things you can do to help

Rosacea is not caused by poor hygiene and it's not contagious. But there are things you can try to help with symptoms.

If you know that a trigger, for example alcohol or spicy food, makes symptoms worse, try to avoid it as much as possible.

Do

wear a high SPF sunscreen of at least SPF 30 every day
try to avoid heat, sunlight or humid conditions if possible
try to cover your face in cold weather
use gentle skincare products for sensitive skin
clean your eyelids at least once a day if you have blepharitis
take steps to manage stress

Don't

do not drink alcohol
do not have hot drinks
do not have too much caffeine (found in tea, coffee and chocolate)
do not eat cheese
do not eat spicy food
do not do too much aerobic exercise, like running

Information:

Find out more

The charity Changing Faces can offer advice and support if you're feeling anxious or depressed.

Call the helpline on 0300 012 0275.

Changing Faces: Skin Camouflage Service

Video: Rosacea

This video describes symptoms, causes and treatment options for rosacea

Media last reviewed: 1 July 2021
Media review due: 1 July 2024

Page last reviewed: 15 January 2020
Next review due: 15 January 2023