While the warmer months are known to be difficult for many rosacea sufferers, wintertime poses its own challenges, and more than a third of rosacea patients have said it’s the hardest season of the year. 

Before the advent of modern medicine, it was commonly believed that rosacea was a side effect of excessive drinking. Today, of course, we know that rosacea is not a symptom of alcoholism, nor is there any reason to think that people with rosacea necessarily drink more than the average adult — in fact, even a teetotaler may have the condition. 

Editor’s note: It’s important to note that these findings only suggest a potential association. To determine any cause and effect relationship, further study is required.

Researchers in Denmark have reported a potential link between rosacea and migraine headaches, finding an association between the two conditions particularly in women over the age of 50. A relationship between the two conditions has been hypothesized for the past 30 years, but only a handful of studies, mostly with limited sample sizes, have investigated the potential connection.

A new survey conducted by the NRS found that most rosacea patients have experienced some social repercussions due to rosacea’s impact on their facial appearance. 

“Rosacea can have a profound effect on the emotional and social lives of those who suffer from this very visible yet poorly understood condition,” said Samuel Huff, executive director of the NRS. 

Emotional stress can be difficult to define. It’s an invisible, immeasurable force that can exist in nearly every facet of our day-to-day lives, even if we are not aware of it. Living in a state of stress can impact both mental and physical health – causing muscle tension, making the heart and lungs to work harder, upsetting digestion and releasing hormones that affect the brain and reproductive systems. 

Recent studies in the United Kingdom, South Korea and Denmark have found significant associations between rosacea and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).