{"id":43306,"date":"2026-11-08T06:13:30","date_gmt":"2026-11-08T05:13:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/rosacea-flare-ups-in-winter\/"},"modified":"2026-11-08T06:13:30","modified_gmt":"2026-11-08T05:13:30","slug":"rosacea-flare-ups-in-winter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/rosacea-flare-ups-in-winter\/","title":{"rendered":"What triggers rosacea flare-ups in winter and what&nbsp;helps?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>In short:<\/strong> Cold air, wind and moving into hea\u00advi\u00adly hea\u00adted rooms can trig\u00adger rosacea fla\u00adre-ups in win\u00adter. Dry air can put addi\u00adtio\u00adnal strain on sen\u00adsi\u00adti\u00adve skin, and hot drinks, alco\u00adhol or irri\u00adta\u00adting skin\u00adca\u00adre pro\u00adducts can also act as per\u00adso\u00adnal trig\u00adgers. Soft pro\u00adtec\u00adtion from the wind, a gent\u00adle skin\u00adca\u00adre rou\u00adti\u00adne, sun pro\u00adtec\u00adtion and avo\u00adi\u00adding the trig\u00adgers you know about can all help. If red\u00adness, bur\u00adning or infla\u00admed bumps per\u00adsist, your tre\u00adat\u00adment should be review\u00aded by a dermatologist.<\/p>\n<h2>Why rosacea can flare up in winter<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/glossary\/rosacea-rosacea-couperose\/\">Rosacea<\/a> is a chro\u00adnic inflamm\u00ada\u00adto\u00adry skin con\u00addi\u00adti\u00adon that is not con\u00adta\u00adgious. It can show up as recur\u00adring or per\u00adsis\u00adtent red\u00adness, visi\u00adble small blood ves\u00adsels and infla\u00admed bumps and pus\u00adtu\u00adles on the face. Some peo\u00adp\u00adle main\u00adly noti\u00adce bur\u00adning, sting\u00ading or a strong fee\u00adling of heat. The eyes can be affec\u00adted as&nbsp;well.<\/p>\n<p>The cau\u00adses of the con\u00addi\u00adti\u00adon are not ful\u00adly unders\u00adtood. Inflamm\u00ada\u00adto\u00adry pro\u00adces\u00adses, the regu\u00adla\u00adti\u00adon of the blood ves\u00adsels in the skin and an impai\u00adred skin bar\u00adri\u00ader all play a part. Win\u00adter wea\u00adther is the\u00adr\u00ade\u00adfo\u00adre not the sole cau\u00adse of rosacea, but it can make exis\u00adting sym\u00adptoms&nbsp;worse.<\/p>\n<p>In win\u00adter, seve\u00adral stres\u00adses come tog\u00ade\u00adther. Out\u00addoors, cold and wind irri\u00adta\u00adte the skin; indoors, strong heat can encou\u00adra\u00adge facial red\u00adness. Low humi\u00addi\u00adty can dry the skin out. The <a href=\"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/glossary\/skin-barrier\/\">skin bar\u00adri\u00ader<\/a>, the pro\u00adtec\u00adti\u00adve outer lay\u00ader of the skin, deser\u00adves par\u00adti\u00adcu\u00adlar atten\u00adti\u00adon. Dry skin and a rosacea fla\u00adre are not the same thing, alt\u00adhough both can occur at the same time. We explain how ordi\u00adna\u00adry win\u00adter dry\u00adness dif\u00adfers from ecze\u00adma in our artic\u00adle <a href=\"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/dry-winter-skin-or-eczema\/\">Dry win\u00adter skin or eczema?<\/a><\/p>\n<p>A red face after a walk is not enough for a dia\u00adgno\u00adsis. If the red\u00adness keeps coming back, does not go away or comes with dis\u00adcom\u00adfort, it is worth having it che\u00adcked. Not ever\u00adyo\u00adne reacts to the same situa\u00adtions, and win\u00adter does not neces\u00ads\u00ada\u00adri\u00adly make your rosacea worse.<\/p>\n<h2>Spotting and easing winter triggers<\/h2>\n<p>Pay atten\u00adti\u00adon to what actual\u00adly affects your skin. The over\u00adview below helps you put typi\u00adcal ever\u00ady\u00adday situa\u00adtions into con\u00adtext. It is not a list of rules that appli\u00ades equal\u00adly to ever\u00adyo\u00adne with rosacea.<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Situa\u00adti\u00adon<\/th>\n<th>Pos\u00adsi\u00adble strain<\/th>\n<th>What you can&nbsp;try<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Cold wind on a&nbsp;walk<\/td>\n<td>Cold and wind can encou\u00adra\u00adge a&nbsp;flare.<\/td>\n<td>Pro\u00adtect your cheeks with a soft, smooth\u00adly woven scarf. Avo\u00adid rough wool direct\u00adly against your facial skin.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Warm\u00ading up by a radia\u00adtor or fireplace<\/td>\n<td>Direct heat and the chan\u00adge from cold to warm can trig\u00adger redness.<\/td>\n<td>Keep your distance from the heat source and dress in lay\u00aders so you can take some\u00adthing off when it gets&nbsp;warm.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Hot show\u00aders or&nbsp;baths<\/td>\n<td>Strong heat can make sym\u00adptoms&nbsp;worse.<\/td>\n<td>Choo\u00adse com\u00adfor\u00adta\u00adb\u00adly warm rather than hot&nbsp;water.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Hot tea or mull\u00aded&nbsp;wine<\/td>\n<td>The tem\u00adpe\u00adra\u00adtu\u00adre of a drink and alco\u00adhol are pos\u00adsi\u00adble trig\u00adgers, inde\u00adpendent\u00adly of each&nbsp;other.<\/td>\n<td>Let drinks cool down and, if you noti\u00adce a link with alco\u00adhol, choo\u00adse an alco\u00adhol-free alternative.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Win\u00adter sun and&nbsp;snow<\/td>\n<td>UV radia\u00adti\u00adon can irri\u00adta\u00adte rosacea, and snow reflects it as&nbsp;well.<\/td>\n<td>Plan for sun pro\u00adtec\u00adtion, espe\u00adci\u00adal\u00adly when spen\u00adding time in the mountains.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>A short sym\u00adptom dia\u00adry can make pat\u00adterns visi\u00adble. Note, for exam\u00adp\u00adle, the wea\u00adther, time spent in warm rooms, drinks, new skin\u00adca\u00adre pro\u00adducts and your sym\u00adptoms. This helps you ask more tar\u00adge\u00adted ques\u00adti\u00adons at your appoint\u00adment. Sin\u00adgle obser\u00adva\u00adtions do not pro\u00adve a trig\u00adger. Look main\u00adly for recur\u00adring pat\u00adterns, wit\u00adhout deli\u00adbera\u00adte\u00adly pro\u00advo\u00adking your&nbsp;skin.<\/p>\n<h2>A gentle skincare routine for cold&nbsp;days<\/h2>\n<p>Well-tole\u00adra\u00adted skin\u00adca\u00adre sup\u00adports your tre\u00adat\u00adment. What mat\u00adters is not using as many pro\u00adducts as pos\u00adsi\u00adble, but cle\u00adan\u00adsing the skin gent\u00adly, kee\u00adping it mois\u00adtu\u00adri\u00adsed and pro\u00adtec\u00adting it from the sun. The\u00adre is no need to replace pro\u00adducts that work well for you just becau\u00adse the sea\u00adson has changed.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Cle\u00adan\u00adse gent\u00adly:<\/strong> Use a mild, soap-free cle\u00adan\u00adser and luke\u00adwarm water. App\u00adly it with your fin\u00adger\u00adtips and pat your face dry carefully.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Mois\u00adtu\u00adri\u00adse:<\/strong> Choo\u00adse a well-tole\u00adra\u00adted, fra\u00adgrance-free facial mois\u00adtu\u00adri\u00adser. App\u00adly\u00ading it to dry skin often stings less than app\u00adly\u00ading it straight after washing.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Avo\u00adid fric\u00adtion:<\/strong> Skip rough wash\u00adcloths, cle\u00adan\u00adsing brushes and scrubs. Vigo\u00adrous mas\u00adsa\u00adging can also irri\u00adta\u00adte sen\u00adsi\u00adti\u00adve rosacea skin.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Test new pro\u00adducts careful\u00adly:<\/strong> Try a new pro\u00adduct on a small area first befo\u00adre using it on your who\u00adle face. If it burns or the irri\u00adta\u00adti\u00adon increa\u00adses, stop using&nbsp;it.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The usu\u00adal win\u00adter advice to app\u00adly the richest cream pos\u00adsi\u00adble does not ful\u00adly app\u00adly to rosacea. A high oil con\u00adtent can make sym\u00adptoms worse. How rich your skin\u00adca\u00adre can be the\u00adr\u00ade\u00adfo\u00adre depends on your skin and how well it tole\u00adra\u00adtes a pro\u00adduct. A thick lay\u00ader of grease is not a gene\u00adral solu\u00adti\u00adon for win\u00adter redness.<\/p>\n<p>Sun pro\u00adtec\u00adtion is part of dai\u00adly skin\u00adca\u00adre with rosacea. Choo\u00adse a well-tole\u00adra\u00adted pro\u00adduct with a high sun pro\u00adtec\u00adtion fac\u00adtor that pro\u00adtects against both UVA and UVB radia\u00adti\u00adon. UV expo\u00adsure is hig\u00adher in the moun\u00adta\u00adins than in the low\u00adlands, and snow increa\u00adses it through reflec\u00adtion. Cold tem\u00adpe\u00adra\u00adtures the\u00adr\u00ade\u00adfo\u00adre say litt\u00adle about how well your skin is protected.<\/p>\n<h2>What helps during a flare-up<\/h2>\n<p>If your face starts bur\u00adning after you come into the warmth, first redu\u00adce any avo\u00adida\u00adble irri\u00adta\u00adti\u00adon. Move away from direct heat and avo\u00adid fur\u00adther hot water or vigo\u00adrous rub\u00adbing. Stick with the skin\u00adca\u00adre you alre\u00ada\u00addy tole\u00adra\u00adte well. Extra scrubs or con\u00adstant\u00adly swit\u00adching bet\u00adween acti\u00adve pro\u00adducts can put fur\u00adther strain on irri\u00adta\u00adted&nbsp;skin.<\/p>\n<p>Use pre\u00adscri\u00adbed medi\u00adca\u00adti\u00adon accor\u00adding to your tre\u00adat\u00adment plan. Do not chan\u00adge how you use it on your own becau\u00adse your skin tem\u00adpo\u00adr\u00ada\u00adri\u00adly looks bet\u00adter or worse. If you do not tole\u00adra\u00adte a pro\u00adduct or your sym\u00adptoms are get\u00adting worse, have your tre\u00adat\u00adment review\u00aded. The\u00adre is no fixed time frame for a fla\u00adre to sett\u00adle that appli\u00ades to everyone.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><strong>Do not use cor\u00adti\u00adso\u00adne on your&nbsp;own<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Cor\u00adti\u00adso\u00adne creams are not a gene\u00adral self-tre\u00adat\u00adment for rosacea and can make it worse. If you have been pre\u00adscri\u00adbed such a cream for ano\u00adther skin con\u00addi\u00adti\u00adon, dis\u00adcuss its fur\u00adther use with the doc\u00adtor trea\u00adting&nbsp;you.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2>Which treatments may be considered<\/h2>\n<p>Tre\u00adat\u00adment depends on which sym\u00adptoms are most pro\u00admi\u00adnent. Infla\u00admed bumps do not neces\u00ads\u00ada\u00adri\u00adly need the same the\u00adra\u00adpy as per\u00adma\u00adnent\u00adly visi\u00adble blood ves\u00adsels. A good skin\u00adca\u00adre rou\u00adti\u00adne and mana\u00adging your per\u00adso\u00adnal trig\u00adgers com\u00adple\u00adment medi\u00adcal tre\u00adat\u00adment, but do not replace it when inflamm\u00ada\u00adti\u00adon persists.<\/p>\n<p>For inflamm\u00ada\u00adto\u00adry chan\u00adges, pre\u00adscrip\u00adti\u00adon tre\u00adat\u00adments appli\u00aded to the skin may be con\u00adside\u00adred. In more pro\u00adno\u00adun\u00adced cases, tre\u00adat\u00adment with tablets may be neces\u00adsa\u00adry. Which opti\u00adon is sui\u00adta\u00adble depends on the skin fin\u00addings and your per\u00adso\u00adnal situa\u00adti\u00adon. Tole\u00adr\u00ada\u00adbi\u00adli\u00adty and how you have respon\u00added to pre\u00advious tre\u00adat\u00adments are also taken into account.<\/p>\n<p>For per\u00adsis\u00adtent red\u00adness and dila\u00adted blood ves\u00adsels, sui\u00adta\u00adble lasers or inten\u00adse pul\u00adsed light, IPL for short, can help. The\u00adse pro\u00adce\u00addu\u00adres do not cure the chro\u00adnic con\u00addi\u00adti\u00adon. They are tar\u00adge\u00adted tre\u00adat\u00adments for spe\u00adci\u00adfic visi\u00adble chan\u00adges and not a gene\u00adral quick fix for every&nbsp;flare.<\/p>\n<p>At Swiss Der\u00adma Cli\u00adnic in Zurich, we offer tre\u00adat\u00adment tail\u00ado\u00adred to the skin\u2019s appearance and skin\u00adca\u00adre advice for <a href=\"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/couperose-rosacea\/\">cou\u00adpe\u00adro\u00adse and rosacea<\/a>. Our ser\u00advices include topi\u00adcal medi\u00adca\u00adti\u00adon, tablets whe\u00adre the seve\u00adri\u00adty calls for them, as well as laser and IPL. You can find an over\u00adview of our <a href=\"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/laser-treatment\/\">laser tre\u00adat\u00adments<\/a> on the cor\u00adre\u00adspon\u00adding page. Which method makes sen\u00adse for you requi\u00adres a der\u00adma\u00adto\u00adlo\u00adgi\u00adcal diagnosis.<\/p>\n<h2>When to seek medical advice<\/h2>\n<p>Have recur\u00adring or per\u00adsis\u00adtent facial red\u00adness che\u00adcked, espe\u00adci\u00adal\u00adly if bur\u00adning, pus\u00adtu\u00adles or new skin chan\u00adges appear. Simi\u00adlar sym\u00adptoms can also be cau\u00adsed by other con\u00addi\u00adti\u00adons, such as cont\u00adact ecze\u00adma or sebor\u00adrho\u00adeic ecze\u00adma. On dar\u00adker skin, red\u00adness is some\u00adti\u00admes less cle\u00adar\u00adly visi\u00adble, so plea\u00adse also men\u00adti\u00adon sym\u00adptoms such as sting\u00ading or a fee\u00adling of&nbsp;heat.<\/p>\n<p>The appearance of the skin, the cour\u00adse of the sym\u00adptoms and pos\u00adsi\u00adble trig\u00adgers are all important for the dia\u00adgno\u00adsis. Bring your obser\u00adva\u00adtions and the names of the skin\u00adca\u00adre pro\u00adducts and medi\u00adca\u00adti\u00adon you use to your appoint\u00adment. Our <a href=\"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/dermatologist-in-zuerich\/\">der\u00adma\u00adto\u00adlo\u00adgy prac\u00adti\u00adce in Zurich<\/a> offers der\u00adma\u00adto\u00adlo\u00adgi\u00adcal exami\u00adna\u00adti\u00adons. You can find an over\u00adview of <a href=\"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/couperose-rosacea\/\">rosacea tre\u00adat\u00adment in Zurich<\/a> on our ser\u00advice&nbsp;page.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Have eye sym\u00adptoms che\u00adcked prompt\u00adly:<\/strong> Red, bur\u00adning eyes or a fee\u00adling that some\u00adthing is in your eye can point to eye invol\u00advement. If you have eye pain, sen\u00adsi\u00adti\u00advi\u00adty to light or blur\u00adred visi\u00adon, you need an urgent assess\u00adment by a doc\u00adtor or an eye spe\u00adcia\u00adlist. Do not wait for a regu\u00adlar der\u00adma\u00adto\u00adlo\u00adgy appointment.<\/p>\n<h2>Frequently asked questions<\/h2>\n<h3>Is rosacea always worse in winter?<\/h3>\n<p>No. Cold, wind and chan\u00adges in tem\u00adpe\u00adra\u00adtu\u00adre are pos\u00adsi\u00adble trig\u00adgers, but they do not affect ever\u00adyo\u00adne in the same way. Other peo\u00adp\u00adle react more stron\u00adgly to sun or heat. What mat\u00adters is how your own skin beha\u00adves over&nbsp;time.<\/p>\n<h3>Do I have to give up coffee and tea completely?<\/h3>\n<p>Not auto\u00adma\u00adti\u00adcal\u00adly. The high tem\u00adpe\u00adra\u00adtu\u00adre of a drink alo\u00adne can trig\u00adger sym\u00adptoms. Let it cool down and watch how your skin reacts. A spe\u00adcial rosacea diet can\u00adnot be recom\u00admen\u00added in general.<\/p>\n<h3>Can I exercise in winter if I have rosacea?<\/h3>\n<p>Yes. You do not have to give up exer\u00adcise. If over\u00adhea\u00adting tends to trig\u00adger a fla\u00adre for you, a lower inten\u00adsi\u00adty, a coo\u00adler envi\u00adron\u00adment and clot\u00adhing you can adjust may help. When exer\u00adcis\u00ading out\u00addoors, pro\u00adtect your facial skin from wind and&nbsp;sun.<\/p>\n<h3>Is a moisturiser enough to treat rosacea?<\/h3>\n<p>Sui\u00adta\u00adble skin\u00adca\u00adre can ease dry\u00adness and irri\u00adta\u00adti\u00adon. With infla\u00admed bumps, per\u00adsis\u00adtent red\u00adness or eye sym\u00adptoms, howe\u00adver, it may not be enough on its own. In that case, tre\u00adat\u00adment should be agreed with a doctor.<\/p>\n<p><em>This artic\u00adle does not replace a medi\u00adcal examination.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Cold, wind and hea\u00adted rooms can irri\u00adta\u00adte rosacea. Learn which win\u00adter trig\u00adgers mat\u00adter, how gent\u00adle skin\u00adca\u00adre helps and when it makes sen\u00adse to see a dermatologist.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":43304,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43306","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43306","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43306"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43306\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43308,"href":"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43306\/revisions\/43308"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43304"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43306"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43306"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swissdermaclinic.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43306"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}