‘I sent out products to readers, asking each tester to use them for at least eight weeks. There was shocking disparity in the results, but a handful were positively heaped with praise’

I receive so many emails about rosacea, not because it’s hugely common, but because treatments seem so largely ineffective. When someone suffers regularly from red, blotchy, sore, uneven skin, they’re tempted to try anything to fix it; but no one has infinite wads of cash, nor the patience to keep flogging a dead horse. Not being a sufferer, I kept many readers on file and sent out products, asking each tester to use them for at least eight weeks. There was shocking disparity in the results. Many products reviewed poorly, but a small handful were positively heaped with praise. I’m pleased to say one of the standouts was Clarins’ Sensitive Skin Beauty Repair Concentrate, £42, a serum I’ve recommended for years and which one tester claimed “works as well as a topical antibiotic”. It’s applied locally on sore patches and breakout areas whenever they hit. When things become calmer (usually quickly), stop. The accompanying Clarins’ Sensitive Skin day and night moisturisers fared extremely well, too.

Another serum giving dramatic results within only a day or two was La Roche-Posay’s Rosaliac AR Intense, £17. “Without a doubt, it has made a tangible difference to my rosacea,” said one tester. She also loved its stablemate, Rosaliac Skin Perfecting Anti-redness Moisturiser, a green-tinted cream to tone down redness while it treats. Elemis Daily Redness Solution, £53, also worked very well, with its tester reporting a marked improvement within a month. Likewise Darphin’s Intral Redness Relief Soothing Serum which, despite the high cost (£55), its tester found so effective, she will “definitely be repurchasing”. (She also loved the accompanying cream, but as an emergency mask, rather than a daily moisturiser.)

Even with the best products in the world, rosacea skincare is as much about vigilance and technique. Rosacea sufferers need to be religious in their sun protection, for example, as exposure is a common trigger for flare-ups (the opposite is often true of classic acne, which tends to benefit from a little sun). I would also be cautious with any retinol and exfoliants – anything gritty is a no-no (for anyone, frankly). Mild AHA liquids, used only once or twice a week, are plenty. This is also just about the only time you’ll hear me counsel against the use of flannels to cleanse. Muslins are less abrasive and generally better on tetchy skin.

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