Rosacea.

Newsgroups: alt.folklore.herbs
From: GHK.prodigy.com (Elizabeth)
Date: 26 Dec 1995 20:05:10 GMT
Subject: Acidophilus for rosacea

I have a fairly severe skin condition called acne rosacea, and my father (who also has rosacea) went to a doctor who told him to take pills that contain acidophilus and rhamnosus and some different ones that are betaine-HCl in a pepsin base. Does anyone have any info about these herbs/drugs and what their potential is? Nothing topical has helped at all with this skin condition so my father and I are hoping that over time we can find something that will fix whatever is not-quite-right in our systems. Also, I know that rosacea's a fairly rare condition, but if anyone has information on treating/curing it I would be very appreciative.

From: jakiel.crl.com (Jennifer B. Jakiel)

Hi, Elizabeth. Ahh, yes, this topic was touched upon about a month ago. I've had some good success with topically applied tea tree oil, as well as things like aloe or papaya facials. According to the notes on it I read in a medical manual, it's actually pretty common, nobody really knows what causes it (tho the current theory is a parasitic infection), and it usually goes away by itself in about ten years, although there are surgeries and prescription topical medications available. I personally recommend a good scrubbing of tea tree oil soap with a loofah or natural sponge daily or every other day. As for acidophilus, I don't see why eating a lot of yogurt wouldn't help.

From: GHK.prodigy.com (Elizabeth)

Thanks for the tips, Jen. I'll definitely look into the tea tree oil. I'm glad that you found something that works. Unfortunately my rosacea seems to have been triggered by a really bad sunburn that just sort of stayed, so I'm looking for anything that could just bleach it away. I don't know if I'll have much luck with that though, since this is a bit more permanent than just a sunburn! One of the most frustrating things about this is that no one is quite sure what's causing it. I think the parasitic infection theory is what my father's doctor has latched onto, hence the HCl pills. I think the acid is meant to kill the parasites. At this point I'm starting to get a little resigned (read: frustrated) but I would still really love to find something that works. My rosacea's pretty serious and I would sure like to live without it.

From: cyronwode.aol.com (Catherine Yronwode)

I realize that this is alt.folklore.herbs, but i would like to note that i had a mild case of rosaceae after a bad sunburn episode and, not knowing what it was, let it linger for several years (it was mild, only on my nose, and sometimes disappeared for weeks at a time). Eventually it began to get worse so about a year ago i went to a doctor and he, being of the opinion that it is caused by a parasitic infection, prescribed Metagel, a mild topical gel form of Flagyl, which is best known as the highly toxic drug used to treat trichomoniasis of the vagina. I applied it twice a day and the rosocaeae disappeared after three weeks. It has not returned. I do not recommend such drugs lightly, but this worked for me. Tea tree oil sounds like a good choice, too, in the herbal line of drugs -- it has antiseptic qualities; i have used it to salve infected wounds on my hands in the past. Another thing my doctor said is that outbreaks of rosacaea often follow not only sunburn but also overheating of the face, as in a sauna, hot shower, hot spring, hot tub, or while working up a sweat in high temperatures.