Rosacea may result from an overly acidic body and skin. The pH scale (potential of hydrogen) ranges from 0 to 14 with 7 being neutral. The basic rosacea triggers come from ‘acidic items’ regardless of whether they are foods, drinks, stress, out of breath due to not enough oxygen (alkaline) and not able to exhaust enough carbon dioxide (acidic). If you hold our breath for 30 seconds or 60 seconds, your face turns pink or red. The cause of this is a build up of carbon dioxide which is an ‘acidic’ gas and we have a shortage of oxygen. When you exercise for a short period, you have a build up of ‘lactic acid’ which is a body waste which is obviously acidic.
With rosacea you get a build up of acids in our blood stream due to the foods and beverages that we consume. We all know of our triggers such as alcohol, coffee, pizza, candy/cookies, various medications, etc. which all have a pH below 7.0 or is termed acidic. The objective therefore should be to balance, buffer or neutralize the acids with alkaline. Water is alkaline with a pH of about 7.3, and likewise more alkaline foods such as more “fresh vegetables and fruits are needed which are alkaline (higher pH than 7.0).
To improve your total body and skin condition, eat and drink 90% of the alkaline foods with 10% meats while avoiding breads, pastas, sugars, desserts, etc. This acidic/alkaline scale is logarithmic; meaning that each number is ten times stronger than the preceding number. For example, a pH of 2 is ten times more acidic than a pH of 3 and one hundred times more acidic than a pH of 4.
The body has several different ways to ensure that the pH balance stays in the normal range of 7.35 to 7.45. These are referred to as buffer systems. Through normal day to day activity in the body, acids are formed as waste products that need to be neutralized, alkalized, or buffered and eliminated. Some of the acids are released with CO2 from exhaling; others are excreted via the kidneys. With acidic foods and drinks, there is always more carbon dioxide (acidic) while alkaline foods produce much more oxygen (think of your high school classes of the tree, grass, and plants giving off oxygen). These systems work together in the healthy human body to keep the pH level within normal ranges. Sometimes with extreme intake of acidic foods and drinks, the normal system can not compensate and the body becomes even more stressed resulting in more stress hormones which are also acidic in nature causing more of a blush/flush. Likewise, simple illnesses such as influenza, minor surgery, or emotional and mental stress continue to lower the pH of the body and with more resulting skin blushing and flushing. Almost all medications are acidic except anti-acid medications such as Zantac, Milk of Magnesium, etc.
As you can imagine if you drink and eat many acidic foods, the result will be deterioration of the skin, body organs & bones. The adrenal cortex secretes cortisol, a natural body hormone of about 10 mg of cortisol daily, with peak cortisol levels occurring early in the morning and therefore the rosacea flushing and rosacea papules along with seborrheic dermatitis face will look best in early mornings after this natural anti-inflammatory drug. The hormone that will report back to the original brain centers together with other body organs to tell it to stop the whole cycle. But since cortisol is a potent hormone, the prolonged secretion of it will lead to health problems such as the break down of cardiovascular system, digestive system, musculoskeletal system with resulting osteoporosis and arthritis - rheumatism, and the immune system. "Rosacea is more than a red face."Also, when any organism, system or body does not have a chance for recovery, it will lead to both catecholamine and cortisol depletion.
