Review of Rosacea 101


Rosacea 101 is a massive undertaking that compiles an
extensive overview of proposed causes of rosacea as well
as a wide array of approaches to managing or even curing
rosacea. The book contains lots of references, including
online references and polls, for continued learning, research,
and dialogue. Rosacea 101 is well organized and cleanly
formatted, so it's easy for patients to read and understand,
while at the same time being a valuable resource for health
professionals.

Author Brady Barrows prominently features his
Rosacea Diet, with omnivore and vegetarian versions,
and does a good job psyching people up
to feel that they can actually give the diet a fair trial
for a month, that it IS do-able, and they can pick up
their old ways at the end of a month, if they are still
so inclined. As an added bonus, many people will find they
also lose weight on the Rosacea Diet.

I found the mention of cathelicidin to be most intriguing,
as playing a role in rosacea and other diseases. I see
cathelicidin not as a cause but more as another marker of
inflammation, part of a larger process, and a reminder
that in rosacea's visible inflammation we have an
outward sign that the body has intelligence and is trying hard
to do its job, possibly fighting one or more infections.



***

My preferred approach contrasts to that of Rosacea 101
in focusing first on what I call integrative constitutional
types that may predispose to rosacea, a lifetime address
to those constitutional types, a key principle from traditional
Chinese medicine (TCM), classical homeopathy, a different
list of nutritional supplements and amounts, Ayurvedic hygiene,
and almost nothing topical. [Ref: my article "Notes on Rosacea"
at url below.]


Homeopathy

Classical homeopathy leads me to put aside nearly all
topical approaches except perhaps antioxidants.
Many of the topical products for rosacea include
zinc and sulphur. Classical homeopathy holds that the
direction of cure is not outside->in (topical), but rather
the direction of cure is inside->out. Homeopathy holds
that topical hydrocortisone, zinc, and sulphur etc are
suppressive to the vital force and therefore to be avoided.
Topicals may be apparently "effective", but they will drive the
disturbance deeper into the body and will foster a more serious
condition at some point in the future, possibly in the lungs
or elsewhere. Topical cortisone is anathema to homeopaths,
and creates a much more complex and difficult case. I did a
personal experiment with topical zinc that indicated to me that
topical zinc is about 2 to 100 times more "effective" but
also 2 to 100 times more suppressive than the dreaded topical
cortisone, which I also had a lot of as a kid and teen with
eczema, so I had something to compare to. Ancient questions
of appearance vs. reality begin to take on new meaning.

Most homeopaths consider tea tree oil to be suppressive and,
if one is taking a homeopathic remedy, tea tree oil as a
strong smelling volatile oil can antidote or degrade
the person's homeopathic remedy, nullifying the homeopathic
treatment. Therefore, if someone is taking homeopathic
treatment, they will need to forego topical approaches,
tea tree and other volatile oils, due to their suppressive
and/or antidoting effects. It's possible to
grasp and value the principles of supporting the vital force
vs. suppressing the vital force, and the direction of cure
being inside->out vs. outside->in, even if one never
pursued homeopathic treatment.


Supplements

I have reservations regarding most of the list of 24 supplement
nutrients or the amounts suggested, but will not go into
line-item detail and explanation here unless requested.

Carol Willis
cbwillis9@...
Nov 9, 2007
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/willis_protocols
Article archive in Files. See also Links>Illnesses>Rosacea&EM.