Rash on my face

I moved from a country with more sun and winter 3 months a year to a country with sun only 3 months a year and the rest is winter and lots of wind. the 1st 3 weeks my skin was clear and then it started changing ... A small rash started appearing on my cheeks. now it has increased and starting to move to my neck and all over my cheeks.

I stopped eating meat for a month and nothing changed and still increased. I have moved from product to product, Dove, Nivea and now Clean n Clear and nothing seems to be working. I have no clue now what to do and am starting to worry that i might have a serious problem like an allergic reaction i don't know about.
HELP!!

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Our reply

Yes, sometimes when we make a major life change our skin can react from the change, or from the physical or emotional stress of adapting to an entirely new lifestyle. You need to find out what is different that may be causing the skin rash. If you are concerned that you may have a serious skin problem, please consult your doctor or dermatologist. They can tell you what the problem is or isn't, and then you will have some choices in how to deal with it.

Doctors can offer treatments to help you get the rash under control, although these too can have side effects. It will be most helpful to you in the longterm to try and find out what may be causing your rash.

It could be the different climate, or you may be eating a different diet, or you have different daily habits, such as exercising more or less, having more or less rest time, exposure to different chemicals, and so on. Also, emotional stress can cause skin rashes, and you may experience more stress during a big life change. We have a page on how to figure out what is causing your

sensitive skin which you may find helpful in finding out what the cause is.

One of the things that can aggravate sensitive skin is switching skin care product lines. Changing products can produce a breakout, and I have found this myself even with products I use regularly. If I stop them for a while and then start using them again, my skin reacts.

All the products you mentioned contain ingredients that could aggravate sensitive skin. It is sad to say that most hypoallergenic products on the market today contain parabens, fragrances, and preservative chemicals that can cause skin rashes. You can learn more about this at our page on why hypoallergenic products can irritate your skin.

I recommend that you stop using all skincare products until your skin clears up. Then, once your rash is gone, start looking at some non-irritating skin care solutions that are less likely to provoke a rash. Always do a skin test first on your wrist or behind your elbows to make sure that you won't get another rash.

There are two options for skincare that I would recommend for skin that is prone to severe rashes. My preferred method is non-toxic hypoallergenic products that do not contain fragrances, parabens, and the kind of irritating chemicals that most brands have. Unfortunately this is rare to find, and the only company I know of that does this is ***z-cleure.shtml*** . I use these products myself and have never had a breakout or rash from them.

The other approach is to experiment with homemade skincare products that contain just one or two ingredients. Everyone is different in which ingredients will work best, so you will need to experiment to find out which will work best for your skin. We have a section on home remedies for sensitive skin and also many homemade skincare recipes that you may find helpful.

I hope these can help you find a solution so you can enjoy clear skin again in your new environment.