Dietary Patterns in Acne and Rosacea Patients—A Controlled Study and Comprehensive Analysis

Abstract

As the relationship between exposome factors and inflammatory skin diseases is gaining increasing attention, the objective of this study was to investigate dietary patterns among acne and rosacea patients and to establish the disease risk attributable to nutrition. In this cross-sectional, controlled study, patients’ dietary habits were assessed via subjective ratings of beneficial and trigger foods, followed by standardized food frequency surveys (FFS). Scores for disease-specific risk stratification based on dietary habits were proposed. Clinical assessments, dermatologic examinations, and laboratory analyses were performed. A total of 296 patients (acne group (AG) n = 120, control group (ACG) n = 32; rosacea group (RG) n = 105, control group (RCG) n = 39) were included. The significant impact of diet on disease severity was self-reported by 80.8% of the AG and 70.5% of the RG. Leading dietary triggers were found in both groups, while beneficial food items were identified more clearly by the AG. FFS revealed significant dietary differences between the AG, RG, and control groups. Disease-specific scores showed greater precision for acne (odds ratio 14.5 AG, 5.5 RG). The AG had higher insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1 levels correlating with dairy intake (p = 0.006). Overall, this study underlines the influence of diet on acne and rosacea, providing valuable disease-specific scores for dietary risk stratification. Consuming vegetables, legumes, oily fish, olive oil, and nuts, and limiting meat, cheese, and alcohol appear to be beneficial for both acne and rosacea. Future studies can build on these data to further improve preventive and therapeutic strategies.

Characteristics of Gut Microbiota in Rosacea Patients—A Cross-Sectional, Controlled Pilot Study

“…Recent research has shown that individuals with rosacea were able to identify dietary triggers more easily than beneficial foods [53]. Supporting previous data, alcohol, spices, sugar, and fried foods were perceived as leading dietary triggers, and the foods most frequently mentioned as favorable in the present cohort were high in dietary fiber, including vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and beans.…”

The Relationship between Chocolate Consumption and the Severity of Acne Lesions−A Crossover Study

“…These include vegetables, fruits, herbs, spices, fiber, n-3 PUFA, MUFA, magnesium, flavonoids and carotenoids. They also reduced the severity of acne by limiting sebum production [37,38], whereas SFA, trans fatty acids, high GI carbohydrates, high omega-6/omega-3 PUFA ratio, meat, cheese and alcohol consumption were associated with increased inflammation [39] and worsened skin conditions [27,37]. Therefore, the dietary plan prepared for this study did not include dairy products or industrially processed products.…”

Impact of Diet and Nutrition in Patients with Acne Vulgaris

“…in chocolate products [71]. Dark chocolate is known to be abundant in phenolic antioxidants, principally flavonoids, which were repeatedly demonstrated to have a preventive effect in the prevention of cardiovascular disease and diabetes, but a growing number of studies suggest that chocolate intake is associated with the progression of acne vulgaris among adolescents [72][73][74][75][76][77]. Theses were proposed to clarify the potential impact of chocolate intake on acne symptoms.…”