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Another Thursday, another "Skin Deep" story. According to "In a Perfect World, Rosacea Remains a Problem" in The New York Times today, rosacea is a really hot new topic! Seriously though, there are an awful lot of new products out there aimed at obliterating facial redness. And there are figures to prove it:

Sales of anti-redness facial care products grew by 35 percent from 2002 to 2007, an increase of $300 million, according to Kline's 2007 global cosmetics and toiletries report. That figure, Ms. Wang said, doesn't include products designed for sensitive skin or uneven complexions, which also purport to quell rosacea.

And sales of Oracea, an antibiotic and the only oral drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration for rosacea, are projected to increase to $60 million this year, up from $9.1 million in the first half of 2006, said Sheila Kennedy, a senior marketing director for Galderma, which acquired CollaGenex, the maker of Oracea, this month for $420 million.

Personally, I think there's a lot of confusion about what rosacea actually is (it's often mistaken for acne, and vice versa), and even derms sometimes have a hard time diagnosing it. As one doctor interviewed in the article said, "Sometimes a rosy cheek is just a rosy cheek." So my advice is to get a dermatologist to take a look at your skin (and perhaps, get a second opinion) before you go out and waste a bunch of money on products you may or may not need. Here's a great article about whether you should see a doc re: rosacea and what questions to ask. And of course, if you're going to ignore me and go out and buy some products anyway, let me recommend a brand: B. Kamins was way ahead of the curve and they have an entire line devoted to rosacea, that's actually quite good for anyone with redness and/or irritation. Buy their Starter Kit here.

Oh, and one more thing: Those green foundations meant to take the red out? Don't bother.