Broken Facial Capillaries: Why They Occur & How to Treat Them

One or two broken capillaries aren’t very noticeable but once more start to appear, it can have a significant impact on your appearance and confidence.

Fortunately, broken capillaries are not a permanent issue – they can be treated. However, it does help to first understand what causes them so that you can prevent them from coming back again in the future.

Understanding the causes of broken capillaries

Right under the surface of your skin are a number of delicate blood vessels that are responsible for circulation.

When these small vessels become damaged, widen or narrow, they become permanently dilated. This results in the visible red lines and marks that you see on the surface of your skin. The cheeks, nose and chin are the areas that are most commonly affected.

According to Aesthetic Harmony, the best laser skin clinic in Canberra, broken capillaries can be quite difficult to avoid, purely because there are so many reasons they can occur.

Let’s start with one of the most common causes, UV rays. Sun exposure is known to weaken and damage your blood vessels, which is when they become more visible. Any kind of facial trauma can also make these vessels more visible, including popping a blemish or getting hit in the face.
If you love taking hot showers or you tend to wash your face with very hot water, you’re more prone to developing broken facial capillaries. This is because the heat from the water brings more blood to the surface of the skin.

There is also a chance that you may have a genetic predisposition to this common concern. If your parents or grandparents struggle with broken blood vessels, chances are, you will too.

Some of the other causes include:

• Excessive alcohol consumption
• Blowing your nose too often
• Towel during your face too harshly
• Exfoliating your face too often
• Rubbing your eyes during or after crying for a prolonged period of time.

Preventing broken capillaries – Is it possible?

Preventing broken capillaries can be difficult but there are steps that you can take to minimise the risk of them forming. Here are a few tips:

• Wear sunscreen daily. If you tend to develop broken blood vessels on your face, sunscreen is a must. Plus, it’s easy to work into your daily routine. Your sunscreen should have an SPF of at least 30 but 50 is preferable.

• Only use lukewarm water. If you want to prevent your blood vessels from rapidly expanding, stay away from water that’s too hot.

• Increase your vitamin C intake. Vitamin C can help reduce inflammation, plus it combats free radicals. Overall, it will help keep your skin healthier and maintain the integrity of the blood vessel walls.

• Leave the exfoliants alone for a while. Rough exfoliants that are used on a regular basis aren’t good for your skin. This is not to say you shouldn’t exfoliate, it’s just better to use an enzyme-based exfoliant.

• Keep your skin moisturised. If you live in an extreme climate, make sure that your skin is always moisturised and protected from extreme temperatures and strong, dry winds.

Treatment options for broken facial capillaries

When it comes to broken blood vessels on your face, there is only so much you can do to treat them at home. There are a number of topical products that can help reduce inflammation and redness, but nothing that will remove the vessels completely.

If you want to get rid of these vessels for good, you’re going to need to invest in laser treatments. Laser treatments work by heating up and destroying them, which causes them to fade away over several weeks.

This might sound painful but treatments feel like there’s a rubber band snapping against your skin, which only lasts several minutes. You could even apply a topical anaesthetic if you really wanted to.

The number of treatments required will depend on the severity of the broken capillaries and how your skin responds to treatment.
You can find out more about your treatment options when you schedule a consultation at a reputable laser skin clinic.