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Ananda Mahony Naturopath & Nutritionist

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Australia
Grange, QLD
Ananda Mahony Naturopath & Nutritionist

I help resolve chronic pain & skin issues and get people back into life and feeling more confident.

As a naturopath and clinical nutritionist Ananda’s practice focus is twofold: chronic skin conditions and integrated pain management for both acute and chronic pain. Ananda will work with you to effectively manage:

Acute and Chronic Pain – migraines, trauma and injury associated pain, reproductive pain conditions, neuropathic pain, low back pain, fibromyalgia and pain matrix conditions

Skin Conditions – eczema, psoriasis, acne, rosacea

Digestive Disorders

Stress Management

Autoimmune Conditions – pain and disease management

Other areas of clinical focus include digestive disorders such as IBS, stress management, thyroid and adrenal health and environmental or food allergies.

08/09/2025

Chronic pain is not just about damaged tissue. It’s about a highly reactive nervous system that keeps the pain cycle alive.
That’s why focusing only on fixing the injury doesn’t work.
Another critical element to shifting pain is working with the nervous system itself — calming it, retraining it, and breaking the vicious cycle of sensitisation.

03/09/2025

Rosacea isn’t just a skin issue, it’s an ecosystem imbalance.

Both your gut and skin microbiomes are like garden ecosystems, diverse, complex and protective. When diversity drops, the balance shifts, which has flow on effects:

Triggers like Demodex mites or other unhelpful bacteria overgrow
The immune system becomes more reactive
Redness, bumps & flare-ups follow

The key isn’t to kill off microbes. Instead the aim is to restore diversity in the gut and on the skin, which allows the immune system to calm again.

By nourishing your microbiome (gut + skin), you support immune balance from the inside out.

✨ Save this post if you want to explore microbiome support for rosacea.

01/09/2025

Coming up next month - excited to be presenting at the upcoming ANTA Symposium 2025!

My topic is: Collaborative Approaches to Understanding and Managing Women’s Pain

Women’s pain is often misunderstood, overlooked, or under-treated. By bringing together insights from naturopathy, integrative medicine, and allied health, we can create more effective, compassionate, and evidence-based strategies for care.

I’ll be exploring:
✨ How collaborative models improve outcomes for women
✨ The role of naturopathic and integrative approaches in pain care
✨ Practical ways practitioners can support women experiencing chronic pain

Looking forward to connecting with colleagues and contributing to this conversation on about women’s health.

21/08/2025

The Most Common Questions I’m Asked About Rosacea

When someone sits with me and tells me about living with rosacea, the two questions I hear most often are:

“What am I doing wrong?”
“What do I need to do?”

The first thing to say is 'you’re not doing anything wrong'.
Rosacea isn’t a reflection of poor choices, bad skincare, or not trying hard enough. It’s a condition shaped by multiple factors: your skin barrier, immune system, gut health, hormones, and even how your nervous system responds to stress.

The second question, “What do I need to do?”, is where the real conversation begins. Healing is not about quick fixes or eliminating every possible trigger. It’s about understanding why your skin is reacting in the first place and then working step by step to restore balance.

That might look like:
🟡 Supporting gut health and digestion
🟡 Calming inflammation and reducing skin hypersensitivity
🟡 Rebuilding the skin barrier
🟡 Exploring nervous system regulation to ease reactivity

Every rosacea journey is unique. Yours will be too.

14/08/2025

Vitamin D & Rosacea. Too high, too low, or just right?

🔹 Immune regulation – Vitamin D helps modulate the skin’s innate immune system, which is often overactive in rosacea. It can reduce excessive inflammatory signalling that drives redness and flare-ups.

🔹 Barrier support – Adequate vitamin D is linked with improved skin barrier integrity, helping to reduce water loss and protect against irritants. A compromised barrier is a common feature in rosacea.

🔹 Antimicrobial balance – Vitamin D influences the production of antimicrobial peptides like cathelicidin. In rosacea, cathelicidin is often present in altered forms that promote inflammation meaning vitamin D levels may impact this pathway.

What the research says:
Some studies suggest rosacea patients may have lower vitamin D levels than controls, while others find higher levels in certain subtypes. This mixed data means it’s not yet clear whether deficiency, excess, or dysregulation is most important — but maintaining optimal vitamin D appears beneficial for overall skin health.

Takeaway:
If you have rosacea, it’s worth discussing vitamin D testing with your practitioner. Supporting healthy levels through safe sun exposure, diet, or supplementation may help your skin’s resilience and immunity but it’s unlikely to be stand-alone solution.

08/08/2025

Potential Rosacea Triggers in Cosmetics

Fragrance (Parfum) – Natural or Synthetic
• One of the most common irritants
• Can provoke stinging, burning, and redness
• Even essential oils (lavender, citrus, peppermint) can be reactive for some

Alcohol (Ethanol, SD Alcohol, Denatured Alcohol)
• Common in toners, astringents, and acne treatments
• Dries out the skin and disrupts the barrier, leading to more inflammation

Essential Oils
• While natural, they’re potent and often sensitising for rosacea-prone skin
• Examples: peppermint, eucalyptus, tea tree, citrus oils

Astringents
• Witch hazel, menthol, camphor, and mint derivatives
• Often included in “oil-control” or “pore-minimising” products

Exfoliants
• Physical exfoliants (scrubs, microbeads): can cause micro-tears in sensitive skin
• Chemical exfoliants: AHAs (glycolic, lactic), BHAs (salicylic acid), and retinoids can trigger inflammation

Preservatives
• Especially methylisothiazolinone (MI) and methylchloroisothiazolinone (MCI)
• Sodium levulinate and sodium anisate are generally better tolerated and natural.

Chemical Sunscreens
• Ingredients like oxybenzone, avobenzone, octocrylene, and octinoxate may cause stinging or irritation
• Mineral sunscreens (zinc oxide or titanium dioxide) are generally better tolerated

Silicones (Dimethicone, Cyclopentasiloxane)
• Can trap heat and worsen flushing in some sensitive individuals

Rosacea-Friendly Skincare:
• Speak to a facialist or corneotherapist that knows about rosacea
• Look for products labelled fragrance-free, or for sensitive skin
• Choose simple formulations with minimal ingredients
• Choose for barrier-repairing ingredients like: Ceramides, Niacinamide (in low concentrations), Zinc, Panthenol or Centella asiatica
• Always patch test new products before applying them to the full face

06/08/2025

Rosacea-prone skin is often described as hypersensitive with several underlying mechanisms contribute to this sensitivity:

1. Impaired Skin Barrier Function
In healthy skin, the outermost layer (the stratum corneum) acts like a barrier, keeping moisture in and irritants our. In rosacea, this barrier becomes compromised:

* Skin loses moisture more easily
* It becomes more permeable to external irritants
* Topical products that would normally be well tolerated can start to sting or burn.

2. Heightened Neurovascular Reactivity
The skin in rosacea is more sensitive to nerve signals and blood flow triggers. This means:

* Temperature changes, spicy food, or stress can activate facial nerves
* These nerves release substances that dilate blood vessels and cause inflammation, leading to flushing, stinging, or a burning.

3. Neurogenic Inflammation
In rosacea, especially neurogenic subtypes there’s a heightened interaction between the nervous system and immune system in the skin which leads to:

* Activation of TRP (transient receptor potential) channels in nerve endings amplifies responses to heat, cold, or even touch
* This can cause exaggerated pain, tingling, or redness, even without visible triggers.

4. Immune System Over-activation
Rosacea skin may also be hyper-reactive immunologically, meaning:

* The skin reacts excessively to microbes (like Demodex mites or bacterial fragments)
* Certain immune peptides present in higher numbers in rosacea increase inflammation and skin reactivity

With the right approach, one that includes barrier repair, inflammation calming, and nervous system support, rosacea sensitivity can be greatly reduced over time.

Let me know if this resonates. I love hearing from you.

31/07/2025

Histamine & Rosacea: What’s the Link?

If you live with rosacea, you’ve likely noticed how some foods, wine, or stress can trigger flushing, stinging, or flare-ups. Histamine may be a culprit.

Histamine’s Role in Rosacea:
Histamine is a compound released by mast cells involved in immune responses, especially during allergic reactions or inflammation. In rosacea, elevated histamine activity may:

• Worsen flushing, burning, and itchiness
• Trigger vasodilation (widening of blood vessels)
• Contribute to neurogenic inflammation
• Exacerbate facial redness and vascular sensitivity

Studies have shown that mast cell numbers and activity are increased in rosacea, especially in more inflammatory subtypes like papulopustular and neurogenic rosacea.

Managing Histamine in Rosacea:
While rosacea isn’t a classic histamine intolerance, some people benefit from strategies that reduce histamine load or activity:\
✔️ Low-histamine diet but not a 'no' histamine diet
✔️ Quercetin, vitamin C, and B6 – natural mast cell stabilisers
✔️ Herbs such as Bical Skullcap and Nettles

Does it work?
Not everyone with rosacea is histamine-sensitive but in those with flushing, hives, migraines, or food triggers, addressing histamine can reduce:

✔️ Frequency of flares
✔️ Facial redness
✔️ Sensations of heat or burning

Histamine isn’t the cause of rosacea, but in many, it plays a significant amplifying role and targeted support can help calm down the fire.

The key is individualisation and working with a naturopath / practitioner to identify your triggers and tailor support.

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30/07/2025

Is Rosacea Autoimmune?
No, but there’s a connection.

While rosacea is not classified as an autoimmune disease, it shares several inflammatory and immune-modulating pathways that are common in autoimmune conditions.

Autoimmune diseases occur when the immune system mistakenly attacks the body’s own tissues. In rosacea, the immune system is overactive, but it doesn't directly attack the body. Rather, it over-reacts to triggers like microbes UV exposure, temperature changes, or stress.

Shared mechanisms include:
• Chronic inflammation
• Immune dysregulation
• Altered gut-skin axis and potential intestinal permeability ("leaky gut")
• Oxidative stress

Comorbidity with Autoimmune Conditions
Studies have shown that people with rosacea are more likely to also have autoimmune diseases, such as:
• Coeliac disease
• Hashimoto’s thyroiditis
• Type 1 diabetes
• Rheumatoid arthritis

While this doesn’t mean rosacea causes these conditions, it highlights an underlying immune vulnerability that may predispose someone to multiple immune-related issues.

Implications
This overlap means that for some individuals, addressing systemic inflammation, gut health, and immune balance can not only support rosacea but also benefit overall immune regulation. An holistic approach that considers the unique factors contributing may be especially helpful.

26/07/2025

Nicotinamide & Rosacea: Support For Your Skin Barrier

If you're navigating rosacea and struggling with dryness, sensitivity, or irritation, nicotinamide can be worth consideration, both orally and topically.

Oral nicotinamide has been shown to:

* Support skin barrier repair
* Reduce oxidative stress and UV sensitivity
* Improve hydration from the inside out
* Offer phytoprotective benefits (like internal sun support)

Topical niacinamide works well alongside oral use to:

* Reduce transepidermal water loss
* Boost ceramide production
* Calm inflammation and redness
* Strengthen the skin barrier and improve texture

The two work synergistically, helping with skin resilience, restore moisture, and reduce reactivity.

If your skin feels reactive and dry, addressing barrier repair is foundational. Nicotinamide is unlikely to be a complete solution for rosacea but may help to reduce reactivity and dryness.

Want a skin health plan tailored to your rosacea subtype? DM to book a consult.

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22/07/2025

I’m excited to be presenting at the ANTA Natural Therapists Symposium in October 2025.

My talk: Collaborative Approaches to Understanding and Managing Women’s Pain
I’ll be exploring how collaborative, whole-person approaches can shift the landscape of chronic pain care, drawing on pain science, naturopathic frameworks, and clinical insights.

Grateful to be alongside fellow practitioners and educators who are elevating conversations in evidence-based natural medicine:

✨ David Hartmann – Beyond the Box: A Multimodal Approach to Patient Care in a Chinese Medicine Clinic
✨ Jacinta Barbagallo – Aligned & Online: Using Food as Medicine to Support Women’s Health & Grow Your Online Practice
✨ Jean-Paul Staats – Staying Relevant as a Chinese Medicine Practitioner

📍 Save the date: Sat, 11th of 2025

https://www.australiannaturaltherapistsassociation.com.au/2025-symposium-member

19/07/2025

Mast Cells, Polyphenols & Rosacea

If you’re dealing with rosacea, persistent redness, or facial flushing, it’s likely that immune cells that within the skin are driving inflammation, in part due to the role of mast cells.

In rosacea, mast cells can become overactive. When triggered by heat, stress, spicy foods, UV, or even gut dysbiosis, they release inflammatory substances like histamine and cytokines, worsening redness, stinging, and swelling.

Polyphenols can have a significant role in dampening down active mast cells. These plant compounds, found in herbs, teas, fruits, and vegetables, have been shown to stabilise mast cells and reduce inflammation.

The top polyphenols for skin health include:

Quercetin (onions, apples)
EGCG (green tea)
Curcumin (turmeric) - see reference to my earlier post about curcumin (turmeric) and rosacea - it is unlikely to have a significant benefit when used as a standalone herb.
Luteolin (chamomile, celery)

They can:
✔️ Inhibit histamine release
✔️ Reduce cytokine production
✔️ Support skin barrier repair
✔️ Calm immune overactivity

In my clinical practice, I use these polyphenols alongside gut and nervous system support to help clients reduce flares and strengthen skin resilience, especially in neurogenic or inflamed rosacea.

DM me “MAST CELLS” if you’d like to learn how to work with these tools in a personalised rosacea care plan.

Address

210 Days Road
Grange, QLD
4051

Opening Hours

Monday	1pm - 7pm
Wednesday	1pm - 7pm
Friday	8:30am - 1pm

Website

http://www.anandamahony.com.au/

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