If you have oily skin, then you likely have a difficult relationship with your pores. While having oily skin can have benefits, such as making you look younger, longer, it seems like there aren’t many things that can be found to celebrate about large pores. Here’s why you should forget these busted myths and love your face – pores and all!
Actually, there is no product that can permanently shrink pores. There are products that can help minimize the appearance of pores short-term, but such as topical retinoids or retinol creams. But the size of your pores is just a feature of your skin that cannot yet be permanently changed. Here’s something to remember: No matter how big your pores are, you are likely the only person who notices them in a magnified mirror every day. Most people are looking at your eyes, smile, or other features when they meet you.
For most people, pores are the largest at the start of puberty. It is true that pores do start small when we are children, but once you’ve reached puberty, you likely have the largest pores you ever will. Elderly people are not more likely to have larger pores than a teenager. One reason why it may appear that pores are getting larger as you age is that the skin loses collagen as we age, and that can make your pores seem larger as the skin becomes less firm and plump.
Have you ever heard that getting a tan will help get rid of acne and shrink your pores? This is a common myth that should be busted sooner rather than later. The sun dehydrates skin, which oily-skin-havers know is a big no-no. This sends your oil glands into overdrive, and can often result in bigger pores, not smaller ones.
Most of the time, what people identify as a blackhead is actually just fine hairs and sebaceous filaments (oil and skin cells). These dark spots are often found on the nose because of the active sebaceous glands there, but people mistakenly believe these are clogged pores, and attempt to treat or squeeze them out. This will not work because these filaments are just a natural feature of your skin. You may be able to control their appearance with salicylic acid and exfoliation, but no acne treatment or extractions will help.
There is a big myth that skipping an exfoliating step in your skin care routine can make your pores larger, but this is not a very common issue according to most dermatologists. This myth has led to other skin care problems as those with larger pores tend to overdo exfoliation, and end up with increased redness in their skin as a result. Keep exfoliation to a reasonable amount as you will be doing all that you can to minimize the appearance of pores.
Now that you know these pore myths are busted, it’s time to make peace with your pores. They are there to stay, and while you can work to minimize their appearance, they won’t ever be shrunken for good. Think of it this way – without your pores and the oil they produce, your skin would become so dry that it would crack open. Pores are heroes!
Copyright © 2023 Jeffrey Rawnsley, M.D., M.S., board certified facial plastic surgeon. All rights reserved.