Although many different methods of pore care claim to be effective, the size of your pores is something that’s determined at birth, and it’s impossible to permanently reduce it. Pore care products and dermatological treatments may give you temporary results, but in the long run, they can be harmful to your skin.
There”s a skin problem that women all over the world suffer from during the summer months. This is the problem of stretched and enlarged pores. Pores are the holes through which hair grows and the channels through which sebum leaves the sebaceous glands to the surface of the skin. Normally, pores are between 0.02 and 0.05 millimeters in diameter, but their size can change due to factors such as aging and climate. Pores are considered an important indicator of skin health, especially for those who want to achieve clear, smooth skin. People often look at the pores on their face under a magnifying glass and are sensitive to small changes, which is why pore care continues to be of interest. This is not only a concern for women, but also for men. In recent years, men’s use of grooming products has increased, making pore care an important skincare item that transcends gender.
The reason people are so concerned about reducing their pores is because it’s hard to look clean with skin that has large pores. The cosmetics market hasn’t missed this concern and is flooded with basic cosmetics, nose packs, massagers, etc. that claim to shrink pores. You can also find pore control products in dermatology offices. But how effective are these different methods of shrinking pores?
Sadly, the size and number of our pores is already determined by our genetics. This means that attempts to make them smaller are somewhat limited. No matter how much pore cream you apply in the morning and how much oil you squeeze out at night with a nose pack, once your pores are enlarged, they won’t get smaller again. You can go through a multi-dollar course at the dermatologist’s office, but the results will be the same. Sure, depending on what you try, you may feel like your pores are temporarily shrinking or disappearing. However, as we’ve already mentioned, pores are just hair follicles and channels for sebum, not muscles, so they can’t increase or decrease in size on their own. Therefore, once your pores are already enlarged, you can’t permanently reduce their size by doing something about it.
However, this doesn’t mean you have to give up on taking care of your pores. Many people feel as if their pores have shrunk when they use pore-refining cosmetics or get a dermatologist’s pore treatment. Even though these treatments don’t actually have a permanent effect, users feel a temporary and immediate effect. So why do people feel that pore care products work?
First of all, the truth about pore treatments is in the alcohol. Most pore-clearing products contain a lot of alcohol, which causes the skin to swell temporarily. As the skin around the pores swells and covers the pores, the user is tricked into thinking that the pores are smaller. However, the pore-shrinking effect of alcohol is very temporary, and it’s more likely that alcohol will actually irritate the skin, causing side effects. In the long run, the skin can become even drier or more sensitive, which can lead to a vicious cycle of enlarged pores. Therefore, you should always be careful when using products that contain alcohol.
Nose packs also end up exacerbating pore problems. The purpose of a nose pack is to reduce the size of the pores around the nose by removing keratin plugs, which are clumps of old dead skin cells and sebum that get stuck in the pores like nails. This is a popular and easy way to treat pores because they are most common around the nose. Properly removing keratin plugs is a very important part of pore care. This is because when dead skin cells clog pores, sebum builds up in the pores, which causes them to enlarge. In addition, dead skin cells accumulate in clogged pores four times faster than in unclogged pores.
However, nose packs are not an effective way to remove keratin plugs. Nose packs are thin, paper-like strips that you apply to your nose for a certain amount of time before removing them to draw out sebum from your nose. However, the process of applying and removing them may cut the angle you need to remove completely in the middle. This will cut the pore openings and fill them with the remaining keratin plug and empty space. Since the skin is the tissue in the body that is most directly in contact with the external environment, this empty space is easily affected by external pollutants. This, in turn, causes the pores to secrete more sebum or break out into acne.
Finally, pore care, which you can get from a dermatologist, uses the shape of your pores to temporarily make them feel smaller. Pores are funnel-shaped, meaning they’re wider at the top and narrower toward the bottom. In dermatology, the wide top of the pore is shaved off to make the pore appear narrower. However, this method naturally thins the skin, leaving it more fragile and sensitive. What’s more, the weakening of the skin’s natural barrier makes it more susceptible to damage from UV rays and pollutants. This can be detrimental to your long-term skin health and can accelerate the rate at which your skin ages.
As you can see, products that promise to shrink your pores are nothing more than an illusion to get you to open your wallet, but it’s hard to stand by and stare at your enlarging pores. The answer lies in a surprisingly simple place. Since you can’t shrink pores that are already enlarged, it’s important to prevent them from getting bigger in the first place. The key to preventing them is to wash your face carefully. In particular, following a good basic skincare routine is the first step in taking care of your pores. By using a foaming face soap, massaging it thoroughly into your muscles and rinsing it thoroughly, you’ll be removing the main cause of enlarged pores: sebum.
