What are the symptoms of clogged pores?

The clinical term for clogged pores is comedone.  Symptoms include blackheads, which are incomplete blockage of a pore, whiteheads which are a complete blockage of the pore, or pimples, which are red inflammations of the skin where oil is building up under the skin.

What is a pore?

A pore is any opening on the skin’s surface.  These openings can either be in the form of a sweat gland, or the base of a hair follicle and sebaceous gland (oil producing). We produce oil naturally to keep skin soft and supple, as well as to keep moisture on the skin to prevent flaking and cracking.

What Is Skin Cell Turnover?

Our bodies naturally produce thousands of skin cells.  The average life span of a single skin cell is about 28 days.  However, sometimes the body can’t expel the dead skin cells on the surface fast enough to make room for the new skin cells.  Sometimes this is caused naturally due to aging, or sometimes it is hereditary.

What causes clogged pores?

Pores clog when the natural oil our skin produces (called sebum) mixes with excess dead skin cells on the surface of the skin.  If the mixture completely clogs the pore, it is called a whitehead; if it partially clogs the pore it is called a blackhead.

Once the pore has been clogged,  the result is a build up of sebum under the skin.

Clogged pores are caused mainly by genetics, hormonal swings (puberty or menopause), or environmental factors such as heat, friction and dust that cause the body to produce more oil than necessary.

What is the difference between clogged pores and acne?

Acne and clogged pores are not so much different things, as they are just different stages of the same problem.  Clogged pores result from an excess of oil built up under the skin, which usually shows up on your skin as a blackhead, whitehead, or a pimple.  Acne is simply a collection of blackheads, whiteheads and pimples that manifest on certain parts of the body.

Pore cleansers are usually most effective in areas where there are large amounts of sebum glands.  Areas like the face, neck, chest, back and shoulders are the most common location of clogged pores.

Why is it important to treat clogged pores?

While clogged pores may seem harmless, they are actually something to take very seriously.  If caught early, clogged pores can be treated with a minimal treatment and expense.  However, left untreated they will eventually lead to blackheads, and whiteheads, which if not taken care of could progress into cysts and abscesses.  In the case of severe or deep painful acne, it is very important to consult a physician or dermatologist to prevent bacteria and infection from spreading before acne scarring occurs.  Lesions, and nodules (solid, raised bumps) are treatable, but the sooner they can be diagnosed, the easier and less expensive treatment can be.

How to get rid of deep pores?

Deep or large pores are a problem many people wish they didn’t have to think about.  Failure to cleanse large pores can result in them appearing worse than they are, and can eventually lead to blackheads, whiteheads, and pimples.  The bad news is that there is no way of controlling the actual size of your pores.  (See our Pore Minimizing Myths page for more information)  The good news is that while you can’t control what the size of pores you were born with, you can minimize the appearance of them by implementing a skin care routine using widely available pore-minimizes, pore-cleansers, extractors, steamers, and creams.  See our Pore Cleaning Techniques, for more information.