Struggling with acne-prone skin or enlarged pores? Don’t worry, you’re not alone. I suffered from acne-prone and enlarged pores throughout my teens. I’m now 28 and still suffer from hormonal acne occasionally, especially during my period. Many people are constantly searching for ways to reduce the appearance of enlarged pores and treat bad acne breakouts. With hundreds of beauty products available, finding the one that suits your skin can be a challenge.
Spoiler alert: You might be thinking to yourself, “How am I going to find a product treatment that going to work for my skin?” Unfortunately, there are no magic creams that are going to magically make your breakouts or enlarged pores go away. But if you maintain a regular skin routine, then in a month or two you might start seeing an improvement in your skin appearance.
What is acne?
Acne is a common skin condition that can affect most people at some point in their life. It causes spots, oily skin and sometimes that hot and/or painful to touch. It’s also most commonly linked to changes in hormone levels during puberty.
What causes acne?
It is caused when tiny holes in the skin [known as hair follicles] become blocked, causing the surface of the skin to bulge outwards creating a whitehead or alternatively, the plugged follicle can open to the skin creating a blackhead.
Unfortunately for us girls, women are more likely to have adult acne than men due to changes in hormone levels that many women can experience at certain times such as; periods, and pregnancies.
What’s the difference between acne and pimples?
Even though the word ‘Acne’ is commonly known the actually defined acne as a skin condition that can affect the skin’s hair follicles and glands, whereas pimples are a symptom of the skin condition.
Acne symptoms can involve:
- Whiteheads [closed, plugged pores under the skin’s surface]
- Blackheads [open, plugged pores on the skin’s surface]
- nodules [large, painful lumps deep underneath the skin]
- cysts [painful, pus-filled lumps underneath the skin]
- papules [small, tender red or pink on top]
- pustules [papules with pus on top]
Are you able to prevent acne scars?
People who suffer from stubborn acne can go on to experience acne scarring. You might be thinking “How can I prevent acne scars?” well the simple answer is to prevent acne from happening in the first place. Preventing acne can lower your chances of scarring:
- Take real care of your skin and avoid popping or picking at pimples/spots; as this can increase inflammation which can worsen scarring.
- get treatment for your acne.
- Avoid smoking or prolong sun exposure; as both can affect how your skin heals.
How to prevent cystic acne?
cystic acne is caused by clogged up pores that become inflamed and swollen. Here a few steps that you can take to reduce your chances of developing this type of acne:
- Regularly washing your face can help to build up of bacteria and sebum.
- Use the appropriate treatments for clogged pores.
- Always make sure to keep your skin clean.
What is a pore?
The short answer is, that a pore is a teeny tiny opening in your skin – and it’s covered in thousands of them. Some are sweat pores which help your body to regulate it’s temperature, but most are hair follicles – containing tiny hair roots and a sebaceous gland, which produces your body’s natural oil. However, if you don’t maintain a healthy routine around your body’s health then your pores will become more visible.
What affects your pore size?
We all have a lot of pores, but some people have a lot more visible pores – especially around the nose, apples of cheeks and forehead. The size of your pores will depend on three things;
- Age: As we get older, our skin loses its elasticity and often becomes saggy or stretched.
- Genetics: For most people, genetics will play a massive part in what your skin type will be when you are born.
- Hormone: For us girls, during our periods the overproduction of oil can cause your pores to appear larger. In addition, excess sebum collects on the skin’s surface, causing your pores to be much more visible.
Here are some tips that can help you manage them:
- Keep your skin clean: Make sure you cleanse your face daily to remove dirt and oil that can clog your pores. Use a gentle cleanser that’s suitable for your skin type. The face wash that is my everyday face wash is PURIFIDE by Acnecide Daily Facial Cleanser. It’s great for gently cleansing sensitive skin types, the Acnecide Purifide Daily Facial Cleanser helps to effectively wash away impurities and excess sebum from the skin.
- Moisturise: Many acne products contain ingredients that can dry your skin out, so always moisturise to minimise dryness and prevent your skin from peeling. There are moisturisers that are made for oily, dry or combination skin. I used Clinique Anti Blemish Solutions All-Over Clearing Treatment and Olay Regenerist Luminous Moisturiser Face Cream. I find they deeply moisturise my face, without leaving an oily residue.
- Be aware of what you are putting on your hair: As oils from our hair can add to the oils on your face, washing your hair frequently can help to control acne breakouts. Avoid using fragrances, oils or gel on your hair – if they get onto your face, then they can block your skin your skin’s pores and irritate the skin. So just use a gentle shampoo and conditioner. My go-to shampoo is Head and Shoulders or Monday Haircare Volume Shampoo, and I barely use conditioner; as I find that I have to wash my hair more frequently. So when I do treat my hair to deep conditioning, I often go for Garnier Ultimate Blends Hair Food Banana Hair Mask Treatment
- Avoid touching your face: Did you know that on average a person will touch their face 23 times per hour? So making a conscious decision not to touch your face can be easier said than done. However, keeping your hand away from your face can help to reduce the spread of bacteria and prevent your skin from becoming irritated even more than it already is. Also never pick or pop with your fingers as this can lead to infection and scarring.
- Pore Nose Strips: Regularly using nose strips can help remove excess oils and unclog facial pores. You only need to use them 1-2 per week after removing your makeup and washing your face. Remember not to put on any moisturising cream before using the strips, as they won’t stick to the skin.
- Apply a toner: Suffer from acne-prone skin, applying a facial toner can help to balance out the bacteria in the skin and help to prevent pimples. The facial toners are alcohol-free, fragrance-free and oil-free.
- Chill out: Do you ever notice that when you are stressed about something, you get more small pimples or spots? Well did you know that stress actually increases the severity of spots? So ask yourself, what causes you to feel stressed and then look for solutions.
- Limit makeup: It might seem like a good idea to cover up pimples/spots by wearing makeup, but did you know that doing so can clog up pores and trigger a breakout? However, if you don’t want to stop using makeup, then opt for a foundation and concealer that’s noncomedogenic and fragrance-free; so your skin doesn’t become irritated even more. When you are ready to take off your makeup, then gently wash your makeup off at the end of the day and always take off before going to bed.
- Never be a pimple popper: Even if it is hard to resist the temptation to not squeeze that large whitehead that’s been looking for a few days, your best bet is to avoid popping that spot. Popping your spot can not only leave you with unwanted scars, but the area can become inflamed/clogged surrounding pores and can also get infected.
- Avoid certain foods: Are you aware that your diet can be a factor when it comes to acne? Foods like; processed foods, dairy products, alcohol and refined sugars can contribute towards skin concerns. Reducing your intake of these kinds of foods can help to ease the severity of your breakouts. However, if reducing the foods doesn’t seem to be helping the flare-ups, then try eliminating them from your diet and see if you are able to identify the cause.
The bottom line is…
Unfortunately, most people are going to get a few pimples now and again, but prevention methods can help – just bare in mind that there isn’t a guarantee. There’s many factors the can cause someone to develop pimples – stress, hormones, genetics, diet and even in some cases certain medications can trigger breakouts.
Now that’s said, you must be aware that your have many options when it cans to treating and managing pimple. But just remember that whatever pimple prevention plan that you choose, consistency and patience is key to help improve appearance.
