How to shrink your pores

How to shrink pores on face

How to Shrink Pores - Photo by cottonbro from Pexels

Facial pores are among the most exposed ones on our body. To help you avoid pore problems on your face, check out how to shrink pores on face below:

• Wash with cleanser

Skin that has clogged pores, or often oily, can benefit from a daily cleanser. Just like a clinical study from 2006 showed, using a cleanser can minimize some of the symptoms of acne and keep your pores clean.

Begin by using a gentle, over-the-counter cleanser. Look for a label that says the product is made for people with normal to oily skin. The ingredients must include glycolic acid. Wash your face every night before bed, remember not to wash your face too much with the cleanser. This can cause your skin to become dry.

• Use topical retinoids

Products with retinoid compounds (for vitamin A) have been shown to have varying degrees of success in shrinking pores. Read the ingredient labels at your supermarket and pharmacy. Look for creams that list "tretinoin."

Use caution or be careful when using. These products are usually best applied once a day. Using retinoids too often can irritate your skin, cause redness, dryness, and peeling or flakiness. Using retinoids can even make you more likely to get sunburns.

• Sit in the steam room

This might seem counterintuitive to sit in a steam room to close your pores. After all, the steam opens up your pores and makes your body sweat. But it could be that your pores look enlarged because there is dirt, oil, or bacteria trapped in them.

Find a steam room and take 5-10 minutes to open your pores before getting a clean towel and carefully washing your face outdoor. Your skin may appear firmer afterward.

The steam room can be a nest of germs and bacteria itself. After using a public steam room, take a clean washcloth and dip it in warm water before applying it to your face for one or two minutes while it's cool. This will help your pores close once the steam opens them. This will also prevent new bacteria from entering.

• Apply essential oil

Using essential oils as a home remedy is one of the ways how to minimize pores. But when it comes to shrinking pores, there may be some evidence to support it.

Anti-inflammatory essential oils, like clove oil and cinnamon bark, have been shown to flush bacteria from your skin. It can also give balanced looking skin and, possibly, smaller looking pores.

Mix your oil's active ingredients with a gentle carrier oil, like almond oil or jojoba oil, before applying it to your face. Don't let the mixture on for more than a few minutes, and be sure to dry your face afterward.

• Exfoliate your skin

Exfoliating can remove trapped toxins that can make pores appear larger. A gentle facial scrub with soothing apricots or green tea is probably your best bet.

By scrubbing your face clean, any dirt or contaminants on the surface of your skin will be washed away, along with any dead skin cells that may have built up. This will usually make your face appear smoother, firmer, and less porous.

• Use a clay mask

A quick way to reduce inflammation and the appearance of acne scars is to use a clay mask. The appearance of acne lesions was reduced by 54 percent (this was in one clinical trial from 2012) when participants used a clay mask mixed with jojoba oil only twice a week.

Clay masks work to minimize pores by drying out the sebum under your pores, as well as sticking to dirt and pulling it out when the mask dries. Try a clay mask 2-3 times a week as part of your cleansing routine.

• Try chemical peels

In case your pores look enlarged because your skin is producing too much sebum, this is probably the time to try a chemical peel. Skin with hyaluronic acid can help regulate sebum production, and skin with salicylic acid promotes the growth of new skin cells to replace older and damaged cells. Use the peels in moderation, because over time they can make your skin more sensitive to sunburn.