Great Treatments For Minimizing Pores
Large pores can be a problem both aesthetically and functionally.
Aesthetically, the appearance of enlarged pores can make the skin appear blotchy, damaged, and uneven. Enlarged pores can make individuals feel self-conscious and even affect their quality of life.
Functionally, enlarged pores serve as transportation channels into deeper layers of the skin, perfect for funneling excess oil, bacteria, and debris into the skin. Thus individuals with enlarged pores are often more prone to acne, skin irritation, and other skin issues.
There are some things you can do to minimize pore size: simple daily cleansing, chemical peels, Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) photofacials, and ActiveFX.
Daily Cleansing
The base step for all patients seeking to minimize pore size is daily skin cleansing. Use a gentle yet powerful daily cleanser to rid the skin of excess oil and bacteria. Look for cleansers that focus on absorbing deep in the pores like Caliderma Pumice Cleanser or SkinCeuticals Exfoliating Cleanser. Consistently using such cleansers will keep the pores clear which can effectively reduce the appearance of enlarged pores. The Clarisonic brush is also, a great way to clean the skin while using these cleansers. The Clarisonic brush has different head types according to the skin type, ie. sensitive skin, acne prone skin and normal skin types. By using the combination of these cleansers with your Clarisonic brush daily you will be able to reduce the pore size and keep your skin looking clean and healthy.
Many people will realize great results in terms of reducing pore size (along with improved overall skin health) from daily cleansing. However, some will need to add additional steps to get the final result they are looking for. Revision has two products that are an added bonus to your regimen: Finishing Touch is a granule base scrub you can use three-four times a week to help exfoliate the dead skin cells on the surface; and Black Mask will help clean out your pores of unwanted bacteria.
Chemical Peels
Chemical peels are topically applied formulas that revitalize the skin surface by creating an even and controlled shedding of the skin cells. This allows new layers to be exposed, creating a fresh appearance and smoother texture to the surface of the skin. Chemical peels may be used to address many issues including enlarged pores, sun damage, blotchy patches, wrinkles, and uneven pigmentation.
There are many different chemical peels that are offered in the doctor’s office for all different skin types and problem areas. Some chemical peels are customized according to how much down time you have to peel. So, there is a chemical peel for everyone that can be accommodating to your lifestyle just let your provider know the length of time you have to peel.
IPL (Intense Pulsed Light) PhotoFacials
IPL™ PhotoFacial uses precise amounts of visible light (IPL is ‘intense pulsed light’) to dramatically approve the appearance and feel of the skin. The light energy is absorbed by the damaged tissue resulting in a stimulation of the production of collagen, which helps reduce or close enlarged pores while also improving other skin issues like redness, sun damage, acne, and texture issues.
We can also increase the intensity of the IPL treatment by adding “Levulan” to the skin prior to the treatment for a higher level treatment. This increased treatment is for those patients with darker sun spots, acne scarring or larger pores.
Fraxel
The Fraxel laser can be used to resurface targeted areas of the skin surface, thus providing the ability to focus on specific areas that exhibit enlarged pores. Fraxel uses a high-energy beam of laser light to peel off and regenerate a layer of new, healthy skin. Skin resurfacing via Fraxel helps to tighten the skin which minimizes the appearance of the pores while also smoothing fine lines and wrinkles. As a bonus, Fraxel treatments leave the skin looking firmer and youthful.
Active FX
The Active FX laser is CO2 resurfacing. It is performed on those patients with deep lines and wrinkles. This procedure is done in the OR and you will have more downtime with this treatment. So, you need to plan accordingly before booking this treatment. This treatment will help improve acne scarring, chicken pot scars, skin tone, deep wrinkles and decreases pore size.
Kelly Wala is a Registered Nurse with a Baccalaureate Degree of Science in Nursing from Eastern Kentucky University. As an Aesthetic Nurse Specialist for the past 10 years Kelly specialized in a full complement of non-surgical aesthetic services such as facial injectables, laser and light therapy, body contouring, and skin care. Kelly was the first in Texas to perform the Injectable Threadlift. Kelly is a Faculty trainer for Allergan Facial Aesthetics and Coolsculpting as well as a Faculty trainer for Galderma Facial Aesthetics and Sculptra. Aesthetics
Kelly, you explain all things beautifully, I appreciate it very much. I also affected with uneven skin due to pores. One thing that I tried that really helped were some products from Michael Todd (https://michaeltoddbeauty.com/). Not sure if you heard of those? They seem to help my pores look smaller. Just wanted to recommend!!!