One of the most frustrating skin care problems experienced by teens and adults alike are blackheads. Appearing as little black dots, this type of acne is caused when the pores get partially blocked by oil, dirt and dead skin cells.
While proper cleansing and exfoliation can take care of dirt and dead skin, the oil is often excess sebum produced by hormonal imbalances. These imbalances occur during times like teen puberty, pregnancy and during the menstrual cycle. Of course anyone, at any age, can suffer from blackheads.
The first thing you need to do to get rid of these little black spots is open your pores. Opening your pores is the first step to unclogging them. Heat opens the pores, so take a steamy shower or do a steam treatment using a bowl filled with hot water and a towel over your head. Ten minutes of direct steam should be enough to open the pores. After you steam your skin, try a blackhead extractor to push out the blackheads. There are various models available, some of which press or roll the blackheads out of your freshly steamed skin.
You can also try exfoliation for blackhead removal. If you are in your teen years an apricot scrub is ideal because it is natural and effective. However this may be too harsh for adult skin. Adult skin often requires microdermabrasion. Once only performed at the dermatologist, microdermabrasion kits can be purchased most anywhere that sells skin care supplies. This product is made from tiny crystals that are more gentle for mature skin than apricots or walnut hulls often found in other scrubs.
Another easy option to remove blackheads are pore strips. A recent innovation on drugstore shelves, pore strips attach to the skin and are peeled off. Biore makes the top selling pore strips that are usually applied to the nose and removed. There are also lower priced generic brands made in the same way. When the strip is removed, you can see the blackheads that came off with it. This method is akin to removing hair via waxing. You may need to use two strips, one after the other, to get rid of all the grime. No matter which method you choose to rid your skin of blackheads, take heart that these pesky black dots can be removed.