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What Are the Benefits of Microdermabrasion for Pores?

Dee Jones
Dee Jones

For many suffering from enlarged pores, microdermabrasion for pores has many benefits. Not only is it less expensive and invasive than other procedures used to treat enlarged pores, it also has fewer side effects. Skin microdermabrasion is a procedure in which the surface layer is buffed away resulting in younger, smoother, healthier looking skin. This procedure minimizes wrinkles, blemishes, and imperfections caused by sun damage, and it is also effective at minimizing pores. Microdermabrasion may be performed by a doctor, at a salon, or even at home. The purpose of microdermabrasion for pores is to eliminate blackheads and stimulate the production of collagen, both of which will result in smaller, tighter pores.

Pores are small openings that allow skin oil, also called sebum or sebaceous oil, to reach the surface of the skin. Insufficient skin care and lack of exfoliation can cause the pores to become blocked or plugged up by dirt, oil, and dead skin cells, creating blackheads. The natural size of an person’s pores is determined by many factors, like genetics, sun damage, and skin type. People with oily skin tend to have larger pores than those with normal or dry skin. Dirt and dead skin cells trapped in the pores, however, can make them larger than they would be naturally.

Using an exfoliant can help clean out pores.
Using an exfoliant can help clean out pores.

Microdermabrasion for pores eliminates blackheads by removing the heads of the plugs that block the pores. Once the heads are gone and the pores have been opened up, the suction of the microdermabrasion procedure sucks out the hardened dirt, oil, and dead skin cells trapped in the pores. With nothing stuck in them to hold them open, the pores are able to return to their natural size.

People with oily skin tend to have larger pores that people with dry skin.
People with oily skin tend to have larger pores that people with dry skin.

Another purpose of microdermabrasion for pores is the stimulation of collagen production. As a person gets older, the amount of collagen her skin produces can decrease dramatically. Lack of collagen can not only make pores look bigger than they are, it can also keep them from being as tight as they could be. By stimulating collagen production, microdermabrasion helps to improve the skin’s elasticity, which keeps the pores tight.

Microdermabrasion techniques can help rejuvenate the skin.
Microdermabrasion techniques can help rejuvenate the skin.

After undergoing microdermabrasion, it is important to adopt a skin-care routine that will help maintain the positive results. This routine should include washing regularly to help keep new dirt and skin oil from clogging up the pores. Exfoliating the skin three to four times a week to remove dead skin cells will also help prevent blackheads and enlarged pores.

Discussion Comments

wavy58

@DylanB – They work, just not as quickly and as well as the actual tools do. I saw results in a couple of weeks, but if I had used the tool, I would have seen results right away.

You can usually see the junk that is coming out of your pores when all you use is a cream. You aren't using a tool to suck it up, so it just sits there until you wash it off.

It's kind of comforting to see that it's actually working, though. I'm impressed by how much the cream was able to remove from my pores.

DylanB

I've read that there are microdermabrasion creams you can use that unclog the pores without the help of a vibrating machine. Do these actually work, or is it all hype?

kylee07drg

@feasting – My sister-in-law has one of these kids, and it looks almost like an electric razor, except instead of blades on the end, you have a buffing pad. You replace the pad every time you use it.

You press it against your skin and turn it on, and you feel vibrations as it works to get the junk out of your pores. It's a soothing massage for the face, too.

There are many different ones available, but my sister-in-law's only cost about forty bucks. She uses it several times a week, and she's already got her money's worth out of it. She has to buy replacement pads from time to time, but they aren't that expensive.

feasting

I thought that microdermabrasion was something you had to have done at a dermatologist's office. I had no idea you could do this at home!

What does a microdermabrasion tool look like? How expensive are the at-home versions of it?

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    • Using an exfoliant can help clean out pores.
      By: kubais
      Using an exfoliant can help clean out pores.
    • People with oily skin tend to have larger pores that people with dry skin.
      By: phasinphoto
      People with oily skin tend to have larger pores that people with dry skin.
    • Microdermabrasion techniques can help rejuvenate the skin.
      By: gosphotodesign
      Microdermabrasion techniques can help rejuvenate the skin.
    • Microdermabrasion for pores eliminates blackheads by removing the heads of the plugs that block the pores.
      By: Doruk Sikman
      Microdermabrasion for pores eliminates blackheads by removing the heads of the plugs that block the pores.
    • Moisturizing cream is applied to prevent dryness following a microdermabrasion procedure.
      By: Konstantin Yuganov
      Moisturizing cream is applied to prevent dryness following a microdermabrasion procedure.
    • There are varying levels of microdermabrasion depending on which part of the body a person wants to exfoliate.
      By: micro10x
      There are varying levels of microdermabrasion depending on which part of the body a person wants to exfoliate.