Why Are My Pores So Big?
Big pores are one of the most common skin complaints from people of all ages. At Chrysolite Aesthetics in Houston, Texas, Rawan Abu-Zeitoon, MD, and our aesthetic team specialize in helping people with different skin types and tones minimize large pores and enjoy smoother skin.
Here’s a closer look at what causes large pores and the ways you can treat them.
Understanding your pores
Your skin has tiny openings called pores that release sweat and oil. They’re also connected to the follicles that produce your facial and body hair.
For some people, these small openings stand out more than for others. For the most part, your genetics determine the size of your pores. However, other factors influence pore size, including:
- Having oily skin
- Being male
- Getting older
- Hormonal shifts
Damage from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays can also cause your pores to get bigger. This is because it damages the deeper layers of your skin and affects skin elasticity, leading to saggy, less firm skin.
Ways to minimize pores
You can’t permanently shrink the size of your pores. But you can keep your pores clear, which helps minimize their appearance. And by addressing the underlying issues that cause pores to look big, you can create less noticeable pores.
Here’s a look at some of our favorite ways to minimize the appearance of large pores:
1. Practice good skin care
One of the best ways to minimize large pores is by practicing good skin care. This means being sure to clean your face each morning and evening and making sure to use oil-free or noncomedogenic (not pore clogging) products on your skin.
You’ll also want to be sure to protect your skin from the sun’s damaging rays by using a broad-spectrum sunscreen or a moisturizer with sunscreen added.
You can give your skin care routine a boost by adding a customized DiamondGlow® facial. Dr. Abu-Zeitoon personalizes your DiamondGlow treatment to improve the texture, tone, and health of your skin — including clogged or especially large pores.
2. Microneedling (with or without PRP)
Microneedling works by creating microscopic wounds too small to hurt or bleed. But these tiny punctures send a signal to your body to begin the healing process.
This promotes a boost in collagen, the protein that creates skin cell fibers. With newer, more closely knit fibers being produced, the surface skin becomes tighter and firmer, shrinking the visibility of your pores.
You can boost the results of your microneedling treatment by combining it with FDA-approved platelet-rich plasma (PRP) treatments. The polypeptides (powerful growth factors) in your blood’s platelets help your body create new skin tissue, giving you fresher, tighter skin and helping to even out your skin while minimizing pores.
At Chrysolite Aesthetics we use the best microneedling tools available in the industry: the COSMOPen® and the SkinPen® by Crown Aesthetics, the first FDA-cleared microneedling device in the US.
3. Laser therapy
Laser therapy treatments work to resurface your skin and can address a variety of skin issues, including the appearance of big pores. It works by exfoliating the top layer of your skin and triggering an increase in collagen production.
Laser therapy facials with the GentleMax ProTM laser system can be used on most skin types and tones, making it an excellent choice for almost every client. Most people benefit from a series of laser treatments for optimal results.
4. Chemical peels
Chemical peels use chemical solutions to rejuvenate your skin by making superficial wounds on your skin, which put your body’s natural healing processes to work. This causes the deeper layers of your skin to send more collagen to the surface.
This collagen boost is key for minimizing the appearance of large pores since collagen creates fresh, new skin cells and improves your skin’s tone and texture. At the same time, the chemical solution causes the top layer of your skin to peel away, leaving room for your tighter, healthier skin to grow.
Your Chyrsolite provider recommends the right chemical peel for you, which may include the gentle VI Peel® or the deeper ZO® Skin Health peel.
5. Dermal fillers
Your Chrysolite Aesthetics provider can use dermal fillers to plump the tissues below the surface of your skin. As a result, your skin is pulled up and becomes tighter and more toned, helping minimize the appearance of large pores.
6. Sublative with eMatrixTM
FDA-cleared Sublative with eMatrix uses radiofrequency energy (RF) to improve the overall texture of your skin. As a result, large pores appear smaller and tighter, giving your skin a smooth, youthful appearance.
The eMatrix technology delivers RF heat below the surface of your skin, stimulating the production of elastin and collagen in your skin’s deeper layers, promoting cellular turnover and smoother, tighter bands of new skin fibers.
For personalized pore-reducing treatment recommendations, schedule a consultation online or over the phone at Chrysolite Aesthetics in Houston.