Issue link: https://www.ascpskindeepdigital.com/i/526887
Create your free business website! www.ascpskincare.com 9 ? ? beyond the basics The Truth About Pores Fact vs. Fiction by Mark Lees Question: Why do we see pores? ANSWER: The term pore is actually a consumer term referring to the follicle's appearance from a frontal and topical view. From a scientific standpoint, the pore is the view of the top of the pilosebaceous follicle. The amount of sebum (oil) the skin produces is genetic. The size and number of sebaceous glands, the number of lobes on the glands, and sebum production levels are also genetically influenced. As the sebaceous glands produce sebum, the follicle dilates to accommodate the amount of sebum passing through the follicle to the skin's surface, almost like a collapsible hose enlarges as water passes through it. If the skin is dry (alipidic), it produces less sebum and the pores appear smaller because there is less oil passing through the follicle. Therefore, oily skin or oily areas of the skin have larger pores, and dry skin has smaller pores. Q: What causes clogged pores, and why do they reoccur so quickly after a facial? A: Clogged pores are follicles impacted with a combination of corneum cell buildup mixed with sebum that has solidified. There are several degrees of follicle impaction: • Retention hyperkeratosis is the genetic tendency for cells to build up inside the follicle, causing the follicle walls to thicken. • The overproduction of sebum by the sebaceous glands— also genetic—bathes the cell buildup, coating the dead cell accumulation. The sebum oxidizes, solidifies, and causes melanin to be secreted into the impaction. This creates a darkened head on the impaction. • Larger lesions of this type are known as open comedones, more commonly called "blackheads." These larger lesions are prominent in appearance, dilated, and easily extracted by a well-trained esthetician. Open comedones take several months to develop. • Smaller clogged pores, such as ones on the nose, are known as sebaceous filaments. You may have noticed during extraction that Got a skin question for Mark Lees? Send it to editor@ascpskincare.com! Clients often have concerns about pore appearance: both clogged and enlarged pores are frequent complaints. Interestingly, many factors involving pore appearance are of genetic origin. the density of the material in these smaller impactions is thinner than that of a fully developed, open comedone. Open comedones contain much more dead cell accumulation, while sebaceous filaments are mostly sebum, which is why they reoccur so soon after an extraction facial. Q: Can pores really shrink? A: Although the idea of shrinking pores is popular with advertisers promoting products, pore size cannot really be permanently reduced. However, pore appearance can be minimized over a period of several months thanks to continual home use of a daily alpha hydroxy gel. By removing cell buildup on the follicle walls, pore elasticity improves and the follicle walls retract. Pore minimizing toners and makeups are available and generally work by having an astringent effect on the skin's surface, causing it to temporarily tighten, making the pores appear smaller and more refined. ? ?