What Causes Clogged Pores Even With Cleansing
You wash your face every day, yet your pores still look clogged or enlarged. This happens because cleansing only removes surface dirt. Deeper issues keep building up inside the pores.
Pores are tiny openings on your skin connected to oil glands. These glands make sebum, a natural oil that keeps skin soft and protected. When sebum production goes into overdrive, it mixes with dead skin cells and sticks inside the pore. This creates a plug called a comedone. If the plug is open to air, it turns dark like a blackhead. If closed, it stays white under the skin. Over time, these plugs stretch the pore walls, making them stay bigger even after you clear them out.
Hormones often kick sebum production into high gear. Genetics play a role too. Things like stress or pollution can trigger it as well. Even if you cleanse well, this excess oil keeps flowing and traps debris.
Wrong cleansers make it worse. A cleanser that is too harsh strips away your skin’s protective layer. This makes skin dry and irritated. In response, your skin pumps out even more oil to fix itself. That extra oil leads to more clogs. On the flip side, a weak cleanser leaves oil and dirt behind.
Bacteria add to the problem. Germs like Cutibacterium acnes thrive in clogged pores full of oil and dead cells. They cause redness and pimples. Dirty items touch your face all day. Makeup brushes with old residue, greasy pillowcases, or your phone screen transfer bacteria right back onto clean skin.
Dead skin cells build up fast if your skin sheds them poorly. They mix with sebum and block pores from the inside. Heavy makeup or lotions can trap everything deeper, even after washing.
Sometimes people scrub too hard thinking it helps. This damages skin and sparks more oil and inflammation. Switching products too often confuses your skin and keeps clogs going.
A full clean needs two steps. Start with an oil-based cleanser to dissolve sebum and makeup. Follow with a gentle water-based one for sweat and leftover grime. This clears pores without stripping skin.
Sources
https://www.kins-clinic.com/blogs/how-to-close-pores-permanently-the-truth-about-what-really-works
https://www.lotusbotanicals.com/blogs/news/common-skincare-mistakes-that-could-be-holding-your-skin-back
https://naturalimageskincenter.com/common-misconceptions-about-bacterial-acne-how-to-identify-it-correctly/
https://implora.co.id/have-a-regular-skincare-routine-but-stubborn-acne-heres-the-cause
https://theordinary.com/fr-ca/blog/niod-how-congestion-forms.html
