There are lots of wrong answers when you ask “What are Blackheads” and almost as many whenever you ask “What causes them”. In this article I will try to answer these questions and give you the information you require to take control of your skin care and get your skin looking excellent once again.
What are Blackheads? Blackheads do not start out black, when they begin, down within the pore they’re pale coloured, almost white. So that fact straightaway dispels the myth that somehow people who have got them don’t pay adequate attention to hygiene. The whole process of making them black is entirely down to a process called oxidation.
What causes Oxidation? As the blackhead gets larger inside the pore and gets nearer to the surface, it gets exposed to the air. Oxidation is what takes place when the contents of the pore get open to oxygen in the air. It’s the same process which turns an apple dark colored if you cut it open and leave it in the air for some time.
What’s a Comedone? A comedone could be either open, or closed. A blackhead is an open comedone whereas before oxidation occurs and it has not changed color (when it might be termed as a whitehead), dermatologists would refer to it as a closed comedone.
Where do Blackheads form? These form in skin pores (which are how the body allows perspiration to escape) or hair follicles (inside each of these, a single strand of hair grows). Why these plugs may oxidise is that skin pores or hair follicles are open to the surface of your skin.
Teenagers may be more vulnerable to developing these blemishes because of all the extra hormone production that’s going on at this point. Additional sebum (natural oil produced by our skin) is made at this time and this can result in pores becoming blocked with the mix of sebum and dead skin debris which forms blemish.
Because bacteria grow in this mix of sebum and cells, inflammation will often resulted in lining of the pore or hair follicle, narrowing the passageway to the skin surface. This effectively imprisons the blackhead in the follicle and is why we must learn how to get rid of them to eliminate them without causing more inflammation or scarring.
Older people also get blackheads and in some ways, it’s a lot more urgent to handle these that in our teen years. This is because they can cause oxidative damage in the surrounding skin too. Why is this important? When we’re young, our bodies are much better at dealing with this type of damage and fix it fast. As we become older, our bodies are less efficient at fixing damage and thus it gathers up, becoming a contributory factor to skin aging.
How To Prevent Blackheads Now you know what they are and what causes blackheads, you’ll want to know 2 things, how to eliminate them and ways to prevent them from coming back as nobody wants to have open comedones on their faces or elsewhere – as they can also form on the chest and back. There are a lot of helpful tips and information on the web so take some time to do just a little research and you will shortly regain your smooth and blemish-free complexion.
If you would like more information on how to get rid of blackheads or to find out more about safe blackhead removal, visit How To Get Rid Of Blackheads Tips.com today!