clogged pores on my nose

Slash McCoy said:

I have eczema pretty bad on either side of my nose, in addition to pores that fill up like buckets. The only things that keep this under control for me is:

1. Head and SHoulders regular shampoo for normal hair. I don't have a dandruff problem but my hair is a good place to make a lather so I use it there, then transfer some lather to the affected areas and let it stand there a few while I shower. Then I use a regular washcloth under the running water to gently scrub off old dead skin cells, flaky scaly stuff and excess skin oils.

2. A shaving brush is an excellent exfoliation aid, and a boar in particular seems to help promote good blood circulation in the skin. Black badger works good, too, though the more expensive and softer badgers don't have enough scrubby effect for me.

3. An astringent. Alum is good. Some swear by witch hazel. I like good old fashoined alcohol or an alcohol based aftershave.

4. A moisturizer. I know, this seems counterintuitive, adding moisture to skin that is already oily, but it does help. Of course you want to avoid oily moisturizers! Most brands of oil-free moisturizers are okay. The brand is not as important, despite the advertising BS, as is just USING one regularly.

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Your decsription sounds like you may have seborrheic dermatitis on your face, not eczema. As you found out, dandruff shampoo to your face works, but you can also try the blue bottle head and shoulders, T-gel, or nizoral shampoos, they also work for many people. As far as your pores, try a benzoyl peroxide wash just on your nose and areas of open pores, and avoid too much alcohol and astrigents, as they can needlessly dry your skin out, and probably aggrevate your seborrheic dermatitis.

RazorPete said:

Your decsription sounds like you may have seborrheic dermatitis on your face, not eczema. As you found out, dandruff shampoo to your face works, but you can also try the blue bottle head and shoulders, T-gel, or nizoral shampoos, they also work for many people. As far as your pores, try a benzoyl peroxide wash just on your nose and areas of open pores, and avoid too much alcohol and astrigents, as they can needlessly dry your skin out, and probably aggrevate your seborrheic dermatitis.

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Hmmm... I'll try the benzyl peroxide. Thanks.

Go grab some pro active. It really worked well for my girlfriend. I also have large pores on my nose and am thinking about using pro active to treat it

dmm26 said:

Go grab some pro active. It really worked well for my girlfriend. I also have large pores on my nose and am thinking about using pro active to treat it

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pro-active is a fancy benzyol peroxide based product. Its a bit pricey but it works well.

Ronanh said:

When finished shaving use what is left on your brush to clean nose, cheeks and forehead.

I have started doing this with MWF and a badger brush and have never had cleaner skin or smaller pores. I find it far more effective and less irritating than an exfoliant, so much so that you can do it twice daily.

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I may have try try it. I usually have some shaving soap left in my goatee when I wash my face afterward anyways...so I know the soap is good for my face, but the brush...good idea.

I also have a similar problem with clogged pores and blackheads on my nose. I still havent really found anything that works 100%. The best ive come up with after years of research is

2x daily wash face with a good facial cleanser. I like Desert Essence Thoroughly Clean Face wash. Then apply witch hazel to your face with a cotton ball and let dry. Then apply some 2-5% benzoyl peroxide gel to your nose, you should probably do this just once a day before bed until your skin gets used to it or it may be to drying.

2x weekly use a mild scrub to exfoliate. My favorite scrub is the Everyman Jack mint scrub available at Target for $5, the St Ives Apricot scrub is also very good, easy to find and inexpensive.

1x every week or two use a clay mask. I like the Aztec Secrets Indian healing clay mask which you can get at most health food stores and ive heard good things about the QED Man mask as well. Ive found that apple cider vinegar makes a much smoother mask then water which is very clumpy.

Thats the routine ive come up with after years of trial and error. You probably wont be able to completely get rid of your clogged pores but at least you can minimize them. You may also want to try a blackhead remover which is better then squeezing.




Good luck.

Use an exfoliant on the nose 3 times per week to clean them out. I would also recommend using an astringent with alcohol and witch hazel (thayers) as part of your after the shave process. It will reduce the size of your pores, at least for some time. Do this on a daily basis, and you might notice a difference.

Might I suggest the Oil Cleansing Method.

It is all I have used for cleaning my face for the last 2.5 years, not a bit of soap or commercial facial cleanser has touched my face since, and it's been much, much better than before my teen years (I'm 33). There's still occasional breakouts and oilier than normal days, but it's been much more controlled.

Believe it or not, using oil to clean your face is the best way to take care of your problem. Counterintuitive, right? Wrong. It's all in the chemistry. The stuff clogging up your pores is a waxy, greasy substance, soluble in oil more than in water and detergent solutions. Using a mixture of 50% olive oil and 50% castor oil works well for me. I also add some perfume oil (a small amount, a couple drops in a 3.4 ounce bottle). I steam my face over a tea kettle for 5 minutes, rub it generously with my oil mixture, steam it again for 2 minutes, wipe the oil off, steam it again for 2 minutes, buff my face with a facial tissue, and splash with cold witch hazel. (thayers is fantastic). My face has never been healther. I even got off my prescription acne medication (Adapalene gel, .3%)

sol92258 said:

Might I suggest the Oil Cleansing Method.

It is all I have used for cleaning my face for the last 2.5 years, not a bit of soap or commercial facial cleanser has touched my face since, and it's been much, much better than before my teen years (I'm 33). There's still occasional breakouts and oilier than normal days, but it's been much more controlled.

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Aberneth said:

Believe it or not, using oil to clean your face is the best way to take care of your problem. Counterintuitive, right? Wrong. It's all in the chemistry. The stuff clogging up your pores is a waxy, greasy substance, soluble in oil more than in water and detergent solutions. Using a mixture of 50% olive oil and 50% castor oil works well for me. I also add some perfume oil (a small amount, a couple drops in a 3.4 ounce bottle). I steam my face over a tea kettle for 5 minutes, rub it generously with my oil mixture, steam it again for 2 minutes, wipe the oil off, steam it again for 2 minutes, buff my face with a facial tissue, and splash with cold witch hazel. (thayers is fantastic). My face has never been healther. I even got off my prescription acne medication (Adapalene gel, .3%)

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Sounds good guys and that I agree 100%.

But, one point to consider is that facial cleansers are essentially, mainly oil (Tea tree, jojoba or other as the main ingredient). In fact, facial cleansers and the OCM are not that different - one and the same. It's just the type of oil that's used that makes it different. Both work (same method) by stripping old, dirty oil from your face, allowing your skin cells to make beneficial new oil.

BladeRunner001 said:

Sounds good guys and that I agree 100%.

But, one point to consider is that facial cleansers are essentially, mainly oil (Tea tree, jojoba or other as the main ingredient). In fact, facial cleansers and the OCM are not that different - one and the same. It's just the type of oil that's used that makes it different. Both work (same method) by stripping old, dirty oil from your face, allowing your skin cells to make beneficial new oil.

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don't confuse active ingredient with main ingredient. Rubbing concentrated tea tree oil on your face is a recipe for having your face fall off.

Those other essential oils that go in to luxury cleansers... they work in the same way as cheaper oils like olive and caster. Tea tree oil only becomes important if you have acne vulgaris, where it will act as an antiseptic. But if you simply want to clear the pores on your nose, olive oil and castor oil are just as effective, and are somewhat more gentle.

Aberneth said:

don't confuse active ingredient with main ingredient. Rubbing concentrated tea tree oil on your face is a recipe for having your face fall off.

Those other essential oils that go in to luxury cleansers... they work in the same way as cheaper oils like olive and caster. Tea tree oil only becomes important if you have acne vulgaris, where it will act as an antiseptic. But if you simply want to clear the pores on your nose, olive oil and castor oil are just as effective, and are somewhat more gentle.

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Thanks Aberneth...but, I don't think I am confusing the two things . Products never have concentrated tea tree oil. They have some low percentage, but never concentrated. Who would want to rub anything concentrated on skin?

If we are talking about using concentrated oils for skin, even castor oil at high concentrations can be fairly "toxic" (it was in fact used as such for torturing prisoners during Mussolini's days). Even pure concentrated Glycerin (which is the backbone of castor oil BTW) is extremely dehydrating and will cause a burning sensation on skin...but, in a humid environment, it is the best thing since sliced bread .

Having said that, I have noticed recently that although effective, using facial cleansers (like Alba or Desert Essence) leaves my skin a tad bit dry...so, I did make my own concoction of OCM:

25% Castor oil
50% Sunflower Seed Oil
25% Sweet almond oil

Last night, I washed face for 2 minutes with warm water, rubbed this mix on, worked it in well into the face, used a hot towel to pat dry, repeat rubbing oil and take a hot shower...the heat from the shower helped open the pores, which facilitated the opening of the pores and the cleansing process...you can literally feel it .

After the shower, my face felt rejuvenated. This morning, my face felt moisturized. I think I found a new way for cleansing. I will keep at this and see how the skin reacts over the coming days/weeks and report back

Thanks guys