How To Get Rid Of Whiteheads

August 7th, 2008 | Acne

hundreds and thousands skin I’m not talking about those little heads you get on inflamed pimples, I’m talking about comedonal acne - whiteheads.

Like blackheads, whiteheads are also clogged pores. They’re tiny, flesh colored, and often quite hard. There’s no redness or irritation around a whitehead so usually the only person that notices them is you.

Left alone, 9 out of 10 whiteheads will just go away by themselves. There are however a few ways of gently helping whiteheads to move along, and more importantly - simple ways to prevent any new whiteheads from forming.

These are the steps to follow if you missed them in the video.

To prevent whiteheads from forming:

Do not use any oily skin care products on your face. Also check the product you’re using is non-comedogenic.
Use a gentle surface exfoliant, like baking-soda mixed into your cleanser.

To get rid of whiteheads:

Use a deep pore exfoliant, such as a product containing salicylic acid, BHA or AHA.

Fran

Fran Kerr is the founding editor of High on Health. To cure your acne, sign up to Fran's FREE acne cure mini-course or download her latest how to guide, Eat Away Your Acne.

9 responses ↓

#1 zack on 08.07.08 at 8:48 am

Hi Fran! You hit the nail on the head with this post. All i get about 98% of the time is whiteheads ther bother me so much! I never get blackheads ever just whiteheads and maybe every other week that cyctic acne pimples (but honestly I think they are from shaving and are just ingrown hairs) I remember I used baking soda but I think it was a little too strong for me because after I was red and I didn’t use a lot just a tiny pea size. BTW right now I am moisturizing with calendula gel by Boiron Homeopathics its amazing! No acne or pimples it actually helps with blemishes and I use it after I shave to help heal razorburn and cuts although I hardly cut myself anymore I change my razor every week now and rinse with very hot water (the razor not my face)!

#2 Fran on 08.07.08 at 1:02 pm

Hi Zack, yeah calendula products are awesome …fantastic natural antibacterial. That’s great your skin is doing really well!

#3 paperwings on 08.08.08 at 12:35 pm

Are white heads the same as the beneath the surface type bumps I can see? Or are those soon to be pimples?

#4 Fran on 08.08.08 at 11:49 pm

paperwings, If they’re as small as a pore, flesh coloured and don’t hurt, they’re a whitehead.

#5 Sarah on 08.10.08 at 1:00 pm

Hi Fran, After watching your video I mixed some baking soda with my cleanser and my face felt so smooth afterwards. I will never buy another facial scrub again because the baking soda worked so well as an exfoliator and it was super gentle on my skin. I had no redness afterwards so everything is great. Thanks for the advice. You saved me so much money on an expensive facial scrub.

#6 cheryl on 09.04.08 at 8:19 am

Hi,
What I have in areas on my face (and they seem to be getting worse now that I’m 50!) are hard bumps, flesh colored but you can actually see there is a whitehead under the skin. I will prick them out with a needle and what I get is a hard, tiny round white thing. Are these still whiteheads and how do I get rid of them?!

#7 Fran on 09.04.08 at 12:29 pm

Cheryl- Yep, sounds like whiteheads. I’ve picked some out like that too, but you have to be careful because sometimes when you do that, it can result in an inflammation because you don’t get it all out and bacteria goes in.

Just follow what to do in the video and text in this article

#8 How To Exfoliate To Prevent Dry Skin And Blemishes — High on health on 10.16.08 at 6:53 am

[...] I have already written an article about this, but it’s worth a revisit or a first time read if you haven’t seen the article yet - How To Get Rid Of Whiteheads. [...]

#9 Karina on 10.26.08 at 2:08 pm