I'm sure you have used one of them before and stared at all the gunk it removed from your clogged nose with that odd sense of satisfaction.
Credit: Refinery29
Pore strips came into the market in the late '90s. It caused quite a hoo-ah and everyone went to get themselves a pack to get rid of those disgusting blackheads. Although the fever has since cooled off, many of us are still religiously ripping the gunk off our skin regularly with thoe little white patches.
That said, skin care aficionados argued that pore strips may do more harm than good to our skin and are ultimately ineffective in removing blackheads or reducing pore size, and is definitely not the best thing for our skin in the long run. Let's take a look at how this holy grail prduct can cause more harm than good.
1. Skin irritation
A layer of adhesive is used to keep the strip attached to the skin and that may irritate the delicate skin and cause irritations. Besides being chemically harsh on the skin, the action of ripping off the pore strip may further irritate the skin physically, especially if you have sensitive skin and cause redness and flakiness. It is not too bad if you are only using it at most once a week. If you are using it too frequently, you may injure your skin and cause scarring in the long run.
Credit: Entity Mag
2. They only clean up the pore surface
Contrary to the popular belief that pore strips can remove blackheads and cleanse your pores deeply, they only clean the surface of your skin. The remove only the top parts of your blackheads, together with the healthy skin cells that are right on the surface. So in actual fact, deep cleansing doesn't happen, and the "clear" pores you see are just for a while. Dirt will re-accumulate and your blackhead will reappear.
3. Stripped your skin of natural oils
Overusing pore strips can strip our skin of its natural oils which can cause dryness and flakiness and your skin may feel raw and inflamed. Always remember to keep your skin moisturised.