Each person, and especially the fairer sex, wants the skin on her face to look young, healthy, not glossy with fat, and, of course, be free of acne, blackheads and other cosmetic defects. Those who care for their skin, as a rule, achieve such results. But it also happens that, in spite of all efforts, small whitish formations appear on the face, similar to millet grains. They are called miliums. How to get rid of them forever? Is it possible to do this yourself or do you need to contact a specialist? Are these "grains" dangerous and what is the reason for their appearance? Let's get it right.
Harmless miliums
It happens that on the face, less often on the chest, shoulders, genitals, hands, whitish nodules appear. They do not cause any problems, except for an unpleasant look. This cosmetic defect has several synonyms. So, for the external, albeit distant similarity to the seeds of millet, it is called millet. According to the pathology of occurrence and development, this is white eel. In medicine, you can find the term "closed comedone", which is a type of cyst. In cosmetology, these same formations on the skin are called milia. How to get rid of them, so as not to harm the skin and not get in return a harmless, absolutely painless, barely noticeable tubercle purulent wound or a rough scar? Some people think that since miliums do not cause anxiety, that means they are not dangerous, and try to squeeze them out on their own. The result of this "treatment" in most cases is inflammation, suppuration, trauma to neighboring areas of the skin and, finally, a scar. It turns out that they are not so harmless, these tiny white tubercles.
Pathogenesis
At its core, a milium is a small cyst that forms in the area of the hair follicle when it is blocked by a desquamated epithelium. Typically, sebum secreted by the sebaceous glands goes to the surface of the skin. Since the blockage prevents its exit, it begins to accumulate, forming whitish, rather dense to the touch papules, better distinguished by stretching the skin. Their size almost never exceeds 2 mm. In addition to lard, keratins, dead skin cells, were found in the eel papule. Removing miliums by extruding them leads only to mechanical damage to neighboring skin areas, but the contents of the papule remain intact. Since papules are closed and do not have contact with the outside world, inflammation in them does not develop. They can be present on human skin for many years, without interfering with anything. In rare cases, miliums completely disappear without a trace. But more often they need to be removed, resorting to the help of a cosmetologist.
Why do acne appear
Science cannot yet absolutely say exactly why whitish nodules appear on the skin of a person - milia. The reasons for this are not very serious, which a person can easily eliminate himself:
1. Improper skin care. It is necessary to select creams, lotions and other cosmetics appropriate for the type of skin, periodically clean your face and, of course, observe hygiene.
2. Improper nutrition. It is noted that the presence in the diet of a large number of fatty foods, smoked meats and sweets is a good incentive for the appearance of whiteheads.
3. The use of low-quality cosmetics (powder, cream powder and others) or excessive use of any cosmetic products for the face.
Unfortunately, miliae are most often annoyed, the reasons for the appearance of which are much more serious:
1. Hereditary predisposition. Found: if the parents have milia on their bodies, they can be expected in children.
2. Hormonal disorders. The formation of the body occurs in adolescence and youth. It is at this stage that the greatest occurrence of miliums is noted, which can independently disappear by about 30 years.
3. Diseases of the thyroid gland, pancreas, gastrointestinal tract.
4. metabolic disorders.
5. Failure of the apoptosis process (removal of old cells by the body).
Self cure acne
Many do not consider the removal of miliums to be something special and resort to the advice of healers. Indeed, home cosmetology is an excellent prevention against the appearance of new rashes.
But if miliums signal a disease of internal organs, only specialists will help. Some citizens who are trying to save money on visiting a cosmetologist and are absolutely confident in their abilities, pierce milium papules with a needle and squeeze out their contents on their own at home. What are the dangers here? Firstly, if the needle, hands, and skin were not 100% sterile, an infection would develop in the wound, which would only aggravate the situation. Secondly, you need to take into account that the removal of milia in the cosmetology cabinet is carried out with special tools, and an ordinary household needle will almost certainly damage the follicle tissue, which can cause any negative process, until the appearance of a keloid. Thirdly, it is difficult for a non-specialist to control whether excess fat and horny scales remained in the cyst after a puncture. Incomplete removal of the blockage together with the wound from the needle gives inflammatory processes, that is, after the procedure, the appearance of the face will become worse than before it. Therefore, it is better not to experiment with the needle at home.
Folk recipes
If self-puncturing acne is dangerous, then removing milia on the face with masks, wipes, compresses is only beneficial, since all these procedures significantly improve the condition of the skin. Good results are given by the juice of viburnum. To do this, fresh berries are washed, squeezed juice out of them and wipe them with problem areas of the skin. Another advice of healers for the prevention of whiteheads is to wipe the face with a fresh cucumber.
1. Soft peeling with salt. Mix 1: 1 fine salt and olive oil. This composition is applied to the face, while performing a light rubbing it into the skin. Leave for 5 minutes and rinse with clean water.
2. Mask of viburnum. Grind the oatmeal, mix it with the juice of viburnum to a cream, apply on the face. After 45 minutes, gently wash off.
3. Decoctions of herbs. Chamomile, succession, calendula will do. Dampened with broth sponges regularly wipe problem areas of the skin.
4. White paraffin. Before the procedure, you need to wipe the face with any alcohol solution. Melted, but not hot paraffin is applied to the prepared skin in thin layers, waiting for each to harden. When the mask becomes cold, it is carefully removed.
Miliums of newborns
Quite often, multiple small white nodules appear on the delicate skin of infants. They can be on the nose, cheeks, forehead, nasolabial triangle, sometimes on the handle-legs or on the lips of the child. There are no reasons for unrest here, it is just that the baby has not yet had a normal digestion process, his digestive tract organs are weak, and the hormonal background has its own characteristics. Removing milia in children by any means is strictly prohibited. The only thing parents should do is to ensure that the baby’s skin is always perfectly clean. As a rule, acne in a few months pass by itself, leaving no trace.
Removing a milium on the eyelid
Everyone knows how soft and thin the skin of the eyelids is and how dangerous any mechanical effect in the eye area is to the eyes. It is necessary to work with any rashes especially carefully, choosing the most gentle methods. Therefore, the removal of milium on the eyelid should be entrusted exclusively to specialists. In addition to the cosmetologist, ophthalmologists and dermatologists are involved in this. Most often, a non-contact radio wave scalpel is used for this procedure, after which no traces remain. Laser removal of miliums is also used. If blackheads are located close to the surface of the skin, they are removed with a light peeling.
Ways to remove miliums
In beauty salons, they help get rid of whiteheads without complications and relapses. To do this, use the following methods:
1. Mechanical, the most common. The doctor treats the problem area of the skin with an antiseptic, pierces the milium and extracts its contents. The wound is necessarily disinfected. In one session, you can remove no more than 10 eels.
2. Electrocoagulation. This method removes milia on the face, eyelids, genitals. The essence of the procedure is cauterization of acne papules with alternating high-frequency current. In the process, an unpleasant smell of burnt skin may appear. After this, a crust appears that does not bother at all and disappears itself after a couple of days. In order for it to harden and mature faster, the areas treated with electrocoagulation cannot be abundantly moistened with water and every day they must be treated with an antiseptic.
3. Removing miliums with a laser. This method differs from the previous one only in the impact method. After processing the eel with a laser, there are also crusts that stay on the skin for several days. Care recommendations are the same as after electrocoagulation.
4. Curettage. Refers to a subspecies of the mechanical method of removal, only in this case, not a needle is used, but a special curette. The disadvantage of this method is soreness and scars after the procedure.
Milium removal: price
The cost of whitehead removal services depends on their size, location and level of the clinic. So, in many cosmetology centers, this procedure costs 100 rubles per unit. If blackheads are too small, the cost can be half as much. However, in expensive, highly popular clinics, for example, in MasterMed, where they perform many cosmetic procedures, including the removal of miliums, the price of services is slightly higher. Here they will save white eel on the face for 500 rubles, on the upper eyelid - for 2000 rubles, on the lower (ciliary region) - for 3000 rubles. Which clinic to choose, expensive or cheaper, everyone decides for himself. In order not to be mistaken, it is worth reading the customer reviews, be sure to sign up for a preliminary consultation, where to talk with the doctor.
Reviews
Now cosmetology is so well developed that it does not cause any difficulties to remove miliums. The reviews of those who went through this note different sensations from the procedures.
So, patients note that mechanical cleaning allows you to get rid of blackheads, but at the same time it has several disadvantages:
- soreness of the procedure;
- duration (about 40 minutes);
- expansion of pores;
- skin injury.
Advantages of laser cleaning and electrocoagulation:
- painlessness;
- skin trauma is minimal;
- excellent result.
Disadvantages:
- price;
- crusts after the procedure;
- the smell of burnt skin.