SEBACEOUS FILAMENTS

Sebaceous filaments and how to get rid of them

Why people confuse them with blackheads and how they’re different

Sebaceous filaments are the small gray and yellow dots seen on cheeks and the nose area. They are skin pores covered by sebum; oil produced by sebaceous glands. Their function is to allow passage of this oil from the sebaceous glands to the outside of your skin to help counter moisture loss and environmental attacks. They are invisible features but may be seen, especially after excessive oil accumulation, making them to harden and overstretch. Many clients keep asking how you can eliminate these sebaceous filaments, and this is what I tell them;

Never forget to wash your face after exercise

Exercise mostly increases sweating. But it is never safe letting the sweat and bacteria remain on your skin. It can block your sebaceous filaments, causing irritation and various skin breakouts. I always tell my clients to use a cleanser for washing before drying and applying a lighter lotion.

Use an exfoliator

An exfoliator with salicylic acid can help reach deeper in your pores to reduce clogging, hence minimizing the filaments’ appearance. It also hinders more filaments from growing. This will reduce irritation risk and other issues. It is best to exfoliate twice every week for better results.

Interestingly, most people interchangeably use sebaceous filaments and blackheads. I know it is confusing because they seem to be similar, but no. Well, sebaceous filaments are part of the skin composition. They are the link to oil travel from the sebaceous glands to the skin surface. Also, their appearance is light grey or beige. Conversely, blackheads come about following a malfunction of the filaments; when there is improper function after excessive oil, bacteria, and dead skin cells accumulation in the pores. If the blocked pore is exposed to air, it will oxidize and form blackhead. But if covered by the skin, it forms a whitehead. Also, blackheads are noticed by their black color on the skin’s surface.

Barbara Santini

Barbara is a freelance writer and a sex and relationships adviser at Dimepiece LA and Peaches and Screams. Barbara is involved in various educational initiatives aimed at making sex advice more accessible to everyone and breaking stigmas around sex across various cultural communities. In her spare time, Barbara enjoys trawling through vintage markets in Brick Lane, exploring new places, painting and reading.

Ieva Kubiliute is a psychologist and a sex and relationships advisor and a freelance writer. She's also a consultant to several health and wellness brands. While Ieva specialises in covering wellness topics ranging from fitness and nutrition, to mental wellbeing, sex and relationships and health conditions, she has written across a diverse range of lifestyle topics, including beauty and travel. Career highlights so far include: luxury spa-hopping in Spain and joining an £18k-a-year London gym. Someone’s got to do it! When she’s not typing away at her desk—or interviewing experts and case studies, Ieva winds down with yoga, a good movie and great skincare (affordable of course, there’s little she doesn’t know about budget beauty). Things that bring her endless joy: digital detoxes, oat milk lattes and long country walks (and sometimes jogs).

MS, University of Tartu
Sleep specialist

Using the acquired academic and professional experience, I advise patients with various complaints about mental health - depressed mood, nervousness, lack of energy and interest, sleep disorders, panic attacks, obsessive thoughts and anxieties, difficulty concentrating, and stress. In my free time, I love to paint and go on long walks on the beach. One of my latest obsessions is sudoku – a wonderful activity to calm an unease mind.

Latest from Ask the Expert