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Regular flare-ups and breakouts aren’t the only acne troubles many women suffer from. Clogged pores can ruin the look of your flawless, clear skin just as fast.
Clogged pores are often visible on your T-zone–including your chin, nose, and forehead. They come from oil, dry skin, dirt, and debris that gets trapped in the pores on your skin. When clogged pores are left untreated, they lead to enlarged blackheads and even more acne.
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For those who struggle with blackheads and clogged pores, we often center our focus on our skincare regime. The truth is, you can try every pore clearing mask and face wash on the market, but if your diet is not clean, you won’t see very promising results.
The foods and drinks you put into your body directly affect your skin. Sometimes our clogged pores and breakouts are a direct result of our diet, drinks and all.
To get a better understanding of what drink is the worst for your skin and will lead to more clogged pores, we spoke with Dr. Purvisha Patel, board-certified dermatologist and founder of Visha Skincare.
The drink you should avoid if you have visible, clogged pores is milk.
“Believe it or not, it is milk. There is a correlation between acne and increased milk consumption,” said Dr. Purvisha.
While you probably don’t chug a gallon of milk on a daily basis, you might consume it more than you realize--especially if you put it in your morning coffee.
Dr. Purvisha explained the harmful effects of milk further.
“Cows in today’s western world are stimulated to lactate and produce milk by giving them hormones or prolactin. They are also stimulated to grow by feeding them hormones. This is true with most of the meat consumed in the US, but cows have the biggest carbon imprint and effect on the consumers of their milk/meat as the hormones are consumed as well,” explained Dr. Purvisha. “This slurry of hormones affects humans too. Babies are able to grow from cows milk as the growth factors are similar to ours. This, in turn, can stimulate hormonal increases in sebum production, which can increase acne.”
The excess oil that your face produces after your hormones spike from milk then gets clogged in your pores, leading to blackheads and acne.
“The hormone receptors in follicles can get clogged and increase oil production in the follicles when stimulated,” said Dr. Purvisha.
After cutting milk from your diet, use these amazing products to help clear up your blackheads and clogged pores fast.
Our Editors' Favorite Blackhead Clearing Products
Dermalogica Blackhead Clearing Fizz Mask ($21)
Pure Body Naturals Dead Sea Mud Mask for Face and Body ($12.75)
Ole Henriksen Cold Plunge Pore Mask ($36)
