Spots on my nose - help me drain them

May 8, 2004 6:18 PM

Skincare. I have lovely soft, clear skin everywhere except for my nose. With alarming regularity, wee spots will pop up on it filled with white stuff that is ick (zits?), despite the fact it's never greasy. Any advice for getting rid of these/maintaining my follicles?
posted by Mossy to Health & Fitness (11 answers total)

"follicles" are for hair, btw, so unless you're complaining that your nose is incoveniently hairless, I think you mean "pores."

It sounds like you're just talking about the normal ick that collects in pores on the nose and, sometimes, cheeks. This is the kind of stuff that Biore strips and similar products aim to remove, and they seem to work well enough in my family.
posted by mdeatherage at 7:24 PM on May 8, 2004

IANAD (i am not a dermotologist), but I'd recommend staying away from some of the topical anti-zit stuff found at drug stores. By and large, they're either benzyl peroxide or salicylic acid, both of which can be very very drying and can sometimes be of dubious benefit depending on your skin condition.

I've tried a bunch of stuff without much luck, but the thing that finally did it was getting a prescription topical antibiotic gel. A dermo or regular doctor should be able to prescribe something (I personally use clindamycin, a very mild gel, and its generic) that can take care of mild issues like that. Those white "zits" are typically bacterial in nature, so that's why attacking the source of the problem works a lot better than just drying it out.
posted by dicaxpuella at 8:00 PM on May 8, 2004

Response by poster: You know, funny thing - I have small (veeery small, you can barely see them) hairs on my nose and the spots tend to form around the base of these. I also occasionally get them around the base of my leg hair (which isn't small).

Hmm, I don't think strips would work for them.. Ouch..
posted by Mossy at 8:12 PM on May 8, 2004

i have been using this soap to combat some nose-area skin troubles, and as long as i use it every time i wash my face, it significantly helps.
posted by nyoki at 9:02 PM on May 8, 2004

I second the biore strips. Mossy - they do not hurt, trust me on this, in fact it is oddly gratifying to yank it off and see all the grode contained thereupon. You will want to do it again and again.*

*if you're a wierdo like me.
posted by contessa at 9:08 PM on May 8, 2004

Is your nose kind of reddish? You may have rosacea, a condition that causes little pustule type pimples.

I've got it - my dermatologist has me using a creme (Noritate), that up to the moment has not been helpful...
posted by jasper411 at 11:11 PM on May 8, 2004

Cheap solution that will work wonders and not rape your wallet like an oxy pad:

- 70% isopropyl rubbing alcohol
- Cotton Buds
- Dettol
- Water

Clean affected body part with rubbing alcohol. Let it dry.

Mix 1 part Dettol to 50 parts water (100 if you're sensitive). Clean affected body part with this

Repeat daily, maybe twice a day if the problem is serious.

Your skill will clear up and your wallet will love you. Worked well for me and it's worked well for other who I've reccomended it to. It's also less offensive to your face than those horrible zit creams, IMHO.

For serious problems, or similar problems in places you can't easily reach, I reccomend carbolic soap, but unfortunately that's expensive in North America (Which is odd, because it's cheap in Asia. Oh well).
posted by shepd at 10:10 AM on May 9, 2004

Despite being full of off-white gunk, those mini-zits filling the pores of your nose are actually blackheads. My own nose is a bit strange about that: the pores on the right side excrete white zitgunk like yours, while the pores on the right side bring forth the more conventional dark-headed zitgunk which gives blackheads their name.

I concur with the Biore Strips recommendation, though I hear dermatologists don't recommend using them too often, I guess because repeatedly applying strong chemically-treated adhesive and then tearing it off can't be good for your skin. There is a warning on the box not to use them more often than every three days or so, I think.

The strips do work well to clean up the pores, and it's wonderfully cathartic to see the stuff they pull out. This guy even took microscope photos.
posted by brownpau at 12:01 PM on May 9, 2004

Stress in your life? It's also a major cause of breakouts.
posted by gramcracker at 12:01 PM on May 9, 2004

Above, white gunk on the right and blackhead gunk on the left. I momentarily forgot which side was which.
posted by brownpau at 12:02 PM on May 9, 2004

brownpau, from someone who stares obsessively at her used biore strips, thanks for that link!
posted by CunningLinguist at 5:25 AM on May 10, 2004