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Treating milia
spots under your eyes
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It might look
like acne, but it's not. Milia are tiny white spots that
typically appear under and around your eyes, and sometimes
your lips. They are commonly seen on newborns, but many
adults get them also - often well after acne has ceased to
be a problem. These tiny cysts are actually compressed
deposits of keratin and sebum trapped under your skin.
Milia spots can
start out barely noticeable, but once you do notice them,
they become hard to ignore, and they can stick around for a
long time. I had under-eye milia myself some months
ago, and started looking for a solution. Luckily I found
one.
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The danger of
treating milia like acne
Milia can appear
very similar to acne, but for the most part you want to
avoid treating it with typical acne products. The underlying
cause may or may not be similar. Milia can be caused by
excess skin oil, but it also often results from a buildup in
keratin (a protein in your skin) that can occur in reaction
to chemicals, including many of the chemicals found
in acne treatments and sunscreens (or toothpaste, in the
case of your lips). One of the best ways to avoid milia is
to use fewer chemicals on your face.
What makes
milia difficult to treat is its location. The skin on
and around your eyelids is very soft, thin and flexible.
It's also very sensitive to irritation. Common acne products
based on benzoyl peroxide are likely to cause this area to
flare up with some nasty swelling. The same goes for
pinching at your skin to try and pop milia spots like
pimples. The flexible skin under your eyes means that it
will be extremely hard to keep the cysts from simply
retreating lower when you try to pop them, and you'll just
end up with a red, swollen bruise that will take forever to
heal.
Of course, the
other thing you should keep in mind is that you don't
want to injure your eyes. Many strong chemicals can
be seriously dangerous for your eyes, and that includes
natural ones like tea tree oil as well. In fact, even if you
take care to keep a cream or lotion out of your eyes, simply
the vapor from these chemicals evaporating may cause pain
and damage (so keep them away!).
Moreover, it's
common to try and pop pimples using a sterilized needle to
pierce the pustule. This should be common sense, but I'm
going to say it anyways: be careful with sharp objects
near your eyes! I don't recommend these methods, because
there are smarter ways to deal with milia.
Drawing out
milia spots with a warm compress and exfoliation
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The trick with
milia is drawing the clump of keratin to the surface, where
it will become dislodged and simply fall away. I experimented
with spot treatments and even pinched at my skin to no avail
(actually making the blemishes worse), only later to
discover a home remedy that worked surprisingly well, and
like many home remedies, this one was deceptively simple:
using a warm compress.
First, you want
to cleanse the area with a baby shampoo. Why a baby shampoo?
It's not because of any miraculous cleansing properties this
stuff has. It's just designed specifically to be gentle on
your eyes, so you wont cause yourself any harm while
cleansing. Once the area is clean, run some hot water and
soak a small cloth, then ring it out and apply it as you
would an icepack under your eyes. Do this for 15 minutes,
soaking the cloth again if it cools.
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This technique
doesn't work overnight. You may have to stick with it for a
week, but it does work. Simply applying a warm compress
cleared all my milia spots within a few days, and with zero
irritation.
Another tip that
may work even better is to substitute a used
teabag for the warm cloth. Most varieties of tea
(especially green and white tea) are rich in antioxidants,
and this way you get the benefits of the warm compress
drawing cysts to the surface and the nutrients in the
tea detoxifying your skin. This technique is also used to
reduce the appearance of dark circles.
If you want to
speed the process, you can try exfoliating the skin under
your eyes. Removing that top layer of dead skin cells can
bring the cysts to the surface faster, but be careful. I
would avoid chemical exfoliating agents (such as salicylic
acid and glycolic acid), and instead use an exfoliating
scrub, as it gives you more control (they aren't runny and
won't emit harsh vapors). Of course, you'll still want to
take care not to get the granular particles into your eyes.
If you're gentle
and precise, this may help, but I would stress that it's not
mandatory. Even a gentle scrub may still bruise the
sensitive skin under your eyes (leaving you with "raccoon
eyes" the next day), so sometimes a little patience is the
best advice when dealing with milia.
Read the next
article >
How to Treat Baby Acne
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Acne Tips & Guides
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