Sebaceous Filaments

blackhead vs. sebaceous filament— do you know the difference? blackheads are pretty easy to spot. they’re those pimples at the surface of the skin that appear black due to oxidization when exposed to air. There are a different kind of black dots that can pop up on your skin though… commonly mistaken as blackheads; sebaceous filaments! These are the ones we all hate and see, the most obvious area is found on our NOSE specifically and we can squeeze them every night and they seem to always fill up again, what gives!?!? - let me explain... our skin is covered in hair — think peach fuzz on your face. every hair follicle contains hair and a sebaceous gland that produces sebum (oil) that’s meant to keep your skin naturally moisturized. compromised of triglycerides, wax esters and squalene, sebaceous filaments reside in the lining of your pores, and their primary function is to channel the flow of sebum along that lining into the skin to moisturize it. for many people, sebaceous filaments will never become super noticeable — these filaments only become visible when the lining of your pore fills up with sebum. but for those of us with oily skin or enlarged pores, sebaceous filaments can be more visible like blackheads, more of a light grey or tan, rather than black. sebaceous glands are highly concentrated around your nose and forehead, sebaceous filaments are more robust in those areas, too. You can extract these tiny grey specks, just know that this won’t eradicate them; they will naturally fill back up because they are a part of your pore structure. 🤍 what you *can* do: adopt a regular regimen of cleansing and exfoliating to keep pores clean and clear of excess sebum and debris; this way your sebaceous filaments can continue to wick oil effectively without clogging up!