After a long, stressful day, think of the simple pleasure you get from taking a soothing, steamy shower. You are able to unwind, wash away the impurities accumulated over the day, and when you immerse from that steamy room, you are left feeling rejuvenated, fresh, and clean. This invigorating feeling doesn’t have to be reserved just for the shower. Facial steaming is a great way to open pores and get a deeper, hydrating cleanse that you can’t get from regular facial regimens alone.

Facial steaming can open your pores and tap into a multitude of healing benefits, without exposing your skin to costly chemical facial treatments. Fad treatments may advertise new ways to minimize enlarged pores, but steaming to cleanse skin pores is a proven, holistic way that has been utilized throughout the ages. From Turkish bathhouses to Icelandic hot springs, steaming has been popular for hundreds of years. Steaming isn’t just a trend of today—it’s a long-standing practice to help you attain the skin you want without putting yourself at risk of damaging side effects. A variety of chemical peels and laser treatments offer quick fixes to huge pores and signs of aging, but by partaking in these harsh practices, you are also putting yourself at potential risk of bacterial infections, scarring, allergic reactions, and the resurfacing of breakouts including acne and cold sores. OZNaturals always believes in taking the most natural approach to beauty, and steaming to combat big pores is a great way to get started.

The appearance of large pores on the face can be caused by a number of factors. Normal aging causes the skin to lose its collagen and elasticity, generating the emergence of enlarged pores. A buildup of sebum, an oily secretion of the sebaceous gland, can fill pores, making them appear shiny and larger than usual. Dead skin, dirt, and even makeup residue are other contributing factors to build up in the pores. Although most of these causes are bound to occur while living an active life, steaming and proper beauty practices can help cleanse, hydrate, and rejuvenate pores on the face.

One will often hear the phrase the “appearance of pores” because pores do not actually open and close. Believe it or not, pores don’t have their own individual muscles causing them to open and shrink on command. It’s a myth that warm water opens the doors to all pores and cold water squeezes them shut. Pores can be tricky to tame, which is why steaming is a great way to loosen the sebum, dirt, oil, makeup, and dead skin, allowing for a deeper clean after you’ve gone through a steaming regimen. Steaming paired with natural beauty products allow the products to work themselves deeper into your skin, minimizing the emergence of oversized pores.

If warm water doesn’t magically open pores, then why is steaming so effective? One reason why steam is so impactful is because steaming triggers perspiration. Yes, this is a fancy word for sweat. Didn’t we grow up thinking that sweating is what causes acne and large pores? Sweating and then leaving dirt and sodium to dry and cake over your skin can clog your pores, but when perspiration occurs, it actually generates a flow of approximately 99% water from your skin, initiating a natural cleansing effect. When steaming initiates perspiration, it lifts dead skin cells, dirt, and other impurities that may have accumulated. With these unwanted substances now at the surface layer of your pores, it allows for you to gently wash them away with a sulfate free natural cleanser.

 

OZNaturals carries two rejuvenating cleansers that enrich your skin with vital vitamins and nutrients after you’ve gone through your steaming regimen. Finding the right facial cleanser for you is key to shrinking the appearance of your pores. First ask yourself, what is causing my pores to appear enlarged? If the answer is sun damage and aging, our Vitamin C Cleanser is a great cleanser to use after you’ve steamed your face and loosened the unwanted impurities through perspiration. This facial wash taps into the natural power of Vitamin C, delivering anti-oxidants deep into your pores. Vitamin C is a holistic way to combat hyperpigmentation, uneven texture such as large pores, signs of aging, and fine lines. We have also harnessed the healing properties of the ocean with our Ocean Mineral Facial Cleanser, ideal for those of all skin types. From those who are blemish prone to those with irritated or damaged skin, the Vitamin E, rose hip oil, and over 90 restorative minerals found in the ocean are sure to dive into your skin and help eliminate the appearance of large pores.

In addition to increased perspiration, facial steaming benefits your skin by kick starting circulation. When the temperature of the steam reaches your face, it alerts receptors on your skin, triggering a thermoregulating response. Your skin will want to release the heat, so your blood vessels dilate, allowing blood to flow to the skin and increasing circulation. This is beneficial because this circulation delivers oxygen and nutrients to your skin’s tissue.  Although we often think of healthy circulation in relation to our overall physical wellbeing and exercise, healthy circulation also helps keep your skin refreshed and vibrant. In addition to increased blood flow, circulation improves your skin’s ability to rid itself of waste such as free radicals.  Think of the increased circulation as a way for your skin to revitalize itself from the inside out.

One inevitable cause of enlarged pores is aging. In addition to the loss of elasticity, the skin’s natural shedding process, which rids pores of unwanted contaminants, slows significantly. During adolescence and young adulthood, the skin naturally sheds dead skin cells at a consistent and rapid rate. This process, known as desquamation, slows down around the age of 30. The skin is no longer shedding at as fast of a rate, which causes a number of unwanted side effects including build up of dry skin, oil, natural residue, and makeup. These excess impurities make the skin look tired and increase the appearance of large pores. This is where steaming comes in. Steaming acts as a replacement for the desquamation that used to happen naturally during younger years. Steaming your face and removing the build up of dead skin cells reveals a more plump, youthful layer of skin just beneath the surface.

Pack an extra punch by exfoliating after steaming. While steaming loosens excess cells and impurities that are influencing the appearance of large pores, treating your skin to a gentle exfoliant after steaming will ensure that the dead cells are gone for good. Our Ancient Orient Rice Enzyme Dermafoliant is a great exfoliant to increase the turnover of fresh, youthful skin cells. Additionally, there is another major benefit of integrating a vitamin rich, natural exfoliant into your skin care routine.  Just after you have washed your face with an exfoliant, it is most receptive to our power packed serums. OZNatural’s provides three potent, yet holistic serums to help achieve fresher glowing skin. Although all of the serums are fantastic, our Pro-Retaxinol 2.5 Retinol Serum works wonders when looking to minimize pore size.  The retinoic acid penetrates deeply into the skin, boosting collagen and skin cell turnover. This process not only reduces pore size, but also can also reduce wrinkles, improve skin texture, decrease breakouts, diminish dark spots, and increase that youthful glow!

Now that we know about all of the positive ways that steaming can help renew skin cells and minimize the appearance of enlarged pores, how can you steam your face from the comfort of your home? This at home steaming method can be practiced with items that you most likely already have in the cupboard, and won’t cost you a thing. The best kind of facial is a free facial!

Step 1

Bring a small pot of water to a boil. You don’t need much, just one or two cups will do it! While the water is heating, move on to step two.

Step 2

Start by removing all makeup and washing your face with a cleanser to eliminate any surface level dirt, sweat, and oil.  It is important to use a natural, gentle cleanser to reduce the chance of irritating the skin during the steaming process.

Step 3

Once the water is brought to a boil, pour the water into a large glass or ceramic bowl. If you only have a plastic bowl, keep the water in the pot to avoid breathing in any chemicals the plastic releases when heated.

Step 4

Leave the water as is, or enhance your steaming experience by adding essential oils into the water. You want to make sure that this step happens after pouring the water into the bowl, because the oils will evaporate quickly kept in the hot pot. As far as which oils to use, the choice is yours! If you have trouble with blemishes, tea tree oil or rosemary might be the best fit for you. Rose hip oil and jasmine work well on dry or aging skin, and geranium and lavender oils are safest for sensitive skin. If you don’t have essential oils to add, it’s no problem! Herbal, loose-leaf tea such as mint can be a great substitute for oils. Regardless of whether you use these additions not, the steaming will still be effective.

Step 5

Drape a clean towel over the back of your head so that the steam stays within the concentrated area around your face. Lean a comfortable distance over the bowl. You don’t want to be so far away that you can’t feel the steam, but you also don’t want to be so close that the steam feels uncomfortably hot and the air is hard to breathe. If this is your first time steaming, it’s safest to stay a little further back until you can gauge how the steam affects your skin without risking irritation.

Step 6

Hold your face over the bowl for a minimum of five minutes and a maximum of ten minutes. With anything less than five minutes, you will not experience the results, and with anything over ten minutes, you risk irritating your skin. Again, if this is your first time, it’s best to stay closer to the five-minute mark until you have experience with how steaming impacts your skin.

Step 7

Gently pat your face dry and move forward with one of the OZNaturals products we reviewed. Remember that if you are new to steaming, it is smart not to go too overboard with a myriad of potent products on your first try because you don’t want to risk irritating the skin. Play it safe at first to see how steaming impacts your skin, and then add in products as you see fit.

Step 8

To conclude the steaming process, it is always crucial to hydrate with a soothing, natural moisturizer after steaming. Heat can cause the skin to dry out, so give it a healthy boost of hydration with our Sea Infused Herbal Moisturizer.

Steaming at home is an easy, natural way to help revitalize skin and minimize the appearance of large pores. Steaming will impact everyone’s skin differently, so play around with it to yield the best results for you. Youthful looking skin is not something that can only be achieved with harsh chemical peels and expensive facial treatments! Treat yourself to a soothing, DIY steaming facial to minimize pores and give your skin a boost of natural rejuvenation.