You’re cleansing, you’re moisturizing, you’re trying every new product you see online… but your pores still look large. Frustrating, isn’t it? The truth is, you might be unknowingly making mistakes that are making the problem worse.
In the quest for flawless skin, common habits and widespread misconceptions can backfire, leading to more inflammation, congestion, and even permanent damage. It’s a cycle we see countless patients fall into.
As dermatological experts at The New You, we’ve seen thousands of patients who unknowingly followed bad advice. This guide is designed to help you identify and stop these mistakes, and more importantly, show you the professional path to genuinely healthier, smoother skin. While we’ve covered Open Pores Treatment – Causes, Symptoms, Treatment, Remedies: Guide 2026, this article focuses on the critical errors to avoid on your journey to professional pore correction
The 10 Critical Mistakes Damaging Your Skin
Mistake 1: Using Harsh, Physical Scrubs
Why It’s Harmful: It feels productive to scrub your skin smooth, but abrasive particles like walnut shells, sugar, or fruit pits are causing micro-tears on your skin’s surface. This inflammation can lead to post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation and, over time, can actually stretch the delicate pore walls, making them appear larger.
The Professional Solution: The smart way to exfoliate is chemically, not physically. Chemical Exfoliation using ingredients like AHAs (for the surface) and BHAs (for inside the pore) dissolves debris gently and effectively. For a more powerful result, our professional Chemical Peels use medical-grade acids to resurface the skin and deeply cleanse pores without any physical trauma.
Mistake 2: Over-Cleansing or Using Stripping Products
Why It’s Harmful: That “squeaky clean” feeling is actually a cry for help from your skin. Harsh cleansers that contain high amounts of alcohol or sulfates strip your skin of its natural, protective oils. This damages the skin barrier, leading to dehydration. In response, your skin overcompensates by producing even more sebum (oil), leading to more clogged and stretched pores.
The Professional Solution: The key is balance. We recommend gentle, pH-balanced, sulfate-free cleansers that respect your skin’s barrier. For a truly deep clean without the stripping, a HydraFacial is unparalleled. It uses patented vortex suction to remove impurities while simultaneously infusing the skin with hydrating serums, leaving it clean, calm, and balanced.
Mistake 3: Using Pore Vacuums Incorrectly
Why It’s Harmful: Those at-home pore vacuum devices that promise instant extraction are a recipe for disaster. The uncontrolled suction can easily break delicate capillaries around the nose and cheeks, leading to permanent redness. Worse, it can cause significant inflammation and even push bacteria deeper into the follicle. Any visible reduction is temporary and not worth the risk of long-term damage.
The Professional Solution: If you need extractions, leave it to the professionals. Safe, effective extractions are a key component of a HydraFacial and are performed by our trained aestheticians using sterile techniques. This ensures pores are cleared without causing trauma or scarring.
Mistake 4: Skipping Moisturizer
Why It’s Harmful: This is one of the most common myths we encounter. If you have oily skin, you might think adding more moisture will make it worse. The opposite is true. When your skin is dehydrated, it panics and ramps up oil production to compensate. A dehydrated skin surface also makes pores look more indented and noticeable.
The Professional Solution: Everyone, regardless of skin type, needs a moisturizer. For oily skin, we recommend lightweight, non-comedogenic, oil-free formulas. For long-term oil regulation, treatments like RF Microneedling can help normalize sebaceous gland activity, reducing the need for your skin to overproduce oil in the first place.
Mistake 5: Using “Pore Shrinking” Products with Alcohol
Why It’s Harmful: Many over-the-counter pore tonics or primers give an instant tightening effect because they are packed with alcohol. This feeling is simply dehydration; the alcohol is evaporating the water from your skin, causing a temporary, minor constriction of the surrounding tissue. The long-term effect is a weakened skin barrier, irritation, and potentially worse-looking pores.
The Professional Solution: Look for ingredients that actually work. Niacinamide (Vitamin B3) is a superstar for visibly reducing pore size by strengthening the skin barrier and regulating oil. Retinoids are another gold-standard ingredient for boosting collagen. In our clinic, we incorporate these into personalized treatment plans and professional-grade products for real, lasting results.
Mistake 6: Applying Retinoids Incorrectly
Why It’s Harmful: Retinoids are incredible for pores, but they are potent. Using too much, too often, or mixing them with other strong actives like AHAs without guidance can cause severe irritation, redness, and a compromised skin barrier. This “retinoid burn” can make your skin texture worse and leave it more vulnerable to damage.
The Professional Solution: The key is professional guidance. During a consultation, we determine the right type and strength of Retinoid for your skin and teach you how to incorporate it safely. We can also deliver retinoid-based professional treatments that offer powerful results with minimal irritation, perfectly complementing your at-home routine.
Mistake 7: Forgetting Sunscreen
Why It’s Harmful: This is, without a doubt, the most damaging mistake for your pores. Unprotected exposure to UV Rays is the single greatest cause of Collagen and Elastin breakdown. These are the supportive fibers that keep your pore walls tight and firm. When they degrade, the skin around pores sags, making them appear larger and more oval-shaped. Sun damage also thickens the outer layer of skin, casting shadows that make pores more noticeable.
The Professional Solution: Daily, broad-spectrum SPF 30+ is non-negotiable. To reverse existing sun damage, we offer treatments like Fractional Lasers and RF Microneedling. These are specifically designed to rebuild the collagen matrix that sun exposure has destroyed, tightening the skin and minimizing pores from the inside out.
Mistake 8: Believing Pores Can Be “Opened” and “Closed”
Why It’s Harmful: This persistent myth leads people to use extreme temperatures—splashing their face with ice water to “close” pores or hovering over a pot of boiling water to “open” them. Pores do not have muscles; they cannot open and close. These actions can cause broken capillaries (from extreme cold) or inflammation (from heat), neither of which is good for pore appearance.
The Professional Solution: The goal is not to open or close pores, but to tighten the surrounding skin and keep them clear. This is precisely what professional treatments are designed to do. RF Microneedling tightens the skin, while HydraFacial and Chemical Peels keep it clear.
Mistake 9: Picking at Your Skin and Squeezing Pores
Why It’s Harmful: We know it’s tempting, but squeezing your pores or picking at congestion is one of the worst things you can do. This action introduces bacteria from your fingers into the open follicle, leading to infection and inflammation. It can also cause the follicle wall to collapse, creating a cyst. Most importantly, the pressure can permanently stretch the pore, leading to scarring and a larger opening.
The Professional Solution: Again, professional extractions are the answer. By keeping your pores clear with regular HydraFacial treatments and using the right home care products, you reduce the urge to pick. Our aestheticians are trained to extract impurities safely and hygienically.
Mistake 10: Ignoring Your Diet and Lifestyle
Why It’s Harmful: While not the primary cause for everyone, what you eat can influence your skin. A diet high in processed foods, sugar, and dairy can trigger inflammation and an increase in sebum production for some individuals. This internal inflammation can manifest externally as clogged, enlarged pores and breakouts.
The Professional Solution: We believe in a holistic approach for the best treatment for oily skin and large pores. While our advanced treatments are the core of the solution, we also provide guidance on how lifestyle factors, including diet, stress management, and hydration, can support your clinical results and lead to healthier skin for life.
Key Stats on Mistakes That Make Open Pores Worse
| Mistake | Insight | Source |
| Washing too little or too often | In a 6‑week trial, washing twice daily with a mild cleanser improved open comedones; washing only once a day worsened acne, while very frequent washing increased lesion counts in some groups. | Randomized trial on face‑washing frequency |
| Using harsh scrubs | Large, irregular scrub particles can cause micro‑tears and barrier damage, leading to redness, irritation, and sensitivity that aggravate breakouts and texture issues. | Kiehl’s – Micro‑tears from Scrubs |
| Over‑exfoliating | Over‑exfoliation strips the skin barrier, causing dryness, irritation, and more breakouts from a compromised barrier. | Clinikally – Over‑Exfoliation & Barrier Damage |
| Skipping sunscreen | UV exposure accelerates photoaging by increasing collagen‑breaking MMP enzymes and irregular pigmentation, making pores look larger and skin rougher. | NIH Review – Sunscreens & Photoaging |
| Sleeping too little | Sleep deprivation raises cortisol, boosts sebum, and leads to clogged pores and more breakouts. | Sereko – Sleep Deprivation & Skin Health |
| Smoking | Tobacco smoke causes oxidative stress, increases collagen‑degrading enzymes, and speeds up skin aging, which worsens laxity and visible pores. | ScienceDirect – Tobacco Smoke & Premature Skin Aging |
| Using stripping cleansers | Over‑washing with harsh cleansers removes natural oils and disrupts the barrier, leading to irritation and more oil rebound. | Clinikally – Is Overwashing Your Face Bad? |
| Not treating acne | Clinical data show that uncontrolled acne (especially open comedones) increases when cleansing and treatment are inadequate, leaving more enlarged, clogged pores. | Clinical Trial – Cleansing & Acne Lesions |
| Ignoring skin barrier repair | Barrier damage from harsh routines makes skin more sensitive and inflamed, which in turn worsens texture and pore visibility. | Clinikally – Over‑Exfoliation |
| Relying only on makeup to “fill” pores | Heavy, occlusive makeup can clog pores if not removed properly, especially when combined with poor cleansing habits, contributing to more comedones and texture (not a single stat but repeatedly highlighted in acne‑care cleansing studies). | Cohort Study – Cleansing Routine in Acne |
Conclusion
Achieving smooth, refined skin isn’t about trying every new trend or scrubbing your pores aggressively. It’s about avoiding these common mistakes and investing in scientifically-backed, professional treatments that address the root cause.
At The New You, our expertise ensures you receive the right clinical pore care for your specific needs, without the risk of making things worse.
Are you ready to stop sabotaging your skin and start your transformation?
Book Your Personalized Consultation in Hyderabad Today!
Let our experts create a customized plan for advanced pore correction that corrects past damage and delivers the results you’ve been looking for.
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FAQs
Q1: Is it bad to use a pore vacuum blackhead remover?
A: Yes, we strongly advise against at-home pore vacuums. They can cause broken capillaries, bruising, and even scarring. Professional extractions during a treatment like a HydraFacial are much safer and more effective.
Q2: Why do my pores look bigger after I wash my face?
A: This could be due to using a harsh, stripping cleanser that dehydrates your skin. When skin is dehydrated, it can overproduce oil, making pores appear more prominent. Switch to a gentle, pH-balanced cleanser and always follow with a moisturizer.
Q3: What’s the biggest mistake people make with large pores?
A: Without a doubt, it’s skipping sunscreen. Sun damage is the primary cause of collagen breakdown, which leads to sagging skin and enlarged pores. Daily SPF is the single most effective step you can take to protect your pores.