Skin oil, or sebum, is produced by sebaceous glands attached to your skin pores and prevents your skin from drying out and flaking. As adolescents, most people get a temporary increase in sebum production and some acne. This is due to an increase in androgen (male hormone) levels that stimulate the sebaceous glands. However, many adults continue to have low-level acne throughout life, and some experience an increase in sebum as they age.

If your skin is just "shiny", but your pores are small and you don't have acne, you don't really have a skin problem (though cosmetics companies may want you to think so.) Just having oil on your skin is not a bad thing; people with dry skin who must constantly use moisturizers wish they had more skin oil. In this case, excess sebum on the surface of the skin can be removed by simply washing a few times a day with a mild facial cleanser or using absorbent pads (but avoid excessive use of alcohol-based astringents, which can damage the skin.)

Oily Skin and Sebum

In some people, excess sebum is a real medical problem. It can become impacted in pores, temporarily enlarging them and leading to acne symptoms like blackheads, whiteheads or inflamed areas. Mild cases of acne can be treated with non-prescription topical benzoyl peroxide, which prevents bacterial inflammation. Some doctors also prescribe oral or topical antibiotics, though this is becoming less common due to resistant bacteria.

However, even if the bacteria and inflammation are eliminated, pores may still appear larger and darker than normal due to impacted sebum. (The dark color is due to oxidation of the sebum, not dirt.) Cleansers usually will not remove sebum that is impacted in pores. Even if you have otherwise smooth skin, this can obviously detract from your appearance.

Impacted Sebum Treatments 

The best topical treatments for sebum impacted in pores are prescription retinoids like tretinoin (Retin-A or generic), tazarotene (Tazorac), or adapalene (Differin). (Tretinoin and tazarotene were described previously as effective treatments for photoaging.) Many people find that adapalene causes less irritation than the other retinoids. Prescription retinoids allow sebum to be shed more easily from the pores. Over time, this can make the pore opening appear smaller, because it is not distended with sebum.

Usually, acne will get slightly worse when you first start using retinoids, so you have to stick with them for a few weeks before you see any improvement. As mentioned above, you can treat clogged pores by alternate nightly use of a retinoid and non-prescription salicylic acid gel. A very effective strategy for treating inflammatory acne is use of a retinoid at night and non-prescription benzoyl peroxide during the day.

If absolutely necessary, blackheads and whiteheads can be removed manually with a wire-type remover tool. A good brand is the Tweezerman Skin Care Tool, which is sold at drugstores and online. However, it is easy to damage your skin with these tools, so follow the directions carefully.

If you can't remove the sebum with a light pressure, wait a few days for the retinoid medication to loosen it. However, medical studies have found that even careful use of such tools can produce bruising, scarring and permanent pore enlargement, so many doctors say it is better simply to let the medication resolve the lesions rather than squeeze them out.

Blackheads can also be removed with special adhesive pore strips, but most people find that they won't remove all blackheads, and some can also strip off the upper skin layers.

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