Natural Ways To Get Rid Of Blackheads

1. Exfoliate - but not too much

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Regularly exfoliating your face can help remove dead skin cells and unclog your pores, preventing the formation of blackheads. A gentle scrub made from natural ingredients like oatmeal, sugar, or baking soda to exfoliate your skin - but be careful not to over exfoliate your skin as it can cause you to produce more oils.  1-2 times per week is all you need.

2. Steam your face

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Steaming your face regularly can help to open up your pores and loosen blackheads, making them easier to remove, if you're not experienced then maybe go & get a facial instead. You can steam your face by placing a towel over your head and leaning over a bowl of hot water for 5-10 minutes then if the blackheads are ready to squeeze then they will come out without much force.

3. Honey

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Honey has natural antibacterial properties that can help to prevent the formation of blackheads - it's the holy grail basically. Apply a small amount of honey to your face and leave it on for 10-15 minutes before rinsing off with warm water, it's as easy as that!

4. Lemon juice

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Lemon juice contains alpha-hydroxy acids (AHAs - that stuff you find in your snazzy skincare) that can help to exfoliate your skin and unclog pores. Apply a small amount of lemon juice to your face and leave it on for 10-15 minutes before rinsing off with warm water.

5. Tea Tree oil

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Tea tree oil also has natural antibacterial properties as you probably already know, that can help to prevent blackheads. Dilute a few drops of tea tree oil in a carrier oil (research this before you do it) like coconut oil and apply it to your face before bed.

6. Green tea

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Green tea is amazing for your body and skin and it contains antioxidants that can help to reduce inflammation and prevent blackheads. Apply cooled green tea to your face using a cotton ball and leave it on for 10-15 minutes before rinsing off with warm water. Voila!

7. Create your own mask with baking soda mixed with water

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Baking soda is good for getting rid of blackheads, it helps remove dead skin cells and unclog pores. It's also alkaline in nature, which helps balance the pH level of the skin and reduce oiliness - mixing it with water creates a paste, however, use it in moderation and try not to over-exfoliate.

8. Use Salicylic acid

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Salicylic acid is a type of beta-hydroxy acid that can help to unclog pores. Look for skincare products that contain salicylic acid and use them as directed - Paula's Choice is the holy grail brand! Be sure to make sure you pick the correct product for your skin type.

9. DON'T squeeze - even if you're tempted

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I know it's tempting but this can actually make things worse by pushing bacteria and deeper into the pores. Instead, try using a comedone extractor after steaming your face or seek the help of a professional esthetician if you're really struggling with these issues.

10. Turmeric powder & honey

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When mixed together, turmeric powder and honey can create a powerful mask to help reduce blackheads. The antibacterial properties of turmeric and honey can help to kill any bacteria on your skin, while the anti-inflammatory and humectant properties can help to soothe and moisturize the skin.

11. Regularly cleanse your skin

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Be sure to cleanse your face twice a day, when you're wearing makeup each day you should be double cleansing at night as well. Cleansing your skin regularly can help to remove excess oil and dead skin cells. Be sure to use a gentle cleanser that is appropriate for your skin type - follow skincare gods like Caroline Hirons on Instagram & Youtube for tips!

12. Honey, lemon juice & cinnamon

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Cinnamon is a natural exfoliant and has antimicrobial properties that can help kill bacteria on the skin. Honey is a natural humectant, which means it helps to moisturize the skin and keep it hydrated and Lemon juice is high in citric acid, which can help exfoliate the skin and remove dead skin cells - the perfect mix for your skin.

13. Seek professional help

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If you are struggling with persistent blackheads or bad skin, a dermatologist or esthetician can provide the right treatment options catered for your skin. Be sure to do your research before you visit anybody and remember that a good skincare routine can help to keep blackheads at bay but it will take time, like anything!

14. Moisturise, moisturise, moisture!

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Moisturiser seems to be a lot of peoples enemy. They think it'll make their skin oily or greasy and stop their makeup from staying on. However, this is the complete opposite to the truth. Moisturising each day helps keep your skin hydrated and healthy and with prevent the formation of blackheads and other blemishes.

15. Use pore strips

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Pore strips can be an effective way to remove blackheads, but they should be used sparingly and in combination with other skincare treatments. Like anything, if you use them too much they can make a negative affect on your skin. Make sure that you're using a good brand as well.

16. Use retinoids in your skincare routine

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Over the counter retinoids like Retin-A and Differin are reliable methods of getting rid of blackheads. “Retinoids work by promoting skin turnover and decreasing the ‘stickiness’ of the skin cells to prevent blockage of the follicular ostia, and retinoids treatments should be eased into your skincare routine" 

says Dr Suozzi.

17. Consider using Alpha Hydroxy Acids

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Alpha hydroxys such as Glycolic acid and Lactic acid are very helpful - salicyclic acid for sure will get rid of blackheads when used as part of your skincare routine. You often have to try and test different products to see which work the best with your skin. Try products like Drunk Elephant Glycolic Resurfacing Night Serum.

18. Opt for some In-Office treatments

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Dermatologists can help rid your blackheads, Fraxel laser and Clear brilliant laser or microneedling are amongst some of the treatments that can really help. Some people find they notice a difference almost immediately, others need multiple sessions to achieve their desired results.

19. Forget about the suction devices

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These products can often do more harm than good. “This suction can be harmful to delicate facial skin and can induce telangiectasias, or ‘broken blood vessels’ to appear, particularly on and around the nose,”

Suozzi explains. Never follow those TikTok trends...seek professional advice.

20. Yoghurt & oatmeal

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Yogurt is a natural source of lactic acid, which is an alpha-hydroxy acid (AHA) that is commonly used in many skincare products. AHAs are known to exfoliate the skin by breaking down the bonds between dead skin cells and oatmeal works as a gentle exfoliant. Another common ingredient for many high street exfoliators.

21. Use clay masks

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Clay masks can help to draw out impurities and excess oil from your skin, helping to prevent blackheads. Use a clay mask once or twice a week, slowly incorporate one into your skincare routine and be sure to stop using it if your skin has any sort of reaction for it.

22. Try using oil-free products

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Oil-free products can help to prevent the formation of new blackheads by reducing excess oil on your skin. Removing all oils from your skin isn't good, but depending on your skin type, using oily products can make your skin worse or make you break out in blackheads and blemishes.

23. Maintain a healthy diet

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A healthy diet can help to keep your skin clear and prevent blackheads. Avoid greasy or fried foods and eat plenty of fruits and vegetables. What you put in your body is extremely important, probably the most important thing for your mind and your body. Treat your stomach well and it'll repay you with good skin.

24. Clean your makeup brushes regularly

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When we say regularly, we mean at least once a week. Think about all of the bacteria stuck on your brushes after you've used them. If you're not cleaning them on a regular basis, you're asking for problems with your skin. Use Fairy Platinum washing up liquid to clean your brushes as this is the best thing to break down the dirt and grease left in your brushes.

25. Use a charcoal mask

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Like clay masks, charcoal masks work deep within your skin to draw out any excess oils and impurities that may be causing blemishes and blackheads. Charcoal is thought to take these benefits up a notch and really penetrate your skin, flushing it with antioxidants, vitamins and botanicals.

26. Consider a chemical peel

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Chemical peels tend to be used for their anti-ageing benefits, reducing age spots and fine lines. But these peels often contain AHAs and BHAs and work by exfoliating your skin leaving it looking smoother and more refreshed looking. Although not primarily used to treat blackheads, they might be worth looking in to.

27. Use noncomedogenic products

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Your favourite cleanser or exfoliator may not be so good for your skin if you don't use noncomedogenic makeup and skincare. Noncomedogenic products will not cause you to get comedones or clogged pores but not all products are noncomedogenic so be sure to read the label.

28. Do not sleep in your makeup

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This is something that we should all be used to doing by now, but sometimes when you come in a little drunk or you're really exhausted after a long day at work, the last thing you want to be doing is a long skincare routine. However, no matter how tempting it is, do not ever sleep in your makeup.

29. Don't use benzoyl peroxide

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When it comes to over the counter spot treatment (OTC) they're likely to contain benzoyl peroxide and the problem with this is that it doesn't work for all types of acne. It works at reducing swelling but blackheads are not considered inflammatory - so this product would be pretty useless.

30. Use SPF - even in winter

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People often think that sun exposure can improve acne, however, the truth is that is can actually make things worse and darken acne making it last longer. Using a oil-free sunscreen can really help protect your skin from sunlight and stop blemishes from getting worse.

31. Use a *gentle* cleanser

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Cleansing your skin is extremely important for both treating and preventing blackheads, but not any old cleanser will do! You might be thinking an aggressive cleanser than you rub in hard will be best for clearing out those blackheads, but a mild, gentle cleanser is what you need to make sure you don't take away moisture and make the situation worse.

32. Try out a sauna from time to time

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As mentioned, a face steam can be really helpful for your blackheads - so why not go the whole hog and visit a sauna? If you don't usually, this could help you treat your facial skin with steam and sweat out any toxins in your skin, as well as boosting circulation in your face.

33. Or make you own at home with a hot shower!

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If you don't have the time, money or energy to go out to a proper sauna, then you can always do your best with what you have at home! You can have an extra hot bath or shower to get the room steamed up to sweat out clogged pores from there and enjoy a steam facial.

34. Wash your face ASAP after a workout

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Make sure that you're not waiting too long to shower after a hefty workout. It's not just about sitting in sweat or being a bit stinky, it's about the sweat staying on your face and clogging up your pores, which can either make blackheads worse, or risk causing them in the first place.

35. If you're squeezing, don't use your nails

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It's easy for us to say don't squeeze your blackheads - because you ideally shouldn't - but if you just can't help yourself or you're going for the extraction method with your fingers, definitely don't use your nails - they're likely to have dirt on them, as well as it being a risk factor for scarring.

36. Using an extractor tool is your best bet

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If you are going with the extraction method, then using a dedicated tool instead of your hands is going to be easier and more hygienic! These sort of tools is what you'll expect to be used if you pay for a proper extraction with a facial, so you can try this at home instead.

37. Give a skin spatula a go

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Skin spatulas are what you should go for if you're stepping up your at-home extraction tool game, as they're what professionals will reach for, too. Skin spatulas can also come in vibrating options which will better help to coax the blackhead from your pores. This will help to loosen up dirt on the skin.

38. Vitamin C is key

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Vitamin C is an essential for your skincare, but did you know it's also helpful in getting rid of blackheads? Vitamin C is an antioxidant - and the reason blackheads look black is because they are just oil that has oxidised from coming to the surface. So using an antioxidant like Vitamin C can help stop the oil from doing this so quickly.

39. You might need to learn when to surrender

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There are some skincare battles you just can't win - or at least some that wouldn't be safe to keep battling with. If you're targeting a specific black head that just won't budge, give it a few goes and then stop if it won't come out. This is because you can risk breaking the skin or capillaries if you keep going at it.

40. Go for a hydra facial

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Any facial is a good facial - but a hydra facial is a great one for blackheads. A hydra facial is designed to more deeply cleanse your pores without taking all the moisture out of your skin. It uses gentle suction to remove any trapped dirt in the pores - like the ones that cause blackheads.

41. Try going makeup free

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We know this might not work for everyone, but it could be worth giving it a go if you've been worried about your pores being extra clogged lately. Even just a couple days makeup free a week might help to let your pores breath and you can see if it makes a difference with your acne and spots!

42. Give a skin brush a go

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Using a skin brush on your face (gently!) can be a good alternative to exfoliating products. It's just another way of exfoliation, but it could be worth a go if you feel like you've tried other methods but they're not really working for you. You can buy small hand-held skin brushes for your face.

43. But only go for occasional exfoliation!

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It's important that no matter what product you're using for exfoliation - and especially a skin brush - you don't use it too often, and especially not once a day. This will strip your skin of too much and be too harsh! With exfoliation, you want to aim for once or twice a week, max.

44. Surprising causes of blackheads and breakouts: your pillowcases!

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Let's talk about what might actually be causing your blackheads to stick around in the first place. Your pillowcases could be the problem if you're not washing them regularly enough. Pillowcases hold on to dirt and oil, even if you've washed your face before bed.

45. Your makeup brushes

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Having a regular cleaning schedule for your makeup brushes is key, because you don't want to be spreading all that bacteria onto your face after it's built up on the bristles. You might think you're washing your brushes often enough, but if you're getting more breakouts, you may want to wash them more often!

46. You're touching your face too much

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You might be spending a lot of time and money on your skincare routine, making sure to take your makeup off and treating your blackheads with the right products. But if you're then spending all day touching your face, you're only risking rubbing dirt and bacteria onto it!

47. You might have a food allergy

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You might not know that you're actually intolerant or allergic to a particular food, even if you never have been before. Allergies can crop up at any time, so a certain food intolerance might be making you break out more. Pay attention to what you're eating when you have worse-than-usual breakouts.

48. Too much sugar in your diet

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A high sugar diet could also trigger acne in people already prone to it, so you might want to double check your sugar intake, too. If you notice your skin is worse when you've been eating a lot of sugary snacks or knocking back the sugary drinks, drop them and see if it makes a difference!

49. You're using loads of hair styling products

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You might not have even related your hair products to your face - because why would you? - but if you're using a lot of greasy or oil hair products (like gel) these can easily seep onto your skin at the hairline and cause acne, blackheads and whiteheads near your hairline.

50. You're removing facial hair

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We get it - that pesky chin hair or moustache fuzz just keeps coming back quicker than expected! But if you're removing facial hair with wax strips or hair removal cream, you might be irritating the skin, causing a rash and then causing pores to become clogged or inflamed.