Milia spots are small, white-colored bumps that appear just below the skin's surface. They most often appear on the face, particularly on eyelids, and also occur on other parts of the skin and mucous membranes. The spots occur when dead cells accumulate below the skin's surface and form a small cyst instead of exfoliating. Milia spots are common and are brought on by the use of products that inhibit exfoliation such as cosmetics, skin creams, hairspray, mousse, gel, sunscreen and lip balm. Because milia spots are formed by trapped skin cells, exfoliation is the key to their removal.
Step 1
Rinse the area of skin affected by milia spots and wash with a gentle exfoliating or microderm abrasion scrub. You do not need to rub your skin vigorously, as the scrub will exfoliate naturally.
Step 2
Pat your skin dry with a soft towel.
Step 3
Apply a vitamin A cream, which should thin the skin's epidermal layer and help exfoliate the skin further. Repeated use of vitamin A cream will help to remove existing milia spots and may prevent future ones.
Step 4
Use at-home facial peels. Follow all instructions on the product, and do not use the peels more often than directed, as skin damage may occur.
Step 5
If milia spots continue, consult a dermatologist. You may want to consider dermatological microderm abrasion therapy or glycolic acid peels to exfoliate the areas with milia spots. You can also have the dermatologist extract the milia spots by cleaning the area, opening the covering skin and providing pressure to pop out the milia spots.
Tips and Warnings
- Most milia will disappear over time as the cells in the cyst naturally exfoliate. If you have many milia spots, however, you may not want to wait for the natural process.
- When exfoliating the skin to remove milia spots, be careful not to use too harsh a method that can damage the skin. Instead of scrubbing vigorously, use washes and soaps that gently exfoliate. Do not try to extract milia at home because it is unlikely that you will be able to sufficiently sterilize the skin or your equipment.
Things You'll Need
- Exfoliating scrub
- Soft washcloth
- Soft towel
- Vitamin A cream
- Facial peels
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