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Skin Expert: Milia
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Beauty Bible’s Resident Skin Expert, Dermalogica’s Caroline Parker helps a reader understand what milia is and how it can be treated…

Milia are small oil deposits that get trapped underneath the surface of the skin. As they are not exposed to oxygen the oil does not turn the brown/black colour that we know as a comedone or blackhead.

They are usually caused by putting a layer of something occlusive over the surface of the skin. Examples of common causes are: using a moisturiser or eye cream that is too heavy for your skin, using eye makeup (especially eyeshadows); using skin care products that have mineral oil in them. As far as mineral oil goes this is commonly used in eye makeup removers as it is a very good solvent for water proof makeup – however, the problem is that it is not water soluble so you are left with a fine layer of mineral oil on your skin even after you rinse with water. This coating of the skin is a common cause of milia.

So, if you have milia the first thing to do is to look at what you are using around your eye area and see if any of the causes listed above apply to you and discontinue with use of the product that has caused it.

To treat the milia you could visit a qualified skin therapist who will be able to remove them during a skin treatment, this will involve making a small incision and gently expelling the milia. Usually a therapist would remove a few milia at a time so it is not too traumatic on the skin and once the small incision is healed there should be no mark left on the skin.
Alternatively If the milia are too close to your eye for a skin therapist to work then you would need to visit a Dermatologist.

Some people seem more prone to developing milia than others so if you are someone who is prone then you need to be extra careful to avoid products which have comedogenic ingredients in them as they are known to block your skin, and look for cleansers and eye make up remover that uses water soluble oils if you like to wear eye make up. Also make sure you have a great exfoliant that you are using regularly – getting rid of those dead skin cells will also help prevent the milia forming.

Good luck!
Caroline

Caroline Parker has worked for Dermalogica NZ for the last 10 years as an instructor. She is responsible for teaching postgraduate education to qualified therapists and she attends international training in LA and Sydney every year to learn new skills and update her knowledge. We think it is pretty safe to say there ain't much about skin that she doesn't know!
Beauty Bible is lucky enough to have her on board as our resident skin expert - so if you have a question about skincare, skin condition, or skin issues click to Ask the skin expert