Most skin care marketing is total BS. Yes, I've said it - let the beauty gods strike me down. But it's true. Back in the day, when it was considered inappropriate to mention acne, periods, or pus in advertising, the beauty world developed a lot of euphemisms ("cleanse," "erase," "clear" products, etc.) to talk about skin care. And yet, a century later, this jargon has remained largely unchanged, resulting in a flood of questions about how to "erase" pores, "unclog" them, or "get rid of" them altogether. While pores cannot be erased or unclogged, they can be made smaller or shrunken.

Marie Claire spoke to a roster of experts to get the lowdown on pore cleaning and learn what you can actually do. Let's get one thing clear: Pores are genetic. 'The number of pores, along with the size of each pore, is genetically determined,' says Mona Gohara, M.D., assistant clinical professor at Yale University. 'The only way to affect the appearance of pores is to unravel their DNA.'

Dr. Howard Murad, who describes pores as openings in the skin where hair follicles and sebaceous glands are located, explains that the tiny blackheads you see in pores are sebum secreted when the pores become dirty.

"Acne and blackheads are the result of blocked hair follicles," Dr. Murad says, "which allow sebum, dirt, and bacteria to accumulate inside the pore and enlarge in diameter. In addition, he says, excessive sebaceous glands, UVA and UB rays, and aging are all factors that weaken and damage pores over time. (The idea that you can "get rid" of what's in the pores is kind of a fallacy," Dr. Gohara says. ) "They think that the pores are large because they are excessively clogged with dirt, and that if you remove that dirt, the pores will swell up and disappear."

If you are prone to oily skin, I hate to say it, but that is most likely why your pores are so bothersome. As dermatologist Dr. Muneeb Shah explains: "When sebum production is high, the pores fill up with dead skin cells and sebum, leading to enlarged pores. A good step for any skin type is to start with a cleanser like Skin Fix's 2% BHA Cleanser (opens in new tab).

If you are reading this right now with a pore strip pressed firmly against your nose, dear reader, I am not going to make you any happier. Because pore strips do not actually improve pores. In fact, they are quite irritating.

"What you are doing is peeling off the top layer of the epidermis, damaging the skin barrier and creating inflammation, excess oil secretion, and even blackheads," says Dr. Gohara. The spiky pile of gunk that you see on the strip after it is peeled off is primarily natural oils and keratin, not what you are actually trying to remove.

"[Pore strips] temporarily remove this buildup, but it is not a long-term solution because the pores will continue to fill with oil until your next use. Having a skin care routine that removes buildup is a much better option," says Dr. Shah.

In case you need more reasons to stay away from pore strips, let's say this: "By squeezing, rubbing, and peeling the pore, you think you're removing the contents of the pore, but in reality, you're only removing the top of the pore," Dr. Gohara explains. The pore is like a bottle of soda, and because these products only remove the cap, rather than emptying the entire bottle, you are left with a clogged pore."

There are several things that can be done to reduce the size and appearance of pores, but don't expect Photoshop-grade miracles. 'Oily skin types tend to have larger pores than dry skin types. So, in theory, if you reduce the oil, the pores will appear smaller.

The quickest way to dissolve gunk in pores is with chemical peels. The skin-friendly acids in chemical peels are lipophilic, meaning they prefer oil, so they can penetrate the skin and dissolve dead skin cells, oil, and bacteria. To use Dr. Gohara's metaphor, you can't empty the entire soda bottle, but you can get as close to "unclogged" pores as possible.

When looking for home products to reduce sebum, choose products that contain glycolic or salicylic acid. You can also incorporate retinol into your nightly regimen. Along with smoothing out fine lines and wrinkles, retinol stimulates collagen production, reduces keratin buildup, and slightly tightens pores.