Skincare Myths I've Battled for 30 Years in the Treatment Room

Thirty years in aesthetics teaches you many things, and one of them is that skincare myths never die — they just get new packaging. The same misinformation I corrected in the nineties now arrives in my Stockton treatment room via social media instead of magazine ads. So let's do some housekeeping. Here are the myths I've spent three decades gently dismantling, one client at a time.

Myth 1: Pores open and close

Pores are not tiny doors. They have no muscles, so nothing — not steam, not cold water, not an ice cube — opens or closes them. What steam actually does is soften the oil and debris sitting inside the pore, which makes professional extractions easier and safer. Cold water can make skin look tighter briefly, but the pore itself hasn't gone anywhere. Pore size is mostly genetics; the honest win is keeping them clean, which genuinely makes them look smaller.

Myth 2: You don't need sunscreen indoors or on cloudy days

UVA rays — the aging ones — pass through clouds and windows all year long. That gray December sky and your seat by the office window are both still delivering a slow drip of sun damage. Daily SPF is the single cheapest anti-aging product that actually works, and I said as much at length in my Central Valley sunscreen guide this summer. The season changed; the advice didn't.

Myth 3: Oily skin doesn't need moisturizer

This one causes more self-inflicted damage than almost any other. Oil and hydration are different things — oil is what your skin produces, hydration is the water content in the skin itself. When oily skin gets stripped and left unmoisturized, it often responds by producing more oil to compensate. So the shine you're fighting is partly a protest you organized. Oily skin does beautifully with lightweight hydration; what it hates is the strip-and-starve routine.

Myth 4: If it tingles, it's working

Sometimes a professional exfoliating treatment produces a brief, expected tingle — that's controlled and monitored. But a daily product that stings, burns or leaves your face hot is not "activating." It's irritating. Skin that's frequently inflamed ages faster and reacts more, which is the opposite of everyone's goal. Comfort isn't a sign your products are too weak; it's usually a sign your skin is being treated correctly.

Myth 5: There's one right routine (and it has twelve steps)

Every year a new "correct" routine goes viral, and every year I meet the people it broke out, dried out or burned out. Skin varies by person, by season, by decade of life — which is why every appointment at my studio starts with a professional skin analysis, and why I keep multiple product lines on the shelf instead of pledging allegiance to one. Most people need fewer, better-chosen products, not more. And I'll add the myth-adjacent truth nobody profits from telling you: more expensive isn't automatically better, and "natural" isn't automatically gentler. Proof over marketing, always — it's the philosophy my whole practice is built on.

And a quick lightning round for the myths that didn't earn a full section: no, toothpaste is not a spot treatment (it's an irritant with a mint smell). No, drinking more water alone won't cure dry skin, though hydration never hurts. No, you can't sweat out toxins through a facial — that's your liver's job, and it isn't taking applications. And no, skincare doesn't stop working because your skin "got used to it"; usually your skin changed, or the product was never doing much to begin with.

The antidote to all of it is the same: stop guessing, get your actual skin looked at by someone whose job is looking at skin, and build from there.

Frequently asked questions

Does steam open your pores?

No — pores have no muscles, so they can't open or close. What steam does is soften the debris inside pores, which makes professional extractions easier and safer. Useful, just not for the reason the myth claims.

Can I shrink my pores permanently?

Pore size is mostly genetic, so no product shrinks them for good. What you can do is keep them clean and clear, which makes them look dramatically smaller. Regular gentle exfoliation and professional facials do exactly that.

If a product tingles, does that mean it's working?

Usually it means it's irritating you. A brief, mild tingle from a professional exfoliating treatment can be normal, but burning, stinging or lasting redness from a daily product is your skin objecting — not applauding.

How do I find out what my skin actually needs?

Get a professional skin analysis — it's included in every appointment at Truth In Beauty, since all my bookings are all-inclusive. Fifteen minutes under proper light with an experienced eye replaces years of guessing at the drugstore.